Boss praise for job John Coleman and his staff have achieved at Accrington.
Crewe Alexandra come up against promotion contenders, Accrington Stanley this evening, with the aim of getting back to winning ways.
The Railwaymen have slipped to 14th in the table after a host of teams played their games in hand and on the back of successive defeats to Peterborough and Swindon.
Since the turn of the year, Crewe have won two, drawn four and lost three of our 9 matches.
In contrast, John Coleman’s in-form Accrington side have lost one in the last 8 and arrive in South Cheshire in 7th place. They are currently a point off of Sunderland in the final play-off place but with a game in hand.
Artell is a keen admirer of the job that Coleman and his trusted sidekicks, Jimmy Bell and coach, John Doolan have achieved at Accrington over many years. Coleman has been in the hot-seat at the Crown Ground since 2014 and has taken them from the Northern Premier League and into League One.
Ahead of tonight’s fixture at Gresty Road, Artell told us: “John, Jimmy and John Doolan have done a terrific job and they are very good at what they do. They deserve all the plaudits that come their way because they are a very good team.
“People still take them lightly because of where they have come from or the resources they have but I think that is disrespectful because they are a good side at this level. They have been terrific this season.
“I’ve seen them a few times and they are very good. I went to see them at Doncaster recently and they won 1-0. They are an efficient and effective side.
“They have a bit of everything. They don’t play long ball, so get that out of your head. They can play, they can be physical and they work their socks off. They have many facets to their play and that makes them a tough side to play against.
He added: “It is going to be a right tough game and we have to stand up to that and show our quality.”