Macaulay Langstaff's brace kept Salford top of League Two with a hard-fought win over bottom-of-the-table Crawley.
Langstaff flicked a shot narrowly wide before Luke Molyneux's curling effort forced veteran goalkeeper Vito Mannone into a diving save as Salford threatened in the opening 10 minutes.
The hosts took a deserved lead when Langstaff finished with a close-range volley after a slick passing move involving Kallum Cesay and Molyneux.
Sierra Leone attacker Cesay skewed a shot wide from a tight angle before Mannone comfortably caught a Langstaff header as Salford went in search of a second before half-time.
The Ammies doubled their advantage soon after the break when Cesay turned provider again, teeing up Langstaff to curl a low shot into the bottom corner.
But Crawley hit back with their first attempt on target as intricate passing unlocked the space for Dylan Morgan to pick out the bottom corner from the edge of the box.
Mannone beat away a fierce Langstaff drive to deny the striker a hat-trick, but Salford held on to record a fifth straight League Two win.
Report supplied by the Press Association.
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