Crawley manager Scott Lindsey admitted his past experiences helped fuel motivations that were fulfilled with promotion after his side’s 2-0 victory over Crewe in the League Two play-off final at Wembley.
Lindsey lost his brother Matthew in a motorcycle accident in 1995 and his wife Hayley to cancer five years ago.
His perspective drove him on to envisage Crawley’s promotion, even after finishing 22nd in League Two last season and surviving on the final day.
Lindsey said: “It’s not a miracle that we’ve gone from 22nd last season to promotion, just hard work.
“Because of past experiences in my life where I’ve lost loved ones and people really close to me, I understand that life’s really short.
“While some people would look at finishing 22nd last year and think that this year is about consolidation, not me. Life’s too short to consolidate. I want to make a difference.
“I thought about my family before the match today in the coaches’ office in the dressing room.
“Sometimes I fail as a partner and a dad because I work so hard. I come home, we have dinner together and there are nine of us around the dinner table, because I’ve got a lot of children.
“They’re eating dinner and chatting and I’m looking at a tactics board. So I’m really grateful to them.
“But it’s the players who did it. There were nine players in the squad today who were playing non-league football last year.
“They have taken things on and executed them fantastically well all season. We haven’t always got it right, but we have today.
“We just looked so good on the big Wembley pitch. So composed on the ball but aggressive without it. It was just ridiculous.”
Danilo Orsi opened the scoring for Crawley just before half time, with Liam Kelly ensuring victory with five minutes remaining.
Crewe manager Lee Bell admitted that the final was a step too far for his injury-ravaged side.
Bell said: “We didn’t get going and struggled to create anything. Congratulations to Scott and Crawley. I thought they were worthy winners on the day.
“It’s been a real stretch for my players, a real stretch because we’ve got one of the smallest squads.
“I think we’ve got 18 players, a few out injured, and for what they achieved and kept going particularly in the last 12 or 13 games, I couldn’t ask for a better group of people to be around as a manager in his first full season. I am really proud of all of them.
“We lost some players in January, then injuries have kicked in. It’s not an excuse, the players are just really stretched.
“It’s hard to say right now whether this will affect us next season because we’re all hurting, even if we put a brave face on.
“The main objective for the club now is to try and keep this squad together. We’ve got a lot of out-of-contract players, but knowing the players, if we can keep it all together, they’ll be back chomping at the bit ready to go next season.”
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