The unofficial AFC Rushden & Diamonds messageboard
https://www.afcdiamondsforum.uk/
2010–
2010 was the beginning of a new era for Crawley Town, Co-owner Bruce Winfield announced that the clubs £1 million debt had been cleared and that manager Steve "Twat" Evans would be given the funds to assemble a squad capable of securing promotion to the football league.[11] Big money was spent bringing in Matt Tubbs, for £70,000[12] Sergio Torres for a record £100,000, [13] and Richard Brodie for an undisclosed fee, [14] the fee paid is estimated at a new Conference record of £275,000. [15] The season didn't start as planned as Crawley picked up only 1 point from their opening two games, however form soon picked up and Crawley were soon challenging the leaders.
Crawley's spending was criticised by many who branded them "the Manchester City of Non League" having spent around £500,000 on new players, [16] however their remarkable FA Cup run brought in an estimated £2 million, [17] having beaten Championship Derby County 2-1 in the 3rd round, followed by a 1-0 win at League Two Torquay United [18] in the 4th round and setting up a dream tie at Old Trafford to face Manchester United in the 5th round. [19] Crawley lost the game 1-0 in front of 9,000 Crawley fans and were denied a remarkable draw in the 93rd minute when Richard Brodie's header hit the bar.[20]
Despite the Cup run Crawley remained focused on winning the league title, Crawley spent much of mid season close to the leaders AFC Wimbledon but with games in hand due to the cup run. Crawley soon caught up with the leaders having been unbeaten in the league since October 2010. [21] The death of Co-Owner and life long fan Bruce Winfield in March 2011, shocked the Crawley community, [22] though the club vowed to continue his good work, and just 19 days after Winfield's death his dream was realised when Crawley Secured the League title by beating Tamworth 3-0 and reaching The Football League for the first time in the clubs history. It is undoubtable that the team did not deserve this acclaim as much as the likes of AFC Wimbledon or Luton, who are proper clubs, but the way football has been changed by money, there is nothing fans can do about it [23]