EFL Cup 2nd Round
Broadfield Stadium, Crawley
Admission: £10.00
Programme: £1.00
Attendance: 5,109
I had only visited the Broadfield Stadium a fortnight ago, and it is rare indeed that I take in any EFL Cup action, and this would be my second this season, having taken advantage of the opportunity to pay one last visit to Griffin Park in the last round during a week off from work. But the opportunity to watch a Sussex club play at home against a Premier League club was an occasion I did not want to miss, all the more as the club offered discounted pricing for this fixture compared to league fixtures (half price, for where I chose to sit).
For this game, I chose to sit in the only area I had not previously watched a game from, the East Stand. A temporary looking stand that was opened in 2012 and stretches virtually the whole length and backing on to the A23 dual carriageway, views are not great from here, with plenty of supporting pillars along the front, but its intimate nature and its roof really augmenting the chanting and drum beating. As for the programme, for me what Crawley produce is the future for printed programmes. The glossy 16 page publication is ample to provide a good preview of the match, not loaded with irrelevant information, "fillers" or advertising, and costs just a pound. I believe this is the standard format for all of Crawley's games, and hopefully they see an upturn in programme sales following the introduction of this format.
On the face of it, the odds would be massively stacked against Crawley progressing this evening, as a League Two outfit, and so ply their trade three divisions below Premier League newboys Norwich. Manager Gabriele Cioffi thought as much, as he mentioned his club had a 1% chance of winning this evening. But as expected, they would not be playing against the Norwich first eleven - far from it, in fact all 11 players were changed from the team that lined up against Chelsea in the Premier League last season. On paper, the team that Norwich put out should still have had enough quality and experience to prevail. In the previous round, Crawley won 2-3 at Walsall, whereas tonight would be Norwich's first game in this season's competition.
At the end of another hot day, conditions were quite warm and humid this evening, and with the stadium close to capacity - including a full contingent of away supporters - a good atmosphere was certainly generated at kick-off. It looked likely that that atmosphere might soon be dampened down though, as Norwich went straight for the jugulars and the Crawley players struggled to close the Norwich players down quickly enough. It looked like only a matter of time that the deadlock would be broken, and although it was in the 17th minute, it was massively against the run of play, as Crawley scored it. Following a corner, Bez Lubala received the ball back, ran toward the left edge of the penalty area, and then struck a powerful low shot which took a deflection off defender Sam Byram to divert the ball past keeper Ralf Fährmann and into the net, to send the home crowd into raptures.
For the rest of the game, Norwich always looked the better, more composed team, as would be expected, but for all of their neat passing, the end product was mostly lacking, and at times fortune favoured Crawley, as the woodwork denied Norwich on a couple of occasions, and shots were either well saved or blocked. After their goal, Crawley did hold their own for long periods, and created some decent chances themselves. As it was, Crawley's lead remained precarious right through to the end, but roared on by some impressive support from the stands, which increased with intensity as the game drew to a conclusion, Crawley managed to hold on and seal progression to the Third Round.
So a great night for Crawley, who will now await with anticipation to see who they will play in the Third Round draw, and for me, this was the second major upset I have witnessed in this season competition, after seeing Cambridge United win against a team from two divisions higher in the last round.
Video highlights of this match can be viewed by clicking here
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