Crewe Alexandra famously once scored seven times at Underhill as Barnet marked their Football League debut. On that occasion back in August 1991, Barnet scored four times in an unforgettable afternoon in North London.
This afternoon at Gresty Road, Crewe Alexandra scored seven times but encouragingly without reply to finally get their league campaign up-and-running in style. Crewe had been guilty of missing chances in their opening two league matches but they certainly tucked them home today.
Barnet struggled to contain Crewe's forward runs and were even caught out too many times from our set-pieces in around their box. It was an early baptism of fire for Barnet's new boss Mark Stimson who only joined the club in the summer after a spell at Gillingham.
Clayton Donaldson and Shaun Miller scored twice a piece, with captain on the day David Artell heading his first goal for the club when heading home a Joel Grant cross. Grant, on his return to the starting line-up helped himself to a goal from the edge of the box with a wonderful strike and youngster AJ Leitch-Smith completed the rout with his first senior goal for the club. It was vintage stuff from the Railwaymen and just goes to show the potential this team has if they pack their shooting boots with them.
After twisting his knee in training earlier in the week, target man Calvin Zola not risked for the visit of Barnet this afternoon. That resulted in a recall to the starting line-up for Joel Grant. The versatile Dan Shelley was named on the substitutes' bench.
Grant occupied the left flank, Shaun Miller the right, with Clayton Donaldson moving centrally to cover for the absent number 9.
Crewe Alexandra didn't miss Zola's aerial presence in the opening minutes of the game with Miller poaching a goal with his head after just four minutes. Left-back Danny Blanchett chased down a loss cause to deliver a cross across goal and Miller applied a flick onto Luke Murphy at the far post. Murphy intelligently headed the ball back across goal and Miller nodded home his goal of the new season.
It was the perfect start for the Railwaymen and settled any early nerves following two league defeats to Hereford and Cheltenham Town. Crewe were playing some really confident football and looking threatening every time either Miller or Donaldson ran in behind. The midfield three of Westwood, Murphy and Bell were finding their intended targets with precision and were making the Barnet central defender turn and face their own goal.
Miller volleyed wide in the early exchanges as he aimed to add to his early strike and then Westwood had a shot blocked inside a crowded penalty area following a scramble.
Murphy had an opportunity to make it 2-0 after 16 minutes but didn't apply enough contact to take it past the Barnet goalkeeper Jake Cole. Murphy went in on a Donaldson header with his chest inside of his head and that allowed Cole to get his foot to the midfielder's effort to loop it over the bar.
Crewe were on top and looking the more likely to score again. Donaldson lashed a splendid pass from Murphy way over the crossbar. Donaldson doesn't need telling that he should have kept his shot down and tested Cole. It could have have been the matchball at the end of the game.
On 25 minutes, Miller headed over after a fine delivery from full-back Matt Tootle. It wasn't an easy chance for the lively forward who had to arch his neck to get any substantial connection to the cross.
Although it was Crewe doing most of the attacking, the visitors still offered some threat on the counter-attack with winger Ricky Holmes showing signs of pace and Glenn Poole involved in most things for the Bees before he was forced off through injury in the second half. Barnet were not troubling the home side's goalkeeper Rhys Taylor nearly enough.
Crewe quite deservedly doubled the lead on 34 minutes after the energetic Bell had forced an error in midfield thus allowing Miler to pinch possession and slide a perfect through ball into Donaldson. The striker who continued to cause havoc with his pace raced past the last defender Daniel Dennehy before calmly slotting his first of the season past Cole. The Barnet keeper had stumbled as Donaldson collected Miller's pass to give him absolutely no chance of reaching the ball before the Crewe forward.
The 2-0 goal cushion made Crewe enter the comfort zone for a brief spell before half-time and after Poole had volleyed a shot well wide they did have a chance to halve the deficit on the stroke of half-time.
The Alex defence were way to casual in trying to clear their lines and that presented Poole with a chance but he drilled his shot into the legs of Taylor. Crewe's onrushing goalkeeper had preserved his clean-sheet going into the break.
It didn't take the Alex too long at the beginning of the second period to end the match as a contest. The goal, taken superbly by Grant, began from a Blanchett throw-in and after the ball had been returned to the left-back, his cross was cleared to the edge of the box, only for the Alex winger to return it with real interest. Grant had tormented Barnet last season and was at it again this afternoon.
Barnet needed to keep their discipline and credit to them they did, but full-back Jordan Parkes was booked for a rash challenge from behind on Donaldson.
Crewe looked like they were going to score almost at will. Donaldson headed at goal and Bell drilled a well-struck shot just wide after both Donaldson and Miller had tried to take the ball in their stride within the six-yard box.
The fourth goal arrived on 57 minutes when Grant picked out captain Artell superbly with another accurate cross into a packed penalty area. The quality was so good that Artell could hardly have missed from close range.
Two minutes later it was 5-0 with Donaldson nodding home a Westwood free-kick at the far post. It was far too easy for the Railwaymen.
The fifth goal led to a number of substitutions with Poole limping off to be replaced by Danny Kelly. Crewe also introduced Byron Moore and AJ Letich-Smith for two-goal hero Donaldson and the influential Grant.
Barnet kept themselves going though looking for a mere consolation goal on what was an instantly forgettable afternoon for the Londoners. They tried to get a goal for their travelling fans with Ada making a timely block to deny Holmes and defender Danny Leach heading over from a corner but credit to the Alex defence who were determined to have a shut-out.
With 15 minutes remaining, Crewe scored their sixth goal of such a one-sided game after Jake Cole could only push a curling shot from Westwood into the air and that allowed Miller to rush in for a simple tap-in from virtually on the line. It was a great effort from Westwood and Miller did what all good strikers do by following in any rebounds.
Local lad AJ Letich-Smith rounded off a perfect afternoon and arguably we saved the best goal to last. A wonderful passing move that involved one-touch passing and great movement completely unravelled the Barnet defence and Murphy slipped Leitch-Smith through on goal. The Crewe-born Academy graduate was as cool as you like to score his first goal for the first team and the Railwaymen were in 7th heaven.
