.jpg)
Jamie Pitman selected Michael Townsend and Adrian Heath to start, in place of Benoit Dalibard and Andy Todd, and it appears that pre-match rumours of Mr Todd’s departure have not been exaggerated. The home side started brightly, with Nathan Elder causing problems for Crawley. His trickery won a corner, which Steve Leslie planted onto his head, but the effort flew wide.
With 9 minutes played, Leslie then pounced on a hesitant Claude Davis, pinched the ball and played a delightfully weighted pass to Barkhuizen who expertly steered it beyond Scott Shearer and into the bottom corner of his net. Davis was injured in the challenge and took no further part in proceedings.
The expensively assembled Crawley squad, shocked by the early reverse, set about chasing a leveller, egged on by an agitated Evans. A charging Hope Akpan was thwarted by Joe Heath, who chased tirelessly all afternoon in probably his best display in a Bulls shirt.
The powerhouse John Akinde for Crawley was proving a handful, showing some silky touches, but also seeming to get away with a number of fouls which went unnoticed and unpunished. Elder, Barkhuizen and Leslie continued to press, but the visitors showed why they are aiming for promotion with some competent defending, notably from Kyle McFadzean and Dean Howell, taking time out from his Mungo Jerry reunion tour.
A cross by substitute Scott Nielsen was cleared straight to Dannie Bulman, who could not keep his shot below the bar. Andy Drury fouled the dependable Rob Purdie, and then feigned injury to avoid the booking he deserved, and Akinde made numerous hefty challenges which also went unpunished. It was heart in the mouth time as David Cornell seemed to misjudge a high ball, but Heath was on hand to hack clear. From the resulting corner, Akinde glanced a header wide. Then, in the 41st minute, the Bulls made a hash of a loopy clearance, and the ball landed at the feet of Drury, who composed himself before blasting a low shot into the net from just outside the area. Shortly afterwards, home fans were grateful for an offside flag which chalked off a Matt Tubbs “goal”.
HT: HUFC 1 CRAWLEY TOWN 1
Purdie made a timely tackle to prevent Tubbs getting a shot away. Barkhuizen made a terrific turn and run from his own half, but lacked support, and then he was played in by an astute pass from Harry Pell, but slipped at the crucial moment. Meanwhile Akinde barged into David Cornell to concede a free kick, but amazingly still no yellow card. Drury tried his luck with a long range curler which cleared the goal. Barkhuizen’s cheeky through ball almost allowed Nicky Featherstone to get in a shot.
Although Hereford made some forward moves, it was the visitors who pressed for a winner, gaining a number of corners, and some unwarranted free kicks. Tubbs’s dangerous low ball was cleared by Ryan Green, Townsend made some timely headed clearances, and Purdie also defended well. Heath made a series of vital blocks to deny the Red Devils (!). Akinde’s acrobatic overhead kick came close, and then Leslie, who had won possession in midfield, could not find an outlet and was robbed by Nielsen whose shot flew past Cornell’s post.
The Bulls only substitution was a surprising one, with Delroy Facey replacing Leslie. Facey seemed eager to impress, winning a couple of headers and combining well with his team-mates. His attempted lob lacked sufficient elevation. Heath made two more desperate clearances in the closing stages There was still time for Crawley to steal the points, but the Bulls held on to conclude a good afternoon’s work.
FT: HUFC 1 CRAWLEY TOWN 1
Attendance 2227, including 135 from Sussex.
HUFC: Cornell, Purdie, Green, Townsend, Heath, Pell, Featherstone, Clist, Leslie (Facey 72), Elder, Barkhuizen.
CRAWLEY TOWN: Shearer, Howell, Mills, Davis (Nielsen 13), Akpan, Simpson, Hunt, Bulman, Drury, Tubbs (Barnett 86), Akinde.
