Crewe Alexandra vs Gillingham. Sky Bet League Two.
Alexandra StadiumAttendance3,401.
Saturday 13 August 2011 19:17, UK
Two goals in two first-half minutes maintained Gillingham's perfect start as they beat Crewe 2-1 on Saturday.
Chris Whelpdale and Danny Spiller were the goalscorers as the Gills started strongly at Alexandra Stadium. Crewe could have been ahead after five minutes but goalkeeper Ross Flitney kept out Shaun Miller's snapshot from the edge of the box. The visitor's first sight of goal came when Danny Kedwell squared a pass for Spiller, but Steve Phillips dived low to keep out his effort. The Gills took the lead in the 23rd minute when Whelpdale nicked the ball off Harry Davis on the edge of the box and powered an unstoppable shot into the roof of the net. A minute later Spiller controlled Joe Martin's cross before drilling past Phillips from eight yards out to double the advantage. Miller grabbed Crewe a lifeline in the 74th minute, bringing down Lee Bell's cross and finishing at the far post. David Artell then had a goalbound shot cleared in front of the line by Jack Payne before Adam Dugdale's header was kept out by Matt Lawrence on the line. Substitute Danny Shelley should have grabbed Crewe a share of the points in the 86th minute but he dragged his shot inches wide with the goal at his mercy before Carl Martin was denied by a superb Flitney stop deep into injury time.
