This season Prostate Cancer UK is the official charity of The
Football League. To celebrate, we've asked bloggers from each of
the 72 clubs to count down their top five strikers to have worn the
No9 shirt, in recognition of the fact that prostate cancer
affects one in nine men.
Gradi's greatest: Dean Ashton reached the top of the pyramid. Photo courtesy of Action Images
Here blogger Liam Morgan, of liammorgan21.blogspot.co.uk,
selects Crewe's five best No9s… and one to forget!
5. Dele Adebola (1993-98)
This Nigeria-born powerhouse was a huge favourite amongst the
Gresty Road faithful, mind you he stood at 6ft 3in so it's not a
surprise there were very few dissenting voices! He was on
Liverpool's books as a youngster, but favoured a move to Crewe to
progress his career. Why? Because a certain lad by the name of
Robbie Fowler was his competition for a place at Anfield. Adebola
was most fondly remembered for netting 16 times in 32 appearances
during the promotion-winning season of 1996, and he eventually left
for the sum of £1m, joining Trevor Francis's Birmingham City.
4. Rob Hulse (1999-2003)
Hulse was born in Crewe, which meant the fans took a liking to him
from the moment he made his debut during in 1999. Another product
of the renowned youth development programme led by the legend that
is Dario Gradi, Hulse went on to score 45 goals for the club before
he moved on to pastures new, joining West Brom in 2003. He
currently plays his football for Premier League side Queens Park
Rangers.
3. Peter Coyne (1977-81)
There seems to be a trend when it comes to Crewe legends. They
usually start out at the club, then move on to supposedly bigger
and better things. Not Coyne, though. He joined the Alex from none
other than Manchester United and he still holds hero status at
Gresty Road after scoring 47 times in his 134 appearances. After
his retirement, he took his Uefa coaching badges before taking up a
place in Manchester United's community scheme.
2. Dean Ashton (2000-05)
Arguably the most famous graduate from the Gradi era, Ashton was a
plucky footballer who possessed a devastating finishing ability. He
was with the club from a young age and there is no doubt that Crewe
is where he made his name, and after bagging 61 goals, a rush to
gain his signature ensued. He left to join Norwich before an even
bigger move to West Ham, but sadly for the world of football, he
never recovered from an injury sustained while on England duty and
he retired from the game in December 2009, aged just 26.
1. Frank Lord (1961-63)
Where to start with this clinical mastermind? As well as being the
club's all-time leading goalscorer, he also holds the record for
most hat-tricks for the club (eight) and in one season (four). Lord
managed a fantastic goalscoring ratio of a goal every other game,
and few would question his inclusion in the all-time greats of
Crewe Alexandra, despite the fact that he was only at Gresty Road
for two seasons. He later enjoyed spells with, among others,
Rochdale and Blackburn. After finishing his playing career he
managed Cape Town City in South Africa, but failed to make an
impact as a manager in England. The ex-centre-forward then returned
to Cape Town as a scout for Manchester United.
And the worst…
Pavol Suhaj (2005-07)
The less said about this awful frontman - and I use that term
loosely - the better. Suhaj managed only one start in two years at
the club before joining lowly Nantwich Town, and after disappearing
off the face of the earth briefly, he was last spotted playing for
Colwyn Bay back in October 2011. His presence definitely won't be
missed at the Alexandra Stadium.
Follow Liam on Twitter @LMorgan21