# 2000–01 Crewe Alexandra F.C. season

During the 2000–01 English football season, Crewe Alexandra F.C. competed in the Football League First Division, their 78th in the English Football League.

## Season summary

A terrible first half of the 2000–01 season saw Crewe bottom at Christmas. Then with the emergence of Rob Hulse and Dean Ashton, Crewe went on a fantastic run, winning nine of their remaining matches to starve off relegation to finish 14th. A 3–1 defeat by Preston on 28 April finally saw the Alex beaten at home after an unbeaten run of nine in the league.

## Final league table

| Pos | Teamvte | Pld | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 12 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | 46 | 14 | 13 | 19 | 45 | 48 | −3 | 55 |
| 13 | Gillingham | 46 | 13 | 16 | 17 | 61 | 66 | −5 | 55 |
| 14 | Crewe Alexandra | 46 | 15 | 10 | 21 | 47 | 62 | −15 | 55 |
| 15 | Norwich City | 46 | 14 | 12 | 20 | 46 | 58 | −12 | 54 |
| 16 | Barnsley | 46 | 15 | 9 | 22 | 49 | 62 | −13 | 54 |

## Results

Crewe Alexandra's score comes first

### Legend

| Win | Draw | Loss |

### Football League First Division

| Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Scorers |
| 12 August 2000 | Fulham | A | 0–2 | 11,157 | |
| 19 August 2000 | Blackburn Rovers | H | 0–0 | 7,500 | |
| 26 August 2000 | Queens Park Rangers | A | 0–1 | 9,415 | |
| 29 August 2000 | Grimsby Town | H | 2–0 | 5,305 | Rivers, Jack |
| 9 September 2000 | Norwich City | H | 0–0 | 5,955 | |
| 12 September 2000 | West Bromwich Albion | H | 0–1 | 6,222 | |
| 16 September 2000 | Watford | A | 0–3 | 13,784 | |
| 23 September 2000 | Barnsley | H | 2–2 | 5,738 | Hulse, Jack |
| 30 September 2000 | Tranmere Rovers | A | 3–1 | 8,162 | Hulse (2), Little |
| 8 October 2000 | Birmingham City | H | 0–2 | 6,829 | |
| 14 October 2000 | Sheffield United | A | 0–1 | 12,921 | |
| 17 October 2000 | Portsmouth | A | 1–2 | 14,621 | Smith (pen) |
| 21 October 2000 | Wimbledon | H | 0–4 | 5,469 | |
| 24 October 2000 | Huddersfield Town | H | 1–0 | 5,215 | Cramb |
| 28 October 2000 | Gillingham | A | 1–0 | 8,347 | Little |
| 31 October 2000 | Burnley | A | 0–1 | 13,189 | |
| 4 November 2000 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | H | 2–0 | 7,147 | Cramb (2) |
| 10 November 2000 | Preston North End | A | 1–2 | 12,632 | Rivers |
| 18 November 2000 | Stockport County | H | 1–2 | 6,099 | Hulse |
| 25 November 2000 | Sheffield Wednesday | H | 1–0 | 7,103 | Rivers |
| 2 December 2000 | Huddersfield Town | A | 1–3 | 10,603 | Cramb |
| 9 December 2000 | Bolton Wanderers | A | 1–4 | 12,836 | Sorvel |
| 16 December 2000 | Crystal Palace | H | 1–1 | 5,752 | Little |
| 23 December 2000 | Fulham | H | 1–2 | 6,935 | Rivers |
| 26 December 2000 | Nottingham Forest | A | 0–1 | 20,903 | |
| 30 December 2000 | Blackburn Rovers | A | 0–1 | 18,554 | |
| 13 January 2001 | Grimsby Town | A | 3–1 | 4,495 | Hulse (2), Rivers |
| 3 February 2001 | Burnley | H | 4–2 | 6,994 | Street, Smith (2 pens), Ashton |
| 10 February 2001 | Norwich City | A | 1–1 | 15,164 | Jack |
| 17 February 2001 | Watford | H | 2–0 | 6,757 | Jack, Ashton |
| 20 February 2001 | West Bromwich Albion | A | 2–2 | 15,476 | Ashton, Hulse |
| 24 February 2001 | Barnsley | A | 0–3 | 13,175 | |
| 3 March 2001 | Tranmere Rovers | H | 3–1 | 7,157 | Macauley, Hulse, Little |
| 6 March 2001 | Sheffield United | H | 1–0 | 6,909 | Lunt |
| 10 March 2001 | Birmingham City | A | 0–2 | 28,042 | |
| 13 March 2001 | Nottingham Forest | H | 1–0 | 7,916 | Rivers |
| 17 March 2001 | Portsmouth | H | 1–0 | 6,182 | Ashton |
| 31 March 2001 | Crystal Palace | A | 0–1 | 20,872 | |
| 10 April 2001 | Queens Park Rangers | H | 2–2 | 6,354 | Ashton, Smith |
| 14 April 2001 | Wolverhampton Wanderers | A | 0–0 | 20,364 | |
| 16 April 2001 | Gillingham | H | 2–1 | 7,051 | Navarro, Ashton |
| 18 April 2001 | Bolton Wanderers | H | 2–1 | 8,054 | Hulse, Ashton |
| 21 April 2001 | Stockport County | A | 0–3 | 7,163 | |
| 24 April 2001 | Wimbledon | A | 3–3 | 5,468 | Rivers, Hulse, Ashton |
| 28 April 2001 | Preston North End | H | 1–3 | 9,415 | Hulse |
| 6 May 2001 | Sheffield Wednesday | A | 0–0 | 28,007 | |

### FA Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R3 | 6 January 2001 | Cardiff City | A | 1–1 | 13,403 | Bowen (own goal) |
| R3R | 16 January 2001 | Cardiff City | H | 2–1 | 5,785 | Smith (pen), Rivers |
| R4 | 27 January 2001 | Stockport County | H | 0–1 | 7,318 | |

### League Cup

| Round | Date | Opponent | Venue | Result | Attendance | Goalscorers |
| R1 1st Leg | 22 August 2000 | Bury | H | 2–2 | 3,199 | Foster, Rivers |
| R1 2nd Leg | 5 September 2000 | Bury | A | 2–1 (won 4–3 on agg) | 2,106 | Rivers, Little |
| R2 1st Leg | 19 September 2000 | Barnsley | A | 0–4 | 5,005 | |
| R2 2nd Leg | 26 September 2000 | Barnsley | H | 0–3 (lost 0–7 on agg) | 1,775 | |

## Squad

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 1 | GK | AUS | Jason Kearton |
| 2 | DF | ENG | David Wright |
| 3 | DF | ENG | Shaun Smith |
| 4 | MF | ENG | Kenny Lunt |
| 5 | DF | ENG | Dave Walton |
| 6 | DF | ENG | Steve Macauley |
| 7 | MF | ENG | Colin Little |
| 8 | MF | ENG | Phil Charnock |
| 9 | FW | ENG | Paul Tait |
| 10 | MF | ENG | Mark Rivers |
| 11 | FW | JAM | Rodney Jack |
| 12 | DF | NGA | Efetobore Sodje |
| 13 | GK | TRI | Clayton Ince |
| 14 | FW | ENG | Kevin Street |
| 16 | FW | ENG | Rob Hulse |
| 17 | MF | ENG | Neil Sorvel |
| 18 | DF | ENG | Anthony Charles |
| 19 | MF | ENG | Chris Lightfoot |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 20 | FW | ENG | Peter Smith |
| 21 | MF | ENG | Jamie Collins |
| 22 | DF | ENG | Stephen Foster |
| 23 | MF | ENG | Phil Trainer |
| 24 | GK | ENG | Kevin Welsby |
| 25 | DF | ENG | Richard Walker |
| 26 | FW | ENG | John Grant |
| 27 | DF | ENG | Gareth Liddle |
| 28 | DF | ENG | Chris McCready |
| 29 | DF | ENG | Dean Howell |
| 30 | FW | ENG | Colin Cramb |
| 31 | GK | NGA | Ademola Bankole |
| 32 | MF | WAL | David Vaughan |
| 35 | MF | ENG | Alan Navarro (on loan from Liverpool) |
| 36 | FW | ENG | Dean Ashton |
| 37 | DF | IRL | Jim Gannon |
| 38 | MF | ENG | Ben Rix |

### Left club during season

Note: Flags indicate national team as defined under FIFA eligibility rules. Players may hold more than one non-FIFA nationality.
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 34 | MF | ENG | Chris Lumsdon (on loan from Sunderland) |
| No. | Pos. | Nation | Player |
| 35 | DF | IRL | Alan Maybury (on loan from Leeds United) |