OWN GOAL IS THE DIFFERENCE TO SEND ALEX TO AWAY LOSS

CREWE Alex keeper Will Jaaskelainen was in top form, but his heroics couldn’t prevent Sunderland from sealing a 1-0 victory last night. Jaaskelainen made some excellent saves in the League One clash at the Stadium of Light, but was beaten in first-half injurytime when Charlie Wyke’s effort was deflected by Luke Offord in to his own net. Dave Artell’s Crewe side barely threatened throughout the evening, and it was Sunderland who looked the more likely to punish the visitors further. Sunderland made the early running, as expected, but Wyke missed an early opportunity when he fired over the crossbar after neat build-up play.

Chris Maguire went close with a 25th-minute free-kick for the Black Cats, before Jaaskelainen started off his super saves show.

Max Power was presented with a golden chance in the 36th minute, but the Alex keeper was on hand to keep the scores level.

But Sunderland did find a way through as half-time approached when Offord was in the wrong place to divert the ball past his own keeper. The Alex, who had offered little in the first half, had a great chance to equalise in the formative stages of the second period.

Charlie Kirk led a counterattack and played in Ollie Finney, who couldn’t find Daniel Powell for what would have been an easy tap-in. Power fired over the bar from another Sunderland raid, before Bailey Wright nodded a free-kick over the bar miidway through the half. Jaaskelainen was back in the thick of the action in the 73rd minute when he produced a super save to deny Lyndon Gooch. Artell introduced fresh legs to try to drag Crewe back in to the game, but his changes didn’t alter the flow of proceedings. Sunderland managed to see out the remainder of the match without any concerns to pocket another three points to maintain their fine early-season form.

The Alex face another tough test at the weekend when they head to Doncaster Rovers, who comfortably beat high-flying Ipswich 4-1 last night.