Match Report

SUMMARY:

Above: Stuart Coburn is beaten by Cadwallader's penalty in the shoot-out.

In a flowing and entertaining game, Altrincham were vastly improved on their showing last Sunday and were very unlucky to go out of the Cheshire Senior Cup in what was technically an away tie for The Robins, played at Moss Lane. It took Chester till the second minute of added time to equalise after Alty had deservedly gone ahead after 25 minutes. Alty's goal was scored from close range following a corner by Aspinall, which Hendley hooked back into the goalmouth for O'Neill to poke home at the near post. Broughton scored the equaliser with a low drive into the bottom corner with just one minute of added time left (90+2 mins). But after extra time, Alty missed their first two penalties, as Bushell's kick hit the bar and Chalmers's was saved. Though O'Neill and Peyton scored, Chester scored all four of their spot kicks, to win 4-2. Just 140 supporters saw the game

SCORERS

Penalty Shoot-Out:

REFEREE: Mr. M Heywood

This game was officially a home tie for Chester City but was switched to Moss Lane at City's request. The FA requirement to charge full prices for this cup tie, combined with a clash with the Macedonia v England international on TV meant a very small gate at Moss Lane. Amongst the Chester officials were manager Mark Wright and former Alty "legend" Graham Barrow.

Altrincham showed five changes from the side beaten by Dagenham the previous Sunday. Into the side came Stephen Rose and Karl Munroe as centre-backs, and Lewis Chalmers, Justin Bowler and Lee Hendley. These five replaced Talbot, Band, Owen, Liittle and Scott in the starting line-up. Alty included Joe O'Neill, who had played a handful of games for Chester in 2004-05.

Chester included five players from their first-team squad in Marples, Sandwith, Allen, Broughton and Holroyd.

CHESTER CITY (Pale blue shirts, white shorts and socks): 20. Phil PALETHORPE; 2. Simon MARPLES, 3. Kevin SANDWITH, 4. Graham ALLEN, 5. Kevin ROBERTS, 6. Mark CADWALLADER, 7. Paul RUTHERFORD, 8. Sean NEWTON, 9. Drewe BROUGHTON (capt), 10. Chris HOLROYD, 17. Jordan BARNEs. Subs: 1. Craig VERNON, 12. Sean KELLY, 14. Glen RULE, 15. Paul McMANUS, 16. Andy MITCHELL.

ALTRINCHAM ALTRINCHAM (Red and white striped shirts, black shorts and red socks.) 1. Stuart COBURN, 2. Steve ASPINALL, 20. Stephen ROSE, 17. Karl MUNROE, 11. Warren PEYTON; 7. Robbie LAWTON, 6. Steve BUSHELL, 14. Lewis CHALMERS, 15. Justin BOWLER; 12. Joe O'NEILL, 19. Lee HENDLEY. Subs: 3. Gary SCOTT, 5. Gary TALBOT, 8. Val OWEN, 9. Colin LITTLE, 18. Pat McFADDEN.

REPORT

Alty started off extremely brightly and could have been two up in as many minutes. In fact, it took only 20 seconds for O'Neill to set Hendley up the left and his great pace took him into the box but his low cross flashed across the face of goal to safety for Chester. Moments later, Lawton put in another low cross, this time from the right, after good work from Peyton, Bushell and Aspinall (90 secs). Then a throw from Chalmers came to Hendley who hooked a shot from right of goal which clipped the top of the bar. Chester continued on the back foot as the electric pace of Hendley troubled them. Next, O'Neill's low cross was cleared off the six yard line for a corner on the left. The pressure continued as a ball came out to Aspinall whose rocket shot fizzed wide.

At last Chester got in a shot as Broughton fired over the bar. Then Munroe had to make an excellent tackle to see off Barnes. But Alty came back to win a corner before the now end to end play continued with a low cross into the Alty box which just evaded Broughton (16 mins). A Chester corner soon followed but the fast pace of the game continued to entertain the small audience. Alty had an escape when a cross from the left came off Peyton near the goal line to Barnes but he somehow contrived to spoon the ball over the bar (24 mins). But Alty replied with a fine ball from the hardworking Chalmers which set Hendley free into the box. However the outrushing keeper did well to deflect the ball out for a corner. From Aspinall's corner, from the left, a Chester defender deflected the ball to Hendley, beyond the back post. He hooked the ball back across goal where the combined attentions of O'Neill and a defender saw the ball bundled into the net, for O'Neill's first competitive goal in an Alty shirt (25 mins).

Manager Heathcote was not happy when Munroe responded to Coburn's shout by passing the ball back to him when the manager wanted him to put it out of play as Coburn sliced the back pass out for a corner. Soon, Aspinall fired in his second thunderous shot of the night, firing narrowly over from 30 yards (29 mins). After treatment for Rutherford, the open play continued with Bowler threatening and Lawton looking lively on the other flank. Indeed Lawton soon ran at goal, cutting in from the right before forcing the keeper to gather his shot at the second attempt (33 mins). Rutherford now had to limp off, to be replaced by Rule (34 mins).

After Holroyd had fired into the side netting, keeper Palethorpe had a worrying moment as he fumbled a routine low ball from Aspinall. Chester then had a good shout for a penalty against Peyton but the referee gave the kick just outside the right edge of the box (37 mins). This freekick came to nothing but, soon after a Bowler cross had gone wide, Chester won a corner (40 mins). Chester were now much improved after their slow start and the game was an even contest at this stage. Chester continued to press towards the interval but Altrincham were closing them down well and looking a different side from that which had been beaten heavily at the weekend by Dagenham.

Chester kicked off the second half and won an early corner. But soon the flowing play of the first half resumed, in a game with remarkably few fouls to interrupt it. Munroe then did well to clear a Chester attack before Alty made a substitution, McFadden replacing Bowler on the left (52 mins). Coburn now found O'Neill and he fed Lawton, whose cross was spooned over the bar (53 mins). At the other end, Holroyd mis-hit a shot wide (54 mins) before Chester forced a fine save from Coburn and a defender put the loose ball out of play for a Chester corner. Coburn was soon making another fine save, from Broughton but the whistle went, in any case, for an Alty freekick. Chester now brought on Mitchell for Sandwith (58 mins), that is number 16 for number 3, though the electronic board showed 15 replacing 18! There is a lot to be said for printed cards to show substitutions!

The sides continued to give each other as good as they got as the hour mark passed. After Coburn had been impeded by a Chester player, the referee allowed play to continue but fortunately for Alty, Broughton's shot was deflected out for a corner on the left (64 mins). Alty responded as Lawton, on the left, fed Hendley but his first touch led to his slicing his chance wide. Another good Alty move soon followed as Alty's slender lead looked reasonably safe at this stage. The next corner went to Chester, however, but was cleared. Lawton then made a good run up the middle but his cross was disappointing. Chester then brought on Kelly for Marples whilst Alty swapped Lawton for Little, who slotted in on the right flank (75 mins). Three minutes later Gary Talbot replaced Steve Aspinall, with Rose moving to right back to accommodate him (78 mins).

Two Chester corners arrived, the second arising from Coburn's excellent point-blank save to push the ball over the bar. From the second corner, the well-positioned McFadden headed off his own line at the back post (80 mins). At the other end, Alty were not threatening too much at this stage but with the game going into the last ten minutes, it looked as if they might secure a win. Coburn had to make another decent save, this time from Holroyd (85 mins). Little and O'Neill now swapped positions and the two were involved in what might have been the match winning incident in the 89th minute. After hand ball against Broughton near half way, Rose's freekick led to an over long cross fromO'Neill. Three minutes of added time were announced and in the second of these, Broughton drove a low shot into the bottom corner, to Coburn's right to save the game for Chester (0+2 mins). O'Neill was named Man of the Match before the final whistle went to herald extra time.

Chester might have been expected to dominate the extra-time period both because they are full-time and because Alty had had the disappointment of being pegged back in added time. But it was Alty who won the first corner of the extra period. However, Coburn then had to tip substitute Mitchell's shot over the bar. Alty won a freekick from the Chester corner and the Robins were soon threatening at the other end with McFadden and Hendley combining to feed Little who forced a great save from Palethorpe (98 mins). Alty maintained the pressure by winning a corner soon afterwards, in the build up to which the Chester keeper Phil Palethorpe, his defender Kevin Roberts and Alty's Lee Hendley all went down, the latter two needing treatment (100 mins). Just before the extra-time break, Alty won another corner when Little knocked the ball out off Allen.

Chester started the final period of added time but Alty had the better of the early play with Chalmers much involved and McFadden also making an impact on the left. Showing no signs of exhaustion, the part-timers then went close when Chalmers's throw was nodded on by Talbot to Little but the keeper again saved well from the Alty man's effort (117 mins). Soon afterwards, Little headed wide from a Peyton cross but no more goals were to come and the penalty shoot out arrived.

The penalties were taken at the 20/20 End, with Alty having the first kick. Captain Steve Bushell hit his kick well enough but it cannoned against the cross bar. Next, Cadwallader sent Coburn the wrong way to give Chester the lead and, after Chalmers had seen his spot-kick saved, Newton also scored comfortably from the spot to give Chester a two-goal cushion. Next, Joe O'Neill side-footed his penalty into the bottom right corner before Holroyd made it 3-1 to Chester. Then, Peyton scored well before Roberts converted his kick to give Chester a 4-2 win, which was hard on Altrincham who had matched their League opponents.

But despite the disappointment of defeat, Altrincham had lifted the spirits with a vastly improved performance compared with last Sunday's league game. Chalmers continues to impress this season with an improved work rate, whilst Lawton continues to play well. At the back it was good to see Munroe have a good game, whilst Rose, too, was a confident performer. And teenage strikers Hendley and McFadden will also have given the Alty boss confidence that he has options in the attack.