Grant Dims Crewe Hopes
By Longsider
February 16 2005
Press reports from our game at Gresty Road last night. We have reports from the Sporting Life, Guardian and the Times.
Grant dims Crewe hopes The Clarets looked on course for a second successive victory, one that would have enhanced their chances of gatecrashing the top six, but their rhythm was interrupted by a 20-minute break caused by an electrical fault. "The stoppage did not help us," said Steve Cotterill, Burnley's manager. "We were in the ascendancy and had played some good football until then."
That the game was completed, however, did have one positive aspect for Cotterill, as it lessened the chances of a potential fixture pile-up for a club that is also still involved in the FA Cup.
By contrast, Crewe's failure to win for a fifth successive game has left them well adrift and needing to arrest a slide that has left them almost as close to the bottom three as the top six.
A bright opening by Burnley, who had Peter Whittingham making his debut on loan from Aston Villa, suggested Crewe's winless sequence was set to continue. Frank Sinclair, back in the side after serving his third suspension of the season, soon outjumped his markers but his header lacked power. And not long after that, John Oster's 20-yarder tested Clayton Ince.
Such was Burnley's domination that their goalkeeper Brian Jensen's first task of note was to pick the ball out of his own net, after Crewe's Steve Jones had put it there.
Jones began the move after Sinclair lost possession on halfway and, having exchanged passes with Luke Varney and taken the ball along the edge of area, turned and fired past Jensen for his 10th of the season but his first in 10 games. Compared with Tony Grant Jones is positively prolific, however. Burnley's holding midfielder adopted a more attacking stance in the second half and was rewarded with his first goal for more than two years, from a deflected 18-yard shot. A second for Burnley looked imminent, until the gremlins had the last word Crewe 1 Burnley 1 Sporting Life
Tony Grant's goal ensured Burnley warmed up for Sunday's FA Cup fifth round clash with Blackburn with a deserved point in a Coca-Cola Championship game at Crewe which was interrupted by floodlight failure. Steve Jones had given the Alex an undeserved first-half lead but former Everton man Grant levelled the scores on 53 minutes before the stadium went dark with 13 minutes remaining - causing a delay of 22 minutes, after which neither team could find a way through. Burnley had looked dangerous from the kick-off and the home side had barely threatened before Jones made the most of a Frank Sinclair error. But Grant's goal made sure the visitors got some reward for their adventure, while Dario Gradi's side are now without a win in the seven matches. The Clarets came away from their weekend game with Coventry with more than just a 2-0 win - manager Steve Cotterill took the opportunity of a Friday training session at Aston Villa's training ground to sound out counterpart David O'Leary about youngster Peter Whittingham. Having completed a one-month loan move on Monday, the England Under 21 international was straight into Cotterill's starting line-up here and he almost had an immediate impact, although Clayton Ince's challenge on him was not deemed worthy of a penalty following Grant's fourth-minute throughball. There were other bright early touches as the Clarets, despite Ian Moore being dropped to the bench, showed plenty of attacking intent. Micah Hyde also hit a shot over and skipper Sinclair, recalled following suspension, headed straight at Ince after connecting with a Jean-Louis Valois free-kick, while John Oster also forced the goalkeeper into some early work with a powerful shot from distance. Despite a poor start, Crewe took the lead with their first attack in the 18th minute, after Sinclair misjudged a lofted ball forward, leaving Jones in space. The Northern Ireland international traded passes with Luke Varney and, even though Clarets goalkeeper Brian Jensen got a touch to his shot from the edge of the area, Gradi's side were in front. Ince pulled off a fine block from Valois' powerful effort from just outside the area as the Clarets were again frustrated, while at the other end Varney headed just over from Kenny Lunt's free-kick and Jones gave Jensen a routine save as the opening period came to a close. After the break, the Clarets were unable to find any of their earlier fluency, but they were back on level terms eight minutes after the restart. The impressive Valois again found space down the left and with Crewe unable to get a convincing clearance on the Frenchman's cross, the ball fell to Grant, who equalised from just outside the area, thanks to a heavy deflection off Colin Murdock. As the home side tried to restore their lead on the break, Lunt shot just over from 30 yards and Varney stabbed just wide, while Stephen Foster glanced a header narrowly wide from a deep and straight Anthony Tonkin free-kick. With the game firmly in the balance, the two teams had to leave the pitch as the game was held up after the lights went out. When they returned, Hyde thrashed a shot wide after meeting Michael Duff's cross, while Crewe substitute Neil Sorvel forced Jensen to rush out and block his shot before cleverly feeding Andy White, whose shot failed to trouble the Clarets stopper. Cotterill introduced Moore for the final five minutes - but it failed to produce any change to the scoreline. Teams
Crewe: Ince, McCready (Sorvel 78), Foster, Tonkin, Murdock, Bell, Cochrane, Lunt, Varney, White, Steve Jones (Vaughan 77).
Subs Not Used: Williams, Higdon, Rivers.
Goals: Steve Jones 18.
Burnley: Jensen, Sinclair, McGreal, Duff, Camara, Oster, Grant, Hyde, Whittingham, Valois, Branch (Moore 85).
Subs Not Used: Coyne, Roche, Cahill, O'Neill.
Booked: Whittingham.
Goals: Grant 53.
Att: 7,718
Ref: M Atkinson (W Yorkshire). The TImes
The players had to leave the field in the 77th minute when the power failed and emerged 22 minutes later. Supporters who stuck around may wonder why they bothered.
Steve Cotterill, the Burnley manager, declared himself happy with the result, but if his team are serious about adding another Barclays Premiership scalp to that of Liverpool, who were knocked out in the third round, they can ill afford to be so profligate in front of goal.
“We didn’t deserve to win, but I was pleased with the performance and I know what team I’ll play now on Sunday,” Cotterill, whose side remain twelfth, one place above Crewe, said. “We could have done without having to go off and I don’t think anybody wanted to go back out.”
Crewe had won only once in their previous six games, but if they are short on confidence, they did not show it.
CREWE ALEXANDRA (4-4-2): C Ince — C McCready (sub: N Sorvel, 77min), S Foster, C Murdock, A Tonkin — S Jones (sub: D Vaughan, 77), K Lunt, L Bell, J Cochrane — L Varney, A White. Substitutes not used: B Williams, M Higdon, M Rivers.
BURNLEY (4-4-1-1): B Jensen — M Duff, F Sinclair, J McGreal, M Camara — J Oster, M Hyde, A Grant, J-L Valois — P Whittingham — G Branch (sub: I Moore, 85). Substitutes not used: D Coyne, L Roche, M O’Neill, G Cahill. Booked: Whittingham.
Referee: M Atkinson.
Adrian Milledge at Gresty Road
Wednesday February 16, 2005
The Guardian
Burnley effectively extinguished Crewe's fading hopes of reaching the play-offs last night but a floodlight failure had a similar effect on their own chance of winning the game.
Burnley fail to make sparks fly in wake of light fiasco
Crewe Alexandra 1 Burnley 1
THE floodlights packed in briefly at Gresty Road last night, and if Burnley’s hopes of progressing beyond the FA Cup fifth-round tie against Blackburn Rovers on Sunday are not to fade, they will need to show more spark than against Crewe Alexandra in the Coca-Cola Championship last night.
Crewe had taken a deserved lead on 16 minutes when Steve Jones finished a fine move that he had started, but the visiting team drew level shortly after the resumption when Tony Grant’s shot found the back of the net courtesy of a deflection off Colin Murdoch.