Crewe and Birmingham wasted glorious chances to grab all three points on a Friday that was good for neither of them.

Both clubs were desperate to help their cause at either end of the table - Crewe fighting against relegation and Birmingham chasing promotion.

But in a match where plenty of chances were created by good play and bad defending they had to settle for a draw.

Crewe were twice denied an interval lead by Kevin Poole's left hand post and they were the more incisive side in the first period.

Mark Rivers looked set to score as he lifted his 16th-minute shot past Poole only to see it divert off the post into the middle of the City box.

Skipper Shaun Smith was first to the loose ball but debutant David Holdsworth blocked his effort and Michael Johnson cleaned up as Danny Murphy closed in.

There seemed little danger when Phil Charnock's low drive skimmed across the turf 11 minutes later but the ball bounced off the upright and out of play to the relief of the visiting fans behind the goal.

In between those two scares Birmingham had chances as they used their superior physical presence to push Alex off the ball in the middle of the park.

The all-action approach of Trevor Francis' side certainly unnerved Crewe's £3million-rated Seth Johnson as he conceded possession to Bryan Hughes in his own box.

The midfielder saw his powerpacked shot brilliantly parried by Jason Kearton, whose save took the ball inches away from the onrushing Peter Ndlovu.

Johnson was again out of position as Jon McCarthy lifted the ball over the home defence into the path of full-back Gary Rowett, but he smashed his shot wide from a tight angle from six yards.

Rowett did find the target four minutes into the second period but again it was Kearton who saved Alex as he took off to his left to get his finger-tips to the impressive defender's curling free-kick.

And Kearton was forced to produce another stunning save in the 61st minute as Hughes had a rocket effort touched away for a corner by the athletic Australian.

The frustration of being unable to force a vital win told on Francis minutes from the end as he hurled the ball onto the pitch in anger at a refereeing decision and earned himself a dressing down from Wirral referee David Pugh.

Teams:

Crewe: Kearton, D. Wright, Smith, Lightfoot, Walton, Charnock, J. Wright, Johnson, Jack, Murphy, Rivers.

Subs Not Used: Newell, Street, Macauley.

Booked: Smith

Birmingham: Poole, Rowett, Charlton, Grainger, Holdsworth, Johnson, McCarthy, O'Connor, Bradbury, Hughes, Ndlovu.

Booked: Holdsworth, McCarthy

Att: 5,582

Referee: D Pugh (Wirral)