By Andrew McKenzie

JOHN BOWLER Joined the club's board in 1980 Replaced Norman Rowlinson as chairman in 1987 During Bowler's time as chairman the club have made one payment to an agent Got involved with Crewe through his job with Wellcome but is now retired Crewe won a Football League award for Most Admired Club in 2006

This year John Bowler will celebrate 20 years as Crewe chairman - but there is unlikely to be much of a fuss made.

The accomplishments of manager Dario Gradi have been well documented and well celebrated but outside the region Bowler's contribution has largely gone unnoticed - and that seems to suit him just fine.

He cannot even remember when it was he first joined the club as a director - according to the club it was 1980.

When asked when he moved up to chairman he answers "something like 1987 or 1988".

"It was such a long time ago. I don't count then I don't think how long I've been doing it," the 69-year-old told BBC Sport.

Gradi's 1,000th game and his 20 years at the club brought him compliments aplenty.

He has an MBE, a place in the Hall of Fame, a pop band named after him (Dario G), a street in Crewe (Dario Gradi Close), he is an Honorary Freeman of the Borough of Crewe and Nantwich and he has an honorary doctorate at Loughborough University.

Plus the small matter of being one of the best paid managers in the lower league by way of earning a percentage for every player he grooms who is sold on.

There is no doubting Gradi's part in taking the club, who are now in League One, from the bottom of the old fourth division into the Championship.

Or the talent that he has developed, nurtured and cashed in on to help Crewe compete with teams they should not really be competing with.

But what about the chairman who has stood in the background for most of those years?

The chairman who went against the grain in not sacking Gradi when the club were relegated back to the Fourth Division in 1992.

And the chairman who remained loyal after the Railwaymen went down in 2002 after five years in the Championship and again last season.

The club have struggled to make an impact in League One this season and there have been calls for Gradi to go - but Bowler is undeterred.

"I've been around long enough to know football goes in cycles," added Bowler.

"I think one of the downsides of the media's enthusiasm for football is everyone is very demanding of success.

Dario and I will probably be carted out with our boots on John Bowler

"It's not easy for us this year. We got relegated from the Championship so everyone assumes we would get promoted again this season and when it does not happen people are not as tolerant today

"This demand for success fuels not the most sensible financial decisions because it is a sport - it's not like buying and selling products. You have to take a longer view.

"We will always be a club that develops young players for the purposes of our own team and generating income.

"The Dean Ashtons of this world - they benefit and so do we and we have concentrated on that.

"But it is not a conveyor belt. You have a good batch and then you are short of a few and you have to live through good and not so good."

The good news is that the next batch might have already hatched, even if they have arrived prematurely.

"We are in a bit of a transition," stated Bowler. "When we came down it coincided with a number of our players coming to the end of their contracts.

"We have a good group of youngsters in the side and we have been playing seven or eight from the academy.

"This year we have got five in the first team that weren't in it last year from the academy and they are all good prospects but they need time to hone their skills and progress the club on and we have to be patient.

"In an ideal world we would have a bit more experience with us and they wouldn't be playing as regularly as they are.

"We are struggling a bit. Not because they haven't got the talent but they need that bit of experience."

Bowler, who has never taken a penny out of the club and even pays his own expenses, plans to be around to see the next generation blossom.

"I'll be here as long as they want me to do it," he said. "Dario and I will be carted out with our boots on."

Not that anyone would probably notice Bowler being taken away.