Crewe Alexandra vs Port Vale. Sky Bet League One.
Alexandra StadiumAttendance6,357.
Saturday 13 September 2014 18:29, UK
Crewe claimed their first points of the campaign with a 2-1 home win over neighbours Port Vale on Saturday.
The Railwaymen, beaten in all five previous League One matches, rose to the occasion and stunned their rivals when they raced into a two-goal lead in the first-half thanks to George Ray and Vadaine Oliver. Ray turned from saint to sinner when he pulled back Jordan Slew to hand Vale a penalty, which the on-loan Blackburn striker converted at the second attempt. Crewe got the perfect start when Ray hooked the ball home from 10 yards in the sixth minute after Marcus Haber rose the highest to head on a free-kick. The Vale defence looked suspect as Steve Davis' side dominated in the air. From skipper Matt Tootle's superb cross, Oliver doubled the lead in the 19th minute when he jumped at the far post to head powerfully past Chris Neal. Youngster Billy Waters could have put Crewe out of sight, heading against the crossbar and then seeing another effort headed off the line by Adam Yates. Vale were handed a lifeline with the 32nd-minute penalty, which Slew polished off after Ben Garratt parried his first kick. But they lacked the quality to carve open a resolute Alex rearguard. Former Crewe striker Tom Pope should have done better, but drove his shot straight at Garratt.
