Andy Cook grabbed two goals and an assist as the Mariners beat Crewe Alexandra at Blundell Park to move within a point of the Sky Bet League Two play-off places.

After Crewe’s Emre Tezgel missed an early chance to put his side ahead, Cook instead opened the scoring as he took advantage of a mistake in the away defence.

The striker turned provider four minutes after the break when he set Kieran Green up to make it 2-0 and Cook went on to put Town in complete control with a volley two minutes before the hour.

Tommi O’Reilly’s late penalty pulled a goal back for Crewe and they moved to within one when captain Mickey Demetriou’s header in the final minute of stoppage time made it 3-2 but the visitors ran out of time to complete an unlikely comeback as a dominant Mariners display was rewarded with maximum points.

Town were unchanged following the victory at Crawley Town on Easter Monday, so goalkeeper Jackson Smith again had a defence of Harvey Rodgers, Maldini Kacurri, Cameron McJannet and Reece Staunton in front of him.  Geza Turi sat behind Darragh Burns, Green, Clarke Oduor and Jaze Kabia in midfield, with Cook leading the attack.

Charles Vernam made a welcome return to the matchday squad from injury as he was named on the bench alongside Christy Pym, Jayden Sweeney, Jamie Walker, Jude Soonsup-Bell, Justin Amaluzor and Tyrell Warren.

Crewe made the journey from Cheshire sitting a point and two places ahead of the Mariners in the league table in eighth, with Lee Bell’s men aiming for a victory to take them into the top seven if other results were also to go their way.

FIRST HALF

The away side had a great chance to go ahead in the first minute as a through-ball put striker Tezgel in on goal but he was brilliantly denied by Smith, who raced off his line to make a vital block for a corner.  The flag-kick was turned wide at the far post by Lewis Billington.

Town’s first attack saw Oduor make progress through the middle to create an opening, although Green could only curl the ball wide from the edge of the penalty area.

Rodgers won the hosts’ first corner on the right but Staunton’s ball was headed away, before Green sent a powerful cross out for a goal kick.

The deadlock was broken on 11 minutes and it was the Mariners who took the lead after a long ball from McJannet held up in the wind and bounced away from Demetriou.  As he tried to shepherd it back to goalkeeper Ian Lawlor, COOK nipped in to get there first and lift it into the unguarded net.

Kabia saw a shot blocked from Green’s pull-back as Town immediately set off in search of a second goal, before a 20-yard strike by Cook was also blocked.

Kabia needed treatment after being caught by a late challenge on 21 minutes but was passed fit to continue and he was fouled again by Billington soon afterwards, although Staunton’s free kick from inside the Crewe half was cleared.

Josh March headed wide at the other end after a Max Sanders free kick from halfway had broken for O’Reilly on the left.

Town were dominating as the half-hour approached and a header from Kacurri was blocked from a cross by Staunton on the left.

Kaccuri put in a good challenge to stop Tezgel on the edge of the box after a through-ball from Matus Holicek, before Reece Hutchinson fired over the bar from 25 yards as the visitors continued to come back into the game.

A header from Kabia was blocked after Burns picked the attacker out with a cross from the right, then Kabia linked up with Cook but the Bradford City loanee’s shot on the turn flew off target.

Another attempt by Kabia was blocked as he continued to be a real threat to the Crewe defence, with Town still on top as half-time loomed.

Crewe won a corner as the first half moved into three added minutes but they were unable to make it count and with no further chances coming for either side, the Mariners went in at the break with the lead.

SECOND HALF

No changes were made ahead of the restart and Town doubled their advantage four minutes in.  Cook took the ball from James Connolly on the left and made progress before cutting inside and playing it across the six-yard line for GREEN to tap into the net.

Kabia fired over the bar as the Mariners looked for a quickfire third goal, before Demetriou headed clear from a Staunton cross.

That third goal was not much longer in coming as Town made their dominance count again on 58 minutes.  Burns’ cross from the right picked out COOK and he hit a controlled volley which beat Lawlor to make it 3-0.

Calum Agius replaced Jack Powell in the Crewe midfield after the goal, then Kacurri was shown the first yellow card of the game for a foul on March but the visitors were unable to capitalise from the resulting free kick.

Warren replaced Rodgers in Town’s first change on 66 minutes and Crewe won a corner four minutes later as they looked for an unlikely route back into the contest.  Sanders’ delivery was comfortably caught by Smith.

Another away corner followed soon afterwards and this time, Smith punched the ball away from danger , before Cook headed a third corner in quick succession away and Tezgel could only divert the return ball into the box wide.

Walker and Sweeney replaced Oduor and Turi as Town made a double-substitution with 15 minutes to go and Crewe responded with a double-change of their own as former Mariners favourite Omar Bogle came on for Tezgel and March made way for Adrien Thibaut.

A 20-yard strike from Cook was blocked as the striker aimed to complete a hat-trick but he was not given further opportunity to get a third goal as he made way for Soonsup-Bell on 82 minutes.  Amaluzor came on for Green at the same time in the home side’s final substitution.

A Staunton corner was cleared but Town worked the ball back to the left-back and his cross from deep was headed onto the roof of the net by Soonsup-Bell.

Shilow Tracey replaced Hutchinson in Crewe’s latest substitution and with two minutes to go, they were given an opportunity to get themselves on the scoresheet when Sanders was brought down inside the box by Sweeney.  The referee pointed to the penalty spot and O’REILLY confidently beat Smith to make it 3-1.

Town were aiming to restore their three-goal cushion as the game moved into at least seven added minutes and Soonsup-Bell and Kabia both saw shots blocked.

Instead, Crewe pulled another goal back in the last of the added minutes as Agius crossed from the right and DEMETRIOU rose highest to head past Smith.

Town then saw out what was left of the contest to collect a deserved three points and attention now turns to another big game on Tuesday, when they travel to Chesterfield.

Town: Smith, Rodgers (Warren, 66), Kacurri, McJannet, Staunton, Turi (Walker, 75), Burns, Green (Amaluzor, 82), Oduor (Sweeney, 75), Kabia, Cook (Soonsup-Bell, 82)

Subs not used: Pym, Vernam

UTM