Boss says there is more to come from on-loan Newcastle youngster

Crewe Alexandra boss Steve Davis says that new loan signing Liam Smith showed glimpses of his potential against Wolverhampton Wanderers on Friday evening. The 20-year-old from Newcastle United was thrown in for his unofficial debut at Gresty Road and he partnered Billy Bingham in the centre of the Alex midfield before being replaced at half-time by James Jones.

Crewe ended up losing the friendly game 2-0 to a strong Wolves outfit - but Smith and other ‘debutants’ would have benefitted from playing on the home pitch for the first time.

Steve told the club’s official web-site: “I threw Liam in a bit because he only joined us the day before and we haven’t had any real time to work with him. I think that sometimes with these young lads, you just have to give them a chance and see how they do.

“That approach can sometimes be the best policy and he did some good things and some not so good, but he has quality. I am sure he would have enjoyed the intensity and speed of playing a team like Wolves. He won’t be used to that, playing Under-21 football.

“We are sure to see more from him and it will be interesting to see how he does this week in training and with the two games.”