Walsall were handed a big boost before kick-off with Bradshaw given the all clear to start up front after recovering from a groin strain which kept him out of the midweek loss to Chelsea which meant Deano had to make some changes , and it was three in all as Jordan Cook, Kieron Morris and Rico Henry made way for Andy Taylor, Anthony Forde and the fit again Bradshaw.
Now Blackburn once had the SAS (Sutton and Shearer) and Liverpool had the RAF (Rush and Fowler) but I prefer some nice soulful R&B (Romaine and Bradshaw) and with Pistol Pete M.I.A it was up to me to keep block N rocking, so when super Tom had an unmarked header to score from on 3 minutes, block N and the rest of the Banks's was doing just that.
The Saddlers were seeing a lot of the ball in the early stages but Crewe got themselves back on level terms just before the 20 minute mark when a free-kick for the railway men was only half cleared allowing Lauri Dalla Valle to cushion the ball into the path of centre-back Ben Nugent who fired home a low drive from 25-yards.
Even then it still looked like Walsall would go ahead and win the game comfortably and immediately went on the hunt to restore their lead with a lovely through-ball from Sam Mantom sending Jason Demetriou down the right-flank and the full-back’s teasing low cross looked to pick out Bradshaw at the back post but defender Harry Davis expertly slid in to clear the ball for a corner.
The Saddlers continued to put pressure on with Mantom seeing two strikes from distance both saved by Ben Garratt following fine build-up play and then Lalkovic came within a whisker of putting us in front just before half time when he cut inside the box and curled a strike just past the far post.
Now Blackburn once had the SAS (Sutton and Shearer) and Liverpool had the RAF (Rush and Fowler) but I prefer some nice soulful R&B (Romaine and Bradshaw) and with Pistol Pete M.I.A it was up to me to keep block N rocking, so when super Tom had an unmarked header to score from on 3 minutes, block N and the rest of the Banks's was doing just that.
The Saddlers were seeing a lot of the ball in the early stages but Crewe got themselves back on level terms just before the 20 minute mark when a free-kick for the railway men was only half cleared allowing Lauri Dalla Valle to cushion the ball into the path of centre-back Ben Nugent who fired home a low drive from 25-yards.
Even then it still looked like Walsall would go ahead and win the game comfortably and immediately went on the hunt to restore their lead with a lovely through-ball from Sam Mantom sending Jason Demetriou down the right-flank and the full-back’s teasing low cross looked to pick out Bradshaw at the back post but defender Harry Davis expertly slid in to clear the ball for a corner.
The Saddlers continued to put pressure on with Mantom seeing two strikes from distance both saved by Ben Garratt following fine build-up play and then Lalkovic came within a whisker of putting us in front just before half time when he cut inside the box and curled a strike just past the far post.
SKY BET LEAGUE 1 - HALF TIME
WALSALL 1 - 1 CREWE ALEXANDRA
After the break Walsall started where they left off When Demetriou crossed the ball into the six yard box with Bradshaw getting ahead of his marker to glance a header towards goal but Garratt scrambled across his goal to push the ball for a corner. Then the best chance of the second half came when Bradshaw headed the ball towards goal but Forde could only get the faintest of touches and was unable to divert the ball past Garratt.
It was becoming very frustrating for players and fans alike as we controlled the majority of the game but Crewe had put the bus out to stop us from scoring a 2nd. Smith then made two changes bringing Lalkovic and Forde off for Cook and Morris and it took a top drawer save from Garratt to keep out Cooks goal bound effort.
Then just before the end Demetriou had a thunderstorm of a shot cannon off the crossbar and by this time I realised it was just one of those days for the boys in red.
14 corners and 21 shots later ,the final whistle went, and for me and many others around me it was a sense of bewilderment that we only came away with a point!
It was becoming very frustrating for players and fans alike as we controlled the majority of the game but Crewe had put the bus out to stop us from scoring a 2nd. Smith then made two changes bringing Lalkovic and Forde off for Cook and Morris and it took a top drawer save from Garratt to keep out Cooks goal bound effort.
Then just before the end Demetriou had a thunderstorm of a shot cannon off the crossbar and by this time I realised it was just one of those days for the boys in red.
14 corners and 21 shots later ,the final whistle went, and for me and many others around me it was a sense of bewilderment that we only came away with a point!
SKY BET LEAGUE 1 - RESULT
WALSALL 1 - 1 CREWE ALEXANDRA
GOALS | Bradshaw (3') - Nugent (18')
ATTENDANCE | 4,229 (394 Crewe)
REFEREE | Mr. James Linington
BY CORY LEES | @corylees