Focus On League Two Crawley Town

ANGEL GABRIELE AND RED DEVILS MAKE UNLIKELY MATCH

- John Lyons

WHEN Crawley Town appointed Gabriele Cioffi as their new manager just over a year ago, there were more than a few people scratching their heads.

The Italian defender had spent his entire playing career in his home-land, peaking at Serie A Torino in 2006-07. Coaching stints followed in Italy, Australia, the UAE and England – the latter as part of Gianfranco Zola’s backroom team during his ill-fated short spell at Birmingham City.

It hardly seemed the CV of a man who could step into the muck and nettles of League Two and thrive.

Indeed, last season couldn’t be labelled a great success. Cioffi, 44, took the Crawley reins in early September last year. They were 16th in the table and eventually finished 19th, a dozen points above the drop zone.

Buzz

Now, with a full pre-season under his belt, things are looking up. Heading into yesterday’s home game against Walsall, the Red Devils were lying eighth in League Two, a point off the play-offs, with four wins, four draws and two defeats from their opening ten games.

Not only that, but they had also knocked Premier League outfit Norwich (1-0 at home last month) and Championship side Stoke (5-3 on penalties after a 1-1 home draw in midweek) out of the Carabao Cup to reach the fourth round for the first time in the club’s history.

As soon as you arrived at The People’s Pension Stadium for Tuesday’s home game against the Potters, you could sense the buzz in the air. The car parks were packed, the bars were doing a roaring trade and the fans were bursting with enthusiasm.

It had the feel of – no disrespect to the Carabao Cup – a major FA Cup tie. The stadium has that old-fashioned, tight feel to it and a bumper crowd of just over 4,000 – it would have been more if struggling Stoke had sold out their full allocation – created a fantastic atmosphere.