RHYS Taylor won't mind if he has another busy 90 minutes against Cheltenham at Whaddon Road tomorrow.

The on-loan Chelsea youngster had his work cut out in the closing stages of Crewe's surprise 1-0 midweek Carling Cup victory over Derby.

But he stood up to the challenge in impressive fashion, watched by goalkeeping coach Mark Beeney and Chelsea reserve boss and former Alex manager Steve Holland.

League Two is the sort of testing ground Holland wants the 20-year-old to experience after several campaigns in the Premier Reserve League.

And the excitement of an intriguing cup tie, in which Championship County abandoned slick passing for a more robust approach in the closing stages, offered Taylor plenty of food for thought.

"That's the busiest I've ever been in a game, which can only be good for me," said the 20-year-old.

"I don't think we got the ball out of our box in the last 10 minutes.

"But that is a normal performance for me and that is what I'm all about.

"My aim when I joined on loan was to get games under my belt and play every week."

Taylor says he is pleasantly surprised by the quality of players in front of him.

And despite an opening-day defeat at the hands of Hereford, he is convinced Crewe have the talent to make a mark in the upper regions of League Two.

"Dario Gradi has brought in a few good players over the summer.

"The ability going forward is good, as we showed when we caused Derby problems, while at the back the lads worked hard and put their bodies on the line.

"The effort was incredible and if we can carry that into the league, then we will have no problems at all."

Cheltenham, who have usually played direct football, might yet prove to be as much of a surprise as Hereford were on the opening day.

Mark Yates has spent the summer overhauling his squad with the emphasis on a more refined approach.

Skilful midfielder Frankie Artus is one of 12 new faces drafted in.

Steve Elliott (Bristol Rovers) and Martin Reilly (Kidderminster) have replaced Michael Townsend and Shane Duff in the centre of a defence, which also boasts new recruits Keith Lowe (Hereford) and Danny Andrew (Peterborough).

Winger Brian Smikle, another recruit Yates knows well from his Kidderminster days, has been joined by strikers Wesley Thomas (Dagenham) and Jeff Goulding (Bournemouth) to form a new attack after Justin Richards's departure to Port Vale.

Teenage striker Shaun Jeffers could also prove a promising loan capture from Coventry after scoring his first senior goal in Tuesday's 2-1 Carling Cup defeat by Brentford.

After narrowly avoiding relegation to the Blue Square Premier last season, Yates has set his sights on a mid-table finish this year.

Adversary Gradi is eager for Crewe to turn their passing game into victories.

"The football is there for keeps now. It would take someone ruthless to come in to stop us playing football because it is second nature," said Gradi. "But we've got to turn it into winning football.

"I don't need to talk to my players about football, but I do need to tell them about scoring from set-plays and making chances, as well as showing that determination and winning mentality."