League Cup 2nd Round: Crewe 2-3 Bolton

Our next up and coming game is against Crewe Alexandra at Gresty Road, kick off is on Tuesday the 26th August at 7:45PM.

Do any of you feel that Dougie and the team will have dusted themselves down, taken their medicine and consider resorting to plan B?

What do you feel the outcome will be?

As poor as we have been playing recently I still expect us to come out on top in this - then again Bury took us to extra time so who knows.

Bolton win 2-0.

Extra time defeat.

Scrappy game,but 2-0 to us. Although I won't be putting money on it.

I'd expect us to win. I don't think they have won this season yet either.

After a promising start Steve Davis looks to be having a bit of a mare at Crewe. He was my choice for the Burnley job after Howe went. It's probably just as well that I don't have any involvement in picking the manager.   

They're shipping goals for fun, so 3-1 to Bolton.

Ref watch: Harrington on duty

Cleveland-based referee Tony Harrington will take charge of Wanderers’ Tuesday night Capital One Cup clash with Crewe Alexandra.

Wanderers were one of the sides involved in Mr Harrington’s first ever Championship match last season, their 1-1 draw with Yeovil Town back in September, while his first ever League One match came the year before coincidentally between the Glovers and our hosts Crewe.

Nicholas Gibbons and Jonathan Hunt will run the line, while Mark Astley is the fourth official.

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I'm going for a 2-0 win to the trotters for this game.

I'm hoping a full "strength" Bolton side gets stuffed 5-0 by 9 man Crewe.

I'm wondering if Dougie will use this game to experiment a bit?

Perfect chance to play a back 3 with White or Threlkeld on the right and Kellett or Moxey on the left in a more adventurous 352 or 532 whatever you want to call it.

Or is Kellett injured?

We've played 4 games with 4 different teams. How much more could he experiment?

Natasha Whittam wrote:We've played 4 games with 4 different teams. How much more could he experiment?

He could try fielding a winning team for a change?

wanderlust wrote:
He could try fielding a winning team for a change?

Too old fashioned for Douglas.

I still think going for 352 with Mills Wheater and Ream at the back plus two wingbacks - especially with the pace of White and Kellett - would be playing to our strengths.

We will be in front then behind and then in front again 3-2 whites.

Preview: Crewe Alexandra v Bolton Wanderers

SETTING THE SCENE

Both Wanderers and Crewe come into this tie eager to bounce back after suffering reversals at the weekend.

Having endured an unfortunate run of results in their respective league campaigns, the Capital One Cup second round clash presents the chance for each side to return to winning ways.

Tuesday’s match also marks the first meeting between the Whites and Crewe since the 2000/01 season, with Bolton recording a 4-1 victory the last time they clashed with the Railwaymen at Macron Stadium.

ALL-TIME RECORD

	Crewe wins	Draws	Bolton wins
League	3	5	4
FA Cup	0	0	2
League Cup	0	0	0
Total	3	5	6

TEAM NEWS

Both Adam Bogdan and Kevin McNaughton will be assessed ahead of the clash, with the former having suffered an eye injury in the first half against Brighton at the weekend while the latter missed the trip to the Amex Stadium with a hamstring injury.

Elsewhere, Mark Davies also remains a doubt as he nears a return after fracturing his toe in pre-season, with Marc Tierney and Sanmi Odelusi the only other absentees for the Whites.

LAST TIME OUT

23/08/2014: Swindon Town 2-0 Crewe Alexandra

Goals from Swindon’s Yaser Kasim and Andy Williams saw Crewe suffer their fourth successive league defeat as they slipped to bottom of the League One table.

Iranian Kasim’s first half free-kick put the Robins ahead before Williams sealed the points late on, leaving Steve Davis’ side, who failed to register a shot on target, still in search of their first league points of the season.

Crewe: Garratt, Tootle, Guthrie, Ray, Dugdale, Turton, Molyneux (Inman, 84’), Waters, Ness (Atkinson, 35’), Grant, Haber (Oliver, 84’)

ONE TO WATCH

Marcus Haber

A summer signing from relegated Stevenage, Canadian international Marcus Haber has enjoyed a successful start to his Crewe career, despite his side enduring a testing opening month to the 2014/15 season.

After starting the Railwaymen’s first three games of the campaign on the bench, the 25-yard-old started Crewe’s home clash with Rochdale last week, scoring both of the Alex’s goals in a 5-2 defeat.

Keeping his place for their weekend defeat against Swindon, the tall forward represents Crewe’s best attacking threat, and will be keen to add to his early tally as Steve Davis’ side look to prolong their run in the Capital One Cup.

LAST TIME WE WERE HERE

18/4/2001: Crewe Alexandra 2-1 Bolton Wanderers (Holdsworth, 62’, Hulse, 67’, Ashton, 89’)

On their last visit to Crewe, this 2-1 defeat all but ended Wanderers’ hopes of winning automatic promotion to the Premier League.

Dean Holdsworth had put the Whites ahead just after the hour mark, only for Rob Hulse to equalise minutes later before Dean Ashton notched a controversial late winner.

It was not all doom-and-gloom for Wanderers however, as they would not lose another match all season as they did eventually win promotion via the play-offs, beating Preston North End 3-0 in the final.

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Dean Ashton and Rob Hulse FFS.

I think the pressure will be on for the Leeds game at the weekend so maybe our hearts won't be in this one. If we lose against Leeds Dougie will be on the rack. Maybe he'll not risk regulars?

I'm predicting a scrappy and ugly match with us winning one nil. It will be a horrid performance which Dougie will hail as 'heroic' and claim that the win is proof we've 'turned the corner'. 

But in all honesty I would not be all THAT surprised if we managed to lose and then DF will blame 'bad luck, refereeing decisions, a single tiny mistake, an overflying pigeon that blocked Lonergan's view, a lightning strike on the scoreboard that made the display wonky, a conspiracy by the CIA and KGB(he hasn't caught up with events in Russia yet, he thinks Gorbachev is still in charge) and finally it will all be the fault of Jordan Ibe for not coming here on loan when he was supposed to.'

I think I got most of his pre-packaged excuses there. Let me know if I missed any.

He experiments that much i'm calling him the mad professor from now on.

If we scrape a win he will sit there telling us all there was no luck involved and it was all down to his masterplan, if we lose he will tell us that there are a group of honest player's in the dressing room who are all disappointed, but at least he will be one game closer to the sack!!!