Crewe Alexandra vs. Tranmere Rovers match preview

Rovers travel to Crewe looking to give travelling fans something to cheer about

For both teams, this game is almost a non event with niether side having anything to play for in the remaining two games of this season.

The game however will be Dario Gradi's final game as Crewe Alexandra manager as he moves upstairs following 24-years in the job which has brought both himself and the Crewe fans plenty of happiness and success.

Elsewhere in League One this weekend, there is a huge game at the bottom of the table at Saltergate as 22^nd placed Chesterfield take on 21^st placed Bradford. If Cheltenham beat Rotherham, then both Chesterfield and Bradford will be relegated. Bradford will be sent down to League Two if they are beaten by Chesterfield, whilst Chesterfield could also make the drop even if they do win if Cheltenham pick up at least a point against Rotherham. A draw or Bradford win would send the Spireites down, but a win could also send Bradford down depending on Cheltenham's result and he results from Bournemouth vs. Gillingham and Leyton Orient vs. Nottingham Forest.

At the top of the table, a win for Bristol City away to Millwall would secure them automatic promotion whilst a win for Yeovil at home to Doncaster would secure their place in the play-offs.

Crewe Alexandra team profile:

Formed: 1877

Ground: Gresty Road

Manager: Dario Gradi

Nickname: The Alex/The Railway men

Season Finish 2005/06: 22nd (Coca-Cola League Championship)

Previous Meetings:

When the two sides eventually met earlier this season, Tranmere ran out 1-0 winners at Prenton Park after a first half goal from Gareth Taylor against his former club.

The game was originally postponed twice in December in the space of four days, as first the arranged Friday night fixture was postponed due to a waterlogged pitch and then four days later the re-arranged match was postponed due to fog. The game was then re-scheduled for Tuesday 16^th January and the game went ahead third time lucky.

Gareth Taylor scored the only goal of the game in the 19^th minute after Calvin Zola had charged down a clearance from the Crewe defender before the ball fell to Taylor who netted from a tight angle.

Tranmere never looked like losing from here on in and could have had more goals with former Manchester United 'keeper Williams preventing Zola and Shuker stretching Tranmere's lead whilst Steve Davies hit the bar for Rovers as they moved back into the play-off places.

Vital Stats:

Rovers have won just 16 times in 61 trips to Crewe

Tranmere and Crewe have previously met three times on 28^th April, with a 1-1 draw in 1951 and 3-0 wins for Crewe in 1962 and 1984

In 124 matches between the two sides, there have been a total of 366 goals

The teams have met in a total of five different divisions, Division 4, Division 3 (North), Division 3, Division 2 and Division 1 (now League's One, Two and Coca-Cola Championship)

There have been 13 meetings between the two sides in the League Cup but none since the 1982/83 season

The Form Book:

Crewe last 6 home games: WWWLDL
Tranmere last 6 away games: DLLWLW

Crewe come into the game in good form at home, with three consecutive wins under their belt as the season draws to a close, this after a run of three home games without a win.

Most recently at home, Dario Gradi's side defeated play-off chasing Oldham 2-1, meaning that had Tranmere won lost weekend they would be within just three points of the play-offs.

This win followed up a 3-1 win over relegated Brentford, the result which actually sent the Bee's down into the bottom tier of the English football league and this followed up a 1-0 win over Rotherham United, another team who have been relegated from Coca-Cola League One.

However, previous to these three wins Crewe were three without a win at home after a defeat to Scunthorpe United (3-1) was followed up by a draw with Brighton and Hove Albion (1-1) and defeat to Bristol City (1-0).

Other notable results at Gresty Road for the Railway Men this season include wins over Doncaster Rovers (2-1), Carlisle United (5-1), Gillingham (4-3), Bournemouth (2-0) and a 2-1 defeat to Manchester United in the Carling Cup Third Round, this following a 2-0 victory over Wigan Athletic in the second round of the same competition.

From a total of 22 home games this season, Crewe have won on 11 occasions to go with three draws and defeats. They have picked up a total of 36 points from an available 66.

Consistently poor away form through-out the season has been costly to Tranmere Rovers, with just five away wins in the whole of the season.

They are currently three matches without a win on the road, although they will be looking to build on a good 2-2 draw with Millwall in their last outing, a game which they lead 1-0 thanks to a goal from Shane Sherriff.

Before the draw with Millwall, Rovers had lost two consecutive away games in very different fashions. Firstly, a passionless display without a shot on target saw them lose 2-0 at Bournemouth which was followed by a 3-2 defeat to Blackpool, a game which saw Rovers have both Jason McAteer and John Mullin dismissed which probably cost them the game.

Tranmere however did pick up a vital three points before their defeat to Bournemouth as they travelled to Port Vale and picked up a 3-2 win with goals from Chris Greenacre (x2) and Kevin Ellison, this coming off a 3-1 defeat to struggling Leyton Orient.

However, just a week before the victory over Leyton Orient, Tranmere had picked up one of, if not the best, away result of their season with a 2-0 win at Yeovil Town thanks to two goals from Chris Shuker.

Other notable away results for Tranmere this season include wins against Chesterfield (2-0), Northampton Town (3-1) and Brighton and Hove Albion (1-0).

From a total of 22 away games this season, Tranmere have picked up five wins, seven draws and been defeated ten times. They have picked up just 22 points from an available 66 and have the most defeats on the road in the top nine of League One.

Double Hit:

With both the clubs being close both geographically and in terms of footballing talent down the years, there have naturally been a number of players who have represented both clubs, including current Tranmere players Gareth Taylor and Chris McCready.

Chris McCready started his career with the Railway Men as a trainee in 2000 and it appeared as if the 6'01 tall defender would become another successful product of the Crewe acadamy system.

However, the number of appearances he made at Crewe was severly limited by injury and in six years with the Alex, McCready made just 80 appearances.

In the Summer 0f 2006, Dario Gradi took the decision to release McCready, who can play anywhere across the backline, and Ronnie Moore took a gamble on him, signing McCready on a one year contract last summer.

Since joining the Wirral club, Elsemere Port born McCready has become a huge success, his partnership with Ian Goodison being a vital part in Tranmere's success in the first part of the season.

The 25-year old has been an almost ever present for Tranmere this season, making 45 appearances and scoring his first career goal in the process against Millwall in a 3-1 win for Rovers.

One To Watch:

One Crewe player to watch out for is striker Nicky Maynard, another successful product of the Crewe academy system under Dario Gradi, which has seen them produce talents such as Robbie Savage, Dean Ashton and Danny Murphy.

Maynard made his Crewe debut in 2005 after being snapped up from local non-league side Quorn and has since gone on to make 39 appearances since his debut.

The real breakthrough for Maynard has come this season, as he has scored 19 goals already with two games still left to play, including seven in his first eight games.

In total, Maynard has scored 20 goals in his career, including three goals in seven cup games for the Railwaymen.

His pace and trickery makes him a constant threat, although with his relitively small height he should not pose any airial threat unless he comes up against Chris Shuker.

Crewe have one of the most prolific strike partnerships in the Football League when Maynard is partnered with Luke Varney.

Team News:

Jason McAteer and John Mullin can be selected once again by Ronnie Moore after returning from three match bans picked up away at Blackpool a number of weeks ago. However, Rovers will once again be without John Achterberg (ankle) and Carl Tremarco (hamstring) for the game, although Craig Curran is expected to retain his place in the XI and could even start upfront whilst Steve Davies and Paul Henry could also feature.

Jones' Prediction: Crewe 2-2 Tranmere