Bromley vs Crewe Alexandra preview
If there is a definition of a yo-yo club, Crewe Alexandra seem to fit the remit.
Since 2006, they have been relegated from League One three times and promoted from League Two twice.
Last season, they missed out on a third promotion from League Two when they lost 2-0 to Crawley Town in the League Two play-off final at Wembley.
In the team that day was Bromley’s Lewis Leigh, who appeared 16 times on loan for the Railwaymen after his loan spell at Hayes Lane ended in January.
Crewe have experienced upward momentum since Lee Bell took charge in November 2022. Bell finished his first half-season in 13th place before guiding Crewe to a 6th place finish and subsequent play-off final last season.
Speak to your average Crewe fan and they will say that Bell has restored the feeling.
He negotiated last season with a very young squad. In fact, the average age of Crewe’s starting lineup was just 21.9 years old. Those longer in the tooth will know that this is generally in keeping with the traditions of Crewe and their famed academy.
Talent aside, given the inexperience of Crewe’s young squad, a 6th-place finish might be seen as a huge overachievement.
Players like Lewis Billington (20), Matúš Holíček (19), and Joel Tabiner (20) are all starters who are showing a maturity ahead of their ages.
But, as so often happens when sides overachieve with talented youngsters, some of the assets have been stripped.
This summer, 18-goal striker Elliott Nevitt rejected a new contract at Crewe for a better offer at League Two rivals Gillingham. Pacy defender Rio Adebisi, meanwhile, departed for just over half a million pounds to Peterborough United of League One. Another important player who turned down a new contract was Crewe’s talented centre-back and captain Luke Offord, who accepted an offer from Mike Williamson’s MK Dons.
A key issue that Lee Bell has had to address in the transfer window is Crewe’s loss of goals. Not only did they lose Elliott Nevitt in the summer, they also lost 10-goal Courtney Baker-Richardson. The rangy frontman was offered a new contract but turned it down to sign for Newport County.
In response, Bell has signed two experienced strikers in the shape of Omar Bogle and Kane Hemmings from Newport County and Stevenage Borough respectively.
Some talented youngsters have also arrived on loan, with Jamie Knight-Lebel (Bristol City), Max Conway (Bolton), and goalkeeper Filip Marschall (Aston Villa) all passing through the doors of Gresty Road.
Meanwhile, Max Sanders (Leyton Orient), Jack Lankester (Cambridge Utd), and James Connolly (Bristol Rovers) have all arrived permanently from League One.
Despite these promising additions, Crewe’s start to the season seems to have suffered something of a play-off hangover. The Railwaymen have failed to win, or score, in any of their three opening league games.
On Tuesday night, some of that stuttering form was alleviated with a 5-1 win at home to Liverpool U21s in the Football League Trophy, but whether that will serve as a kickstart or a false dawn remains to be seen.
Bromley’s unbeaten start to the season ended at Bradford City last Saturday when Ashley Charles’ sending-off in the 8th minute effectively killed the game as a contest.
The red card means Charles will miss Bromley’s fixture with Crewe.
In theory, this opens the door for Lewis Leigh, whose partnership with Jude Arthurs in the centre of midfield against Bradford showed promise. However, given Bromley’s transfer deadline business, there is no guarantee that either of them has a starting place nailed down.
News emerged on Friday that Bromley have signed experienced midfielder Ben Thompson on a season-long loan from Stevenage Borough. With over 200 Football League appearances across the Championship and League One, it seems unlikely that Andy Woodman has brought Ben to the club to be a squad player.
Competition for places just got a lot fiercer.
In other transfer news, Bromley have also added pacey young striker Josh Thomas on loan from Championship side Swansea City. Thomas was no doubt encouraged by the experience of his former schoolmate Cameron Congreve, but it remains to be seen how Andy Woodman will utilise him.
With five strikers already at the club, where does Josh Thomas fit in? He is a run-in-behind kind of forward, so who has fallen down the pecking order to accommodate him?
Going into the Crewe game, apart from the replacement for Ashley Charles, I don’t expect too much tinkering from Andy Woodman.
An opportunity for experimentation presents itself on Tuesday night when Bromley face Cambridge United in the Football League Trophy. I expect the likes of Louis Dennis and Ben Thompson to get significant minutes in that game, alongside other players on the cusp of a place in Andy Woodman’s starting XI.
Whether any spots are up for grabs will probably depend on the performance against Crewe.
So, over to you.
Given the loss at Bradford, would you mix it up a bit?
The From Bromley with Love XI
Smith
Grant Webster Reynolds
Imray Leigh Arthurs Odutayo
Congreve Whitely
Cheek
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Love this context-filled, well-written history and analysis.
“Shake it up, make a scene
Let them know what you really mean”
Let’s Go, Bromley!