Six things we learned from Crawley Town's dour stalemate with Gillingham

Here are six things we learned from the 0-0 draw.

Crawley’s attack may need a change

The front three of Tom Nichols, Dom Telford and Ashley Nadesan started against Gillingham but failed to link up together with two of the three being subbed off in the second half. None of the three tested Jake Turner in Gillingham’s goal and they failed to create any decent chances throughout the match. Maybe switching up the personnel in the front three could be the solution to prevent a similar attacking performance for Lewis Young’s side.

Craig still performing at 700 games

Tony Craig played his 700th career game and his 100th for Crawley against Gillingham and frustrated their attack, looking reliable as ever, in a game where Crawley’s defenders were the standout performances for the home side. Craig rose to the occasion and seemed to frustrate his former teammate, and Gillingham manager, Neil Harris. Craig was completely unfazed by the challenge of filling in for Ludwig after his suspension with his performance being a positive for Crawley after the match.

Joel Lynch is crucial for Crawley’s season

Crawley’s number six put in a tremendous display as he was awarded Crawley’s man of the match. The centre half dealt with Gillingham’s attacking threat and worked hard for the clean sheet while helping earn his side a point. He has been a consistent performer for Crawley and if the club is to aspire for bigger and better things as WAGMI United have suggested, the former Albion man is crucial.

Crawley not performing as well when they are the favourites

Recently Crawley have got good results against teams higher up the table recently. A point away at Bradford and two home wins against Barrow and Mansfield certainly looks impressive when you consider where those sides are in the table. However, when they faced a Gillingham side second from bottom, they failed to take a hold of the game. It seemed the fight and energy seen against the other sides mentioned was not at the same level in a match where they were expected to dictate the play.

SEE ALSO Player ratings - Defenders shine but too many off nights in attacking areas as Reds unable to pull away from bottom two

Lewis Young needs to get the best out of attack and defence

It took Lewis Young a while in his second stint as interim manager to get a clean sheet for Crawley, with the first coming against Barrow in his last home game. Suddenly he has two in quick succession in League Two which is impressive but in both games his side has looked less convincing up top. In order to get the permanent managerial position, he may have to find a way to balance the focus of his side.

Midfielders for Crawley need to improve to climb the table

Crawley started with a midfield of Teddy Jenks, Jake Hessenthaler and Jack Powell. Against Gillingham, at times it felt like the three of them were spread too wide, letting them get overrun by the Gillingham midfielders. They kept the ball well but none managed to create anything of note and without any traditional wingers in the starting eleven, large parts of the creative responsibility fall down to them.