Fans restless as Reds lose (From The Argus)

Fans restless as Reds lose

3:30pm Monday 16th November 2009

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FOR the first time this season Crawley fans voiced their anger as their side slumped to a third home defeat of the season.

There was no disgrace losing to a well-organised Mansfield side whose boss David Holdsworth hailed their best away performance of the season despite losing Matt Somner to two yellow cards in the space of four minutes midway through the second half.

The play-off chasers defended superbly and always looked a threat on the break. On this evidence they are certainties for the play-offs.

But it was a huge anti-climax from a Crawley perspective after they appeared to have turned the corner when they beat York so impressively a fortnight ago. It is now one win in eight games.

A section of the home crowd aimed some disparaging comments as their frustration grew in the second half although Evans’ assistant Paul Raynor shrugged it off as a little local difficulty.

He said: “You always get a small minority who want to boo but they must have been very spoiled by previous managers here. Silly people will always want to make silly comments.”

But the alarm bells must be ringing in the boardroom. There have been smaller crowds at the Broadfield but 177 on Saturday came from Mansfield which meant it was the lowest home contingent this season.

Evans referred in his programme notes to the “hundreds of thousands” of pounds invested by directors Susan Carter and Bruce Winfield and you shudder to think where Crawley would be without their generosity on home gates averaging less than 1,000.

While the Stags can boast a first-team squad of 30 players Evans has been told he can only bring in a new striker by taking another player off the payroll.

That is why he sanctioned Jefferson Louis’ loan move to Rushden and Diamonds, even though he is top scorer with five goals.

Former Albion striker Nathan Elder, who is with Shrewsbury, was lined up as a replacement but that deal fell through although a new face could be on board in time for Saturday’s trip to Hayes and Yeading.

After the way Calum Willock and Danny Forrest played against York, Evans felt he could get by with the forwards he had especially as Charles Ademeno is fit after a knee injury.

But Reds were so toothless up front that Mansfield keeper Alan Marriott was never seriously extended. Gary Silk cleared Chris Giles’ header off the line, Forrest dragged a shot just wide and Willock was caught unawares when Simon Rusk drilled the ball into the danger area and it bounced off his team-mate a yard out and over the bar.

But that was the sum total of Crawley’s attacking efforts. Mansfield defended solidly and in Ryan Williams and Jake Speight they had outlets who could stretch Crawley down the flanks.

Raynor said: “Apart from a 15 minute period in the first half when we were as nat’s whisker away from creating a couple of chances we didn’t move the ball quickly enough in the final third.

“They know the way we want them to play and when we do that we are a match for any side in this league but we didn’t pull them around enough.”

Evans changed things at the break without any discernable improvement and if it had not been for substitute goalkeeper Nick Jordan the margin of defeat could arguably have been greater.

Deputising for Simon Rayner, who was struggling for breath after taking a blow on the ribs, the former Portsmouth youngster made a full-length save to keep out Speight’s drive before he dived bravely at the feet when Kyle Perry was through.

Speight had given his side an 11th minute lead from close range when Reds defended poorly at a corner and they made the game safe in the 76th minute when Paul Heckingbottom harnessed the gale-force cross cross-wind to side-foot a free kick from 25 yards beyond the helpless Jordan. It seems to be a case of one step forward and one back at the moment for Reds.

Evans will step up his efforts to freshen up the squad ahead of a busy spell between now and Christmas but what he must crave above all else is some consistency from his side who have hit the heights and then plumbed the depths all too easily this season.

Crawley (4-4-2): Rayner (sub: Jordan 45), Rusk, Broadhurst, Quinn, Giles, Cogan (Malcolm 45), Wilson, Pinault, Smith, Willock, Forrest (Ademeno 62). Subs: Hutchinson, Killeen.

Booked: Giles (foul) Mansfield: Marriott, Silk, Jones, Garner, Heckingbottom, Speight (sub: Mills 83), Brough, Somner, Williams, Sturrock (Istead 71), Perry (Duffy 85). Subs: Mills, Armstrong, Eley.

Booked: Somner (foul), Perry (ungentlemanly conduct)

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