With all eyes on the U’s for the final game of the season, Colchester knew a point was all they needed to guarantee their safety in League Two.
But the home side were determined to go one step further and finish the campaign with a win and they put themselves in the driving seat thanks to Noah Chilvers.
The academy graduate, who has been at the club since he was ten-years-old brilliantly left Ryan Cooney in his wake before powering in on goal, cutting inside and smashing his low effort into the back of the net.
It was more of the same in the second half from the U’s who were determined to secure all three points and the likes of Chilvers, Tom Hopper and Jayden Fevrier all came close to scoring a second.
As the clock ticked down, the home side showed their determination and grit to survive the drop and not have to rely on other results.
Crewe did their bit in putting the pressure on at the JobServe Community Stadium and found their equaliser in added time through Elliott Nevitt
But a point was all Colchester needed and the result meant the club were able to secure their EFL status for the 2024-25 campaign.
Danny Cowley opted for one change from the side that lost 4-1 to Doncaster on Tuesday night, with Fiacre Kelleher coming in for Riley Harbottle at the back.
And the returning Irishman had a positive start to proceedings, winning his header from an early free-kick in the box and teeing up Cameron McGeehan, but the midfielder could not connect properly at the end of the move.
Jay Mingi had a fair amount of work to do early on alongside Kelleher but in the defensive third.
The versatile midfielder was doing well to keep up with Crewe’s Chris Long and was proving to be more than a match for the visiting man.
There were early shouts for a penalty for the U’s as Kelleher was shoved over in the box, but referee Lewis Smith waved the appeals away to the displeasure of the vocal crowd in North Essex.
A massive chance came the way of the home side thirteen minutes in after some excellent pressing from Tom Hopper gave the U’s a two-on-one in the Crewe half.
John Akinde picked up the ball and played Chilvers in down the left and his floated cross looked destined for Hopper’s head but it just missed him.
Jayden Fevrier and McGeehan both had follow-up chances but Max Stryjek was equal to both efforts.
Hopper was at it again a few minutes later, winning the ball high up and setting Akinde off again, his cross found Arthur Read but the midfielder’s strike was tame.
Colchester’s number sixteen then went down in a bit of pain after challenging for the ball in the middle of the park but after some treatment he was able to carry on.
There were more appeals for a spot-kick just after the thirty-minute mark when Chilvers clashed with the keeper but again the referee saw no foul play.
But the deadlock was broken just moments after the incident courtesy of the man who had been at the heart of most of Colchester’s attacking play.
Chilvers feinted on the near touchline to turn Cooney and drove towards goal, eventually cutting inside and firing a near-post shot into the net.
There was a chance for a second a few minutes before the break and it was fashioneds through another set piece.
Chilvers provided another fantastic delivery that found McGeehan at the back post but Crewe had enough bodies in the way to prevent the Northern Irishman from converting his tenth goal of the season.
Crewe opted for a double change during the break, with Chris Long and Matus Holicek being replaced by Aaron Rowe and Josh Austerfield.
Colchester were keen to start the second half on the front foot and Fevrier fashioned a half chance with a dangerous flash across the box, but neither Hopper or Akinde were there to steer the ball home.
Rowe picked up the first booking of the afternoon having just entered the action. Mingi burst away from him and the substitute hacked him down leaving the referee with no choice but to brand a yellow card.
Rio Adebisi nearly found an equaliser by attempting to catch Sam Hornby him out at his near post, but the defender blasted his effort into the travelling contingent in the north stand.
Crewe thought they should have had a penalty in the same box that the U’s had appealed for a couple in the first half, but the referee was sticking to his theme of being stern on awarding spot-kicks.
At the other end, Chilvers almost had his second with a half-volley that was valiantly blocked.
Kelleher was next in the book for dragging down Elliott Nevitt after he looked to break in behind from a goal-kick, but the resulting free-kick was turned into a counter-attack that resulted in Chilvers drifting into an offside position.
Mingi earned a roar of approval from the crowd by tracking back to put in a perfectly timed tackle on Shilow Tracey.
Kelleher then directed a header on target from another free-kick before Fevrier pulled out his signature move of cutting inside and bending one towards goal, but it flew just past the post.
Cowley chose that moment to make his first change with Akinde walking off to a big round of applause, to be replaced by Harbottle for the final twenty minutes.
Read won a free-kick in a dangerous position with just eight minutes left. He stepped up and fired his effort into the wall but the ball fell to Fevrier who poked just wide of the target.
There were five minutes for the U’s to hang on and complete their job and every single player was putting the yards in to see it out.
It summed up a brilliant effort all-around but Crewe broke the barrier to equalise through Nevitt’s scruffy finish.
But the goal would not dampen the U’s spirits as the point guaranteed their spot in the league for next season.
Colchester XI: Hornby, Iandolo, Kelleher, Hall, Chilvers, McGeehan, Hopper, Read, Mingi, Akinde (Harbottle, 68), Fevrier
Subs: Goodman, Jay, Wilkinson, Harbottle, Richardson, Cooper, Ihionvien
Crewe XI: Stryjek, Cooney (Kirk, 82), Adebisi, Williams, Demetriou, Long (Rowe, 46), Tracey (Baker-Richardson, 71), Tabinor, Holicek (Austerfield, 46), Nevitt, Billington
Subs: Lenarcik, Baker-Richardsonm Rowe, Finney, Austerfield, Kirk, Agius
