Match Report

SUMMARY:

Above: Graham Heathcote congratulates his team as they salute the travelling fans at the end of the game.

Alty gained an excellent point at Aldershot, taking advantage of wayward shooting by The Shots but also squandering three excellent chances of their own in the closing stages. Aldershot had the better of the first half and were grateful to Acton for two early saves. But Alty improved in the second half. However, after Band had come on for Potts (67 mins) Alty sat deeper, relying on the breakaway as they soaked up home pressure. When Shots' keeper Bull amazingly threw the ball to Lugsden, the striker missed the goal with his attempted lob over the embarrassed Bull (85 mins) Two minutes later, Lugsden sliced wide after getting behind the defence and soon afterwards Lawton missed the target from a good position before Alty survived late pressure and a penalty appeal for hands. This was Alty's second successive clean sheet and their third game without defeat. Report to follow.

SCORERS

REFEREE: Mr. K G Yeo (Essex)

Alty had not lost at the Recreation Ground on their two previous visits and last season had also done the double over the Shots, beating them 2-0 in Hampshire and 5-1 at Moss Lane. At kick off Aldershot lay fifth and Alty fourteenth.

Alty employed the same eleven as started against Tamworth last Saturday, which meant that they still had eight first teamers injured and only two of them (Band, Bowler) were even fit enough to be on the bench.

For the hosts, ex-Halifax striker John Grant was dropped to the bench for the first time this season as Marcus Gayle came into the side alongside Joel Grant. Also, as he had hinted, manager Terry Brown included Darren Barnard despite the defender having an operation on his groin booked for next week.

ALDERSHOT TOWN (Red & blue quartered shirts, red shorts, blue socks: 1. Nikki BULL, 2. Dean SMITH, 6. Andy EDWARDS, 19. Dave WINFIELD, 3. Darren BARNARD, 12. Louis SOARES, 4. Ricky NEWMAN, 24. Ben HARDING, 11. Ryan WILLIAMS; 10. Marcus GAYLE, 23. Joel GRANT. Subs: 8. Dave LEE, 9. John GRANT, 15. Ryan SCOTT, 18. Phil ANDERSON, 22. Louis WELLS (gk).

ALTRINCHAM (Red & white striped shirts, black shorts and red socks.): 13. Richard ACTON; 2. Steve ASPINALL, 17. Karl MUNROE, 20. Stephen ROSE, 11. Warren PEYTON; 22. Colin POTTS, 8. Val OWEN, 7. Robbie LAWTON, 14. Lewis CHALMERS; 12. Joe O'NEILL, 10. Rod THORNLEY. Subs: 4. Peter BAND, 15. Justin BOWLER, 19. Lee HENDLEY, 21. Kieran LUGSDEN, 23. Eddie HUSSIN.

Alty Substitutions:

REPORT

Above: Steve Aspinall prepares to cross the ball as Val Owen and Colin Potts look on.

Heavy rain fell as the teams came out, both wearing strips containing a lot of red; The Shots' red and blue quartered shirts giving Alty little choice between their home kit of red and white stripes and their blue change-strip.

Once the game had got under way, Peyton slipped on the wet surface and Owen had to concede an early corner, which Rose cleared. Soon Grant fed Soares and it took prompt action from Acton, rushing from goal, to block well at the cost of another corner, which Aspinall cleared (3 mins). Alty were under the cosh in these early stages and, soon, Acton had to make a fine one-handed save, low to his right to turn Soares's header round the post from Williams's cross. Winfield rose well but headed the corner wide as Alty remained on the back foot (4 mins). Aldershot's next shot was Barnard's slice, very wide, from 25 yards (9 mins).

Thornley produced Alty's first real threat when he got on the end of Chalmers's low cross from the left (11 mins). Not long afterwards Alty also won a corner, through Chalmers, but Potts overhit this (13 mins). However, the home side soon went close again when Gayle got past Munroe, who otherwise had a very good game, and fed Williams whose low cross just evaded Joel Grant (15 mins). Alty now enjoyed some possession which led to Chalmers's lay-off to Owen, who fired narrowly wide from 20 yards (16 mins). After their bright start, Aldershot's play was now a mix of good play punctuated by poor passing.

After returning to the pitch after treatment, Harding fired 30 yards wide from 25 yards out (22 mins). Gayle did better after 25 minutes forcing a save from Acton but he was given offside anyway. Alty now had three close escapes. Firstly, Grant shot just wide, then, a cross from the right was just too high for a Shots man in front of goal, before Williams's cross from the left just evaded a team-mate in the goalmouth (29 mins). Rose now cleared an Aldershot throw before Grant got to the by-line, only to miskick badly (31 mins).

For Alty, Potts now did well, covering at the back, but he had to concede a corner, which Peyton cleared. After this, Gayle headed onto the roof of the net from Williams's left-wing cross as heavy rain again started to fall (35 mins). Next, Williams's freekick from a central position 30 yards out curled tamely over the bar (38 mins). But Aldershot's pressure yielded another corner which Munroe cleared before a Potts error led to another home corner (40 mins). Yet, it was Alty who almost snatched the lead moments later when Chalmers and Potts relayed Acton's punt to Thornley, whose smart turn led to him firing at goal, forcing Bull into a smart tip over the bar for a corner (41 mins). From Aspinall's cross, Chalmers nodded wide. At the other end, Newman netted Barnard's cross, but the goal was ruled out for offside (44 mins). Two minutes of added time failed to alter the score before the interval with Altrincham the more grateful for that.

Right: Joe O'Neill fights for posssession at Aldershot, as Robbie Lawton helps out.

Alty started the second half well as Chalmers gained possession from Smith in midfield and this led to a throw, from which Owen had a shot blocked and Potts put the loose ball wide from 22 yards (46 mins). But misplaced passes from both sides now interrupted the game's flow. Each side won a corner, Alty's arriving from Peyton's fine cross (49 mins). Aldershot continued to produce a performance combining promising play with misplaced passing and poor shooting. But Acton then did well to cut out Smith's low cross from the right (52 mins) before Potts, again having to play deep, had to concede a corner (53 mins).

Alty relieved the next Aldershot pressure as Chalmers showed the value of his throwing ability by gaining 70 yards with three successive throw-ins. With the home fans raising the volume of their support, they wre quietened briefly as Aspinall's long ball almost found Thornley but Winfield just cut it out (55 mins). But, in the second half, Alty were more than holding their own as Harding clattered Owen, to give the visitors a freekick. At this point Lugsden replaced Thornley up front for the Robins (59 mins).

Aldershot's woeful shooting continued as Joel Grant sliced an effort towards the corner flag (60 mins). After a mundane few minutes, Rose conceded a corner, at which point John Grant replaced Marcus Gayle (65 mins). Then, Peter Band came on for Colin Potts, with Rose moving to central midfield and Lawton to the right (67 mins). Barnard now shot narrowly wide, before Munroe made an excellent clearance. But it was Alty who went nearer to scoring as Chalmers's excellent leap impressively beat Bull in the air but the ball was cleared by a covering defender as it dropped behind the keeper (70 mins).

After Band and Acton had got away with a bit of confusion in their own box, Aldershot brought on Lee, to great acclaim as he was returning after a broken leg (72 mins). Soon, Barnard played an excellent one-two with Grant to get himself into the six-yard box but he slid his shot wide (74 mins). Then, with Lugsden in possession, referee Yeo stopped play for an Alty freekick before Lugsden was again halted in his tracks, this time by offside (75 mins). Aldershot now pressed again as the game went into the final ten minutes. They now brought on Scott for Newman (82 mins). The referee then lectured Aspinall for alleged timewasting as he retrieved the ball for a throw-in before Alty wasted three good chances to take the points.

Firstly, Bull caught Lawton's slice but went down after Lugsden's legitimate challenge. The keeper then got up and bizarrely threw the ball straight out to Lugsden but the striker was unable to hit the target fom 20 yards with his lob over the keeper (85 mins). Immediately O'Neill did well for Alty, getting to the by-line, left of goal but he could not find a team-mate in support as he laid the ball into the goalmouth. Aldershot almost committed suicide again moments later as Aspinall set Lugsden free. But Lugsden sliced his left-foot shot well over the bar from the edge of the box (87 mins). When, moments later, Lawton fired over, left-footed, from right of goal, Alty had wasted three good chances in as many minutes (88 mins).

But Aldershot received a fillip when four minutes of added time were announced and they immediately won a corner. Aldershot continued to press and won another corner in the last added minute, following which Alty survived an appeal for hands against Rose from Edwards’s cross, which the referee dismissed. Acton upset the home supporters by legitimately insisting on taking every goal kick in the closing stages from the left of his goal when, unfortunately, for the home side the ball kept going out of play on the right side of his goal! But Acton was arguably Alty’s Man of the Match, the goalkeeper having made a couple of crucial saves and showing confident handling throughout. Considering this was only his fourth league game in three years, Richard has done a magnificent job to achieve two clean sheets in those three games, whilst the new-look back four, brought into existence by the long injury list, once again also played well and it was a little surprising to see it broken up for the final stages by Rose’s move to midfield as Band came on as a substitute.

So, Alty made it three games without defeat, and recorded their second successive clean sheet with another solid team performance. Whilst there was disappointment at the three missed chances by Alty at the end, Aldershot's failure to convert their pressure into goals meant that a draw was probably a fair outcome.

Full-Time: ALDERSHOT TOWN 0 ALTRINCHAM 0