Lee Bell admitted he felt for the Crewe fans who have had to endure a long wait for a home win.
A first-half penalty from veteran striker Kane Hemmings earned the Railwaymen a first league victory at Gresty Road in eight games, stretching back to March, as they consigned Morecambe to a fifth 1-0 defeat of the campaign.
The Cheshire side’s failure to spark in front of their own support dashed their automatic promotion hopes last term as they lost heavily to Forest Green, Grimsby and Wrexham and their first home outing this season saw them thrashed 5-0 by Chesterfield.
Their second win of the season was hardly achieved with a swagger and relied on some last-ditch defending and good goalkeeping from Filip Marschall in the closing stages, but Bell was glad to get over the line.
“It was really important that we got a win today. It wasn’t vintage and there was a bit of edginess from both teams. But it makes a difference to the fans as they’ve not seen us win a game at home since March,” the Crewe manager said.
“I’m absolutely buzzing for them that they’ve been able to witness a real hard-working performance from the players. The response after the Chesterfield defeat has been magnificent and that’s seven points we’ve collected since then.
“Morecambe are a good team, but they keep on losing by one goal, they’re just waiting for something to drop and it did for them in the second half when Filip made an important save.
“Hopefully the win will breathe a little more confidence into us and get us playing higher up the pitch. We’ve got above average touches inside the box for the league, but we’ve got to find a way of being a bit more ruthless.”
Crewe failed to threaten visiting keeper Stuart Moore until Shrimps defender Jamie Stott tugged Hemmings’ shirt as the striker looked favourite to get to a loose ball in the area.
Hemmings himself stepped up to convert the 43rd-minute spot-kick and he could have added to his tally in the second half.
But Morecambe fought back in the closing stages and Luke Hendrie could have punished an error by keeper Marschall but blasted wide.
Marschall then brilliantly kept out a Lee Angol effort and Shrimps substitute Adam Lewis went close several times with blistering strikes.
Morecambe remain rooted to the bottom of the table, but boss Derek Adams is convinced his side can turn things around.
“We were the better side and we had more opportunities on goal than Crewe,” said Adams. “We huffed and puffed in the first half and we didn’t have the quality from wide areas. We went more direct in the second half and caused Crewe problems.
“We could have had a number of penalty-kicks as well. But we have to be a bit cuter and better around the box as we are certainly getting in there.
“I’ve managed over 700 games and this team are a good side, they work hard, they run and they can play. I think their fortunes will change and when it does we will go on a really good run.”
Interim boss Stephen Frail expects Motherwell to appoint a new manager next week and admits their first job will be to lift the players’ confidence after a 3-0 mauling at home to Ross County.A double from Ronan Hale and Connor Randall’s last-minute strike secured an impressive victory for the Staggies at Fir Park.Defeat sees the Steelmen drop into the bottom half of the Premiership tab...
Mark Hughes heaped praise on goalkeeper Gabe Breeze after Carlisle picked up a vital point in the League Two relegation battle with a goalless draw against in-form Colchester at Brunton Park.Breeze made two excellent saves from Lyle Taylor as the Cumbrians ended a four-game losing run and the former Man City boss was astounded by the 21-year-old’s performance.He said: “The game had som...
Chesterfield boss Paul Cook launched a scathing attack on his play-off hopefuls after they surrendered an early lead to lose 3-1 at Sky Bet League Two table-toppers Walsall.The Spireites enjoyed a rapid start when Jamie Grimes’ eighth-minute header put them ahead against a wobbling Walsall side, who were winless in five matches with the chasing pack closing in.However, Bim Pepple and Dylan D...
Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola has allayed fears of an injury scare to top scorer Erling Haaland ahead of next week’s Champions League trip to Real Madrid.Haaland went down clutching his leg in the latter stages of the champions’ 4-0 Premier League thrashing of Newcastle at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday and was immediately substituted.Losing the Norwegian would be a major blow to ...
Rotherham manager Steve Evans described Thomas Parsons’ performance as “atrocious” after the referee awarded a stoppage-time penalty from which Reading snatched a 2-1 victory in League One.Reading had led 1-0 at half-time through top scorer Harvey Knibbs but Sam Nombe levelled for Rotherham from a spot-kick in the 57th minute.With the game heading for a draw, Parsons adjudged Mil...
Michael Flynn believes his team can make a charge towards the League Two play-offs places after watching them come from 2-0 down to beat Barrow 3-2 at home.Matty Taylor scored twice before fellow substitute Ashley Hay hit the winner as the Robins continued their perfect home record in 2025.Cheltenham climbed to 13th in the table and sit eight points off seventh-placed Crewe with two games in hand....
Birmingham manager Chris Davies praised Jay Stansfield’s work ethic after he lit up St Andrew’s with the only goal of a 1-0 win to sink play-off chasing Charlton.Stansfield’s 23rd-minute strike stretched City’s lead to nine points ahead of second-placed Wycombe, with Blues boasting a game in hand.Victory was City’s 30th in all competitions as they extended their unbea...
Andoni Iraola refused to get carried away after Bournemouth fans were left dreaming of a potential Champions League adventure following a first league double over south-coast rivals Southampton.Travelling Cherries fans chanted of playing in European football’s premier competition next season after their side soared to fifth spot in the Premier League table thanks to a deserved 3-1 success at...
Norwich head coach Johannes Hoff Thorup praised his side for fighting back to draw 1-1 at Hull after he demanded “I want to see my football team back”.The Norwich boss had some tough words for his team as they trailed 1-0 at half-time to the relegation-threatened side, including for Kellen Fisher – but the player then delivered the assist for Josh Sargent’s equaliser.The Un...
Celtic manager Brendan Rodgers says Jota has a chance of starting against Bayern Munich after scoring and impressing in a 3-0 victory over Dundee United.Jota earned the club’s man-of-the-match award after cutting in from the left and curling home from 18 yards to double the lead given to the hosts by another impressive finish from Callum McGregor.The Portuguese winger has now started two gam...
