Crawley picked up another impressive home victory this afternoon with a win over high-flying Barrow. Ashley Nadesan finished off a free-flowing Crawley move after an excellent ball from Dom Telford. Barrow threw it all at the Reds in the second half, but some excellent defensive work ensured all three points stayed in West Sussex.
The Reds started the match brilliantly and took the lead in the 6th minute with a beautifully carved-out move. Ellery Balcome played a delightful long pass to Nick Tsaroulla, who neatly found Dom Telford with his first touch. Telford waited for the perfect amount of time to square the ball across the goal and find his strike partner Asley Nadesdan, who tapped in at the back post.
Barrow were looking very solid in attack, and Josh Kay was having a real influence on the match from the Barrow midfield. Fortunately, for the opening twenty minutes, the Crawley defence had been on top form. Joel Lynch was having a fine game fresh from his 90 minutes at Turf Moor earlier in the week.
Balcombe was forced to make a fantastic save to deny Tom White just before the half-hour mark. A Barrow corner was cleared to the edge of the Crawley box where White was lurking. The Barrow man hit a well-struck volley towards goal, which Balcombe smartly tipped over his bar.
There wasn’t much else to shout about in the first half. Both sides had plenty of the ball, but after Crawley’s opener, neither side looked confident in front of goal.
The Reds looked confident on the other side of the break and created a couple of early chances as they searched for a second goal. Tsaroulla stung the palms of Paul Farman after a silky solo run, and Dom Telford almost finished acrobatically from a Tsaroulla cross moments later.
Barrow thought they had equalised in the 58th minute, and the ball looked to have crossed the line after a goalmouth scramble. Referee Carl Brook was not happy with something from a Barrow forward and signalled for a foul. The Barrow players and coaching staff were furious and swarmed the referee, but their complaints fell on deaf ears.
Tom Fellows and Aramide Oteh were introduced by Lewis Young as Barrow themselves had made changes.
With ten minutes to go, Crawley were still in control of the scoreline, but Barrow looked dangerous with their changes, which looked to be setting up a nervy ending at the Broadfield Stadium.
Crawley held to claim an excellent three points and continued their impressive home form. Lewis Young has not been beaten in the league during his time as Interim Manager, and the Broadfield Stadium has been turned into a fortress once again.
REDS XI: Balcombe, Francomb, Francillette, Lynch, Tsaroulla, Powell, Hessenthaler, Jenks, Nadesan (Oteh 78’), Telford (Fellows 60’), Nichols
Attendance: 2588 (Away 150)
