Boss says there were gains to be made from opening friendly game at Nantwich

David Artell believes that the 2-1 defeat at Nantwich Town that marked our first pre-season game provide the ‘perfect jolt.’ The Crewe Alexandra boss felt that his side were slow to get going at the Weaver Stadium and only really improved the intensity of performance in the second half when 10 changes occurred.

Artell was pleased that most of his squad acquired 45 minutes of game time with only young full-back Travis Johnson suffering a niggling injury. He had to be replaced by Rio Adebisi in the first period.

Following the opening friendly, Artell told the club’s official website: “This was a bit of a jolt and a welcome back, but it's the first game of pre-season and you just want minutes under the belt.

"I thought it was a perfect start for us. We lost the game but it's not about that.

"We only lost one lad to injury, Travis (Johnson), who had a niggle anyway and perhaps shouldn't have played.

"And when you get a team like Nantwich, who aren't going to whack us but will get right in your face, then it's the perfect start to pre-season.

"Everyone got 45 minutes virtually, so it has been a good day.

"For all the training and running we've done, we haven't done any team shape or patterns. I think we have done one session on shooting, so it's all been physical work and getting their legs back.

The boss added: "We'll ramp that up now, get the patterns and the shape started, and we'll be up and running.”