Alexandra Stadium, Saturday 29th November 2014 (3pm), Sky Bet League One.
Rovers head to Cheshire looking to extend their magnificent away form.Paul Dickov’s side have won nine games on the road in all competitions this term and, having beaten Rochdale 3-1 at Spotland last week, face a Crewe outfit propping up the division.
This will be the 91st meeting between the sides in all competitions and The Alexandra Stadium / Gresty Road has proved a happy hunting ground for Rovers over the years.
Dean Saunders’ side wildly underestimated the plucky Railwaymen when they visited the Keepmoat in November 2012 and the visitors ran out comfortable 2-0 winners.
Fulham loanee Lauri Dalla Valle strolled in to the Rovers box and poked past Gary Woods within five minutes, before rangy midfielder Mathias Pogba sealed a miserable night in South Yorkshire for the hosts with his second half strike.
The return fixture yielded a watershed moment in Rovers’ promotion ambitions. A goal down 15 minutes in to the second half, manager Brian Flynn was quick to react to Max Clayton’s opener and sent on Billy Paynter to change the game.
Within ten minutes, he’d done exactly that and written himself in to cult status as Rovers fans started to believe.
One strike with unerring accuracy in to the bottom corner and another bit of nifty footwork from the Rovers forward saw the visitors, buoyed on by 1200 fans, home.
Attendance – 5465
Alexandra Stadium
League One
DRFC 2 (Paynter, 66, 70
Crewe 1 (Clayton, 54)
Last time out (13/04/2013):
CAFC - A Martin, G Ray, M Ellis, M Tootle, H Davis, B Inman (R Colclough, 75), M West (O Turton, 67), K Mellor, C Aneke (N Ellington, 78), B Moore, M Clayton
DRFC - N Sullivan, J McCombe, T Spurr, J Husband, R Jones, J Lundstram, J Coppinger, D Cotterill, D Furman, C Brown, I Hume (B Paynter, 60)
Head to head league results (in Crewe):
Rovers – 15
Crewe – 16
Draws – 11
Team News:
Rovers – Rob Jones, Cedric Evina and Jamie McCombe are inching their way back to fitness but Paul Dickov’s main selection headache is forced by form, rather than injuries or suspensions. Dean Furman (international) could stake a claim for a recall.
Crewe – Alex have recruited Anthony Stewart, Nicky Ajose and Uche Ikpeazu on loan to bolster their attacking options.
Fancy a flutter? Rovers 11/10, Draw 13/5, Crewe 11/4
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