The 5th Dimension. There were lots of red and white balloons floating around this afternoon, but none of them feel as light and floaty as I do writing this.
Here it is. Wembley. The League 2 playoff final. It is sinking in. After the incredible 5-1 away victory last Saturday night against the Milton Keynes Dons, one that made Crawley Town record breakers as we recorded the biggest ever aggregate winning margin in our 8-1 aggregate win. The seven-goal margin breaking the previous six goal margin someone racked up in a 9-3 aggregate win previously.
That someone happened to be today’s opponents, Crewe Alexandra who took Walsall to the cleaners back in 2016. They made it to the final after overcoming a 2-0 home defeat against the seemingly previously unstoppable Doncaster Rovers. They won the away leg by the same 2-0 margin, even after extra time, and it went to penalties. The Crewe keeper spotted the Doncaster keeper’s water bottle had details of which way to dive when facing Crewe player’s penalties and took the water bottle and threw it into the crowd. Crewe then won on penalties to make Wembley.
They won the toss to be the nominal home team for the playoff final and so will be playing in their red kits, which means we will be playing in white. Which someone pointed out was the colour of kits worn when securing the club’s last three promotions. Saying that, we don’t have the best record against Crewe, we lost both home and away against them in the league this year (and they did look like one of the best sides we played all season), and in total we have a poor record against them, having won only the one in thirteen attempts.
Sunday was a day to try and take in just what Crawley had accomplished on the Saturday night, with securing their first ever visit to Wembley, which we passed on the train on the way back from Milton Keynes, before tickets went on sale on the Monday morning.
Ah yes, Wembley ticket sales. Which means having to deal with those ultimate of robbing bastards, Ticketmasterbators. In releasing tickets only block by block they called caused the illusion of sold-out tickets by 9:30am, half an hour after went on sale. And for fans, desperate to be a part of Crawley’s big day, to panic buy odd tickets dotted around instead of being able to get them together. Only for more blocks to be released piecemeal. At least there was a belated service to be able to ring and change tickets to ones together or in more wanted areas.
We were waiting for level two tickets to be released, and for them to be more to the side rather than directly behind the goal. More comfortable seats and a better view for this particular old git. In the meantime, our neighbour Clare secured us Club Wembley level tickets through her friend (thank you Kelly – the seats were great) and besides Helen and I, Clare’s dad Pete and another neighbour Lynn will be heading to Wembley. The fretting went away somewhat, but better communication would have helped seeing as Helen had already bought Ticketmasterbators vouchers to get the tickets with. And better general communications from Wembley and Ticketmasterbators about how they were planning on releasing tickets would have been more helpful and less stressful for fans all round. Anyway, the club had sold twelve thousand tickets by the end of the day, a figure that had risen to over sixteen thousand by the end of Thursday.
Playoff merchandise was sorted and on sale by Tuesday afternoon to order for pickup at the club later in the week. I thought I was remarkably restrained in not ordering one of everything. Instead, just getting the Corey Addai t-shirt, the Que Sera Sera t-shirt, and a scarf for me, and the Nick Tsaroulla t-shirt for Helen. Some items sold out quickly and it intrigued me to see that all items were available in the following sizes: 9-10 years old, XS, small, medium, large, XL, 2XL, and 4XL, but none in 3XL, which for a number of years was my required size.
Friday was spent wating for the email from the club to say that my order was ready for collection. But as I was out and about, I nipped into the shop at 5pm and they sorted the order there and then, so all good.
I realised in the build up to this game that will be the first time I have been to the new Wembley stadium to watch a football game. I had been to the original Wembley to see England and Tottenham play before, but I had only been to the new ground to watch numerous NFL games.
This morning saw the mass exodus from the town by train, car, and coach, and an early Thamestink train from Crawley, a change at Farringdon to the tube, and then the Metropolitan line up to Wembley.
The platform at Crawley station was busy and once everyone got on a Crawley the train was standing room only. Only for lots more to get on at Three Bridges, and then for carrying amounts of people wearing Crawley gear all the way up to Purley. The other platform at Three Bridges was absolutely jam packed with fans waiting for the faster Thamestink train from Brighton. Our train had been a couple of minutes late due to the volumes getting on at Ifield before it got to us.
Wembley has a strict bag policy, where nothing bigger than A4 size is permitted. And then they produce a programme which is A4 in size and therefore won’t fit in any bag that you are allowed to bring to the ground, You really couldn’t make this shit up. But the programme, although expensive at a tenner, is a great programme, as it should be for a game of this stature at the home of English football.
There is the view up Wembley Way when you come out of the tube station before heading down the steps at Wembley Park, and it is a view that no one should ever tire of.
We were in the ground and seated before half eleven, which meant I was there in time to watch the Utilita Kids cup final between Walsall and Bradford City, which Walsall won. Which could be a bad omen seeing as they were in red and Bradford were in white, and Crewe being in red today and us in white. Although I’m hoping the good omen of Oxford United winning yesterday’s League One playoff final cancels that out, seeing as, like us, they scraped into the final playoff spot on the last day of the season and won their final.
Having left the house with it being a bit overcast we were pleased to see that the sun was trying to get out by the time we passed Horley, and it was clear blue skies and sunny once at Wembley.
I was hoping they put enough lotion on the head of the bald pundit down on the pitch, as the one who opted for a jacket was looking uncomfortable down there in the hot sun and kept wiping the sweat from his brow.
And filed under things I never thought I would see is this shirt.
Crewe aren’t in all red, as they’ve managed to wangle wearing white shorts without us having to change to black ones. A bit odd, but here we go. Kick off.
The first ten minutes are very cagey. No shots, no half chances, nothing in either penalty area. It takes until the fourteenth minute before the first shot arrives. Kellen Gordon cross is headed out and it comes to Liam Kelly, but his volley is over the bar.
The action is starting to warm up. We work the ball down the left wing, there are some nice one-twos along the way, and it gets into the box, and L Kelly gets a shot on target which is comfortably saved by the Crewe keeper. The first yellow of the game follows shortly afterwards as Dion Conroy is taken out in the middle of the park.
On twenty-four minutes the ball goes out for a throw and a drinks break is called. Something I didn’t see watching the League One playoff game on TV yesterday. After the restart we work it down the left again and play a ball into Klaidi Lolos, he turns back and forth to get a shot off, but it is a weak effort and straight at the keeper.
It takes thirty-six minutes for Crewe to get their first shot, one from outside the box, and Corey Addai is down well to push the ball around the post for a corner. Five minutes later there is a long clearance from Addai, it is collected and passed to L Kelly, who pings it to Danilo Orsi, who turns to find room to take a shot and buries it in the corner of the goal and Crawley lead 1-0. Absolute scenes.
And we are nearly straight back in from the restart. Going down the right Gordon gets a cross in and Jeremy Kelly has a shot deflected for a corner, and from it there is a header over the bar. There are four added minutes at the end of the half. During which Crewe get a throw near the corner flag (they were blatantly offside though), and a long throw comes in, and Addai collects well amongst bodies. We get it up field to Lolos again, and he has a shot from thirty yards out which is high and wide, and the whistle goes for half time with us leading 1-0.
We start the second half as we finished the first, on the front foot, getting an early corner. Only for there to be a kamikaze back pass from Adam Campbell which has Addai in no man’s land and the Crewe attacker one-on-one with him. The ball goes past Addai who sticks a foot out. The attacker goes to the ground and a penalty is given and Addai is shown a yellow card. But here comes our first VAR decision in a game ever, the ref goes over to the pitch side monitor and the penalty is rescinded, as is the yellow card and it is a corner instead. No, a goal kick. No, a drop ball. Not sure anyone knows what is going on at the moment. But thank you VAR. Not that there was ever any doubt that Addai was going to save the penalty.
And that is the last action for Campbell. He is subbed off, seemingly as a result of that back pass, but more likely a planned change and Ronan Darcy comes on. We get another corner; a Gordon cross is deflected behind. The corner is short to L Kelly and his cross is headed out. Gordon wins it back and charges into the box and his shot is well saved. Another cross follows, and there are some appeals for handball, but nothing given and no VAR check.
More substitutions are made, Crewe make a couple, and Gordon goes off to be replaced by Ade Adeyemo. L Kelly is hauled down and it draws another yellow card and a free kick thirty yards out on left hand side of penalty area. It comes in and is headed away as far as Adeyemo whose shot is over the bar.
Jesus wept, another kamikaze back pass sees Crewe with the ball on the byline in the box, but the cross is cleared. We break and the ball is worked across for Darcy to have a shot which is deflected over for a corner. We are having a great spell of possession, pinging it about on the edge of the Crewe box, and Darcy gets another shot off which is just over. And there is a second half drinks break as well.
We are having more pressure now. J Kelly is down the left to the byline, with a lovely piece of skill to get a cross in, but it is just too deep. Recovered by Darcy and he gets it to L Kelly whose shot is saved for a corner. It is cleared but it is won back, and Lolos can’t get space for a shot, it goes to L Kelly who can’t either, and out to J Kelly whose cross is blocked for a corner which is cleared. That is won back in midfield, and we get a free kick forty yards out which is cleared.
Crewe get a long throw near the box, and it is worked back in, but the header is easily saved by Addai. Dion Conroy steps out of defence, wonderfully cutting two Crewe players out of the game, then pings a ball of beauty through to the onrushing L Kelly in the box. He initially tries to square it for Orsi, but it is deflected back to him and with the keeper going the wrong way he slots it in, and it is 2-0. Deep breaths. Nearly there.
There are ten added minutes as the crowd is announced as being 33,341. We make a couple of more subs when the ball eventually goes out of play, with J Kelly and Lolos coming off to be replaced by Nick Tsaroulla and Jack Roles. Crewe get a couple of shots in quick succession, one is easily claimed by Addai, and the other goes over the bar. At the other end there is a late chance for Orsi to put the icing on the cake as he brilliantly leaves the defender for dead and gets his shot away, but the keeper saves.
The full-time whistle goes, and we have won. 2-0. Promoted. Can you believe what we have witnessed over the last couple of weeks.
It is party time. The players make their torturous way up to the royal box to pick up the playoff winner’s trophy, with Liam Kelly being named as man of the match, before coming back down onto the pitch for the set-up photo opportunities and ticker tape parade.
We are there a long time after the final whistle, still trying to soak up as much of the glorious atmosphere a win at Wembley and promotion can give you.
The walk back down Wembley Way is just like those floaty balloons. Walking on air. And the montage on the screen just before getting back to Wembley Park station says it all. Crawley Town certainly stepped up in the playoffs, and next season it will be a new set of teams to bamboozle and beat in League One.
The journey home is full of happy fans in crowded carriages. The parade is tomorrow night. It is not a day that will be forgotten.
Come on you reds.