Match Report


NUNEATON BOROUGH (0) 2 ALTRINCHAM (0) 1

Setanta Shield Round Four match,
played on Saturday, 22 December, 2007 at 1pm.


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    SUMMARY:

    Right: It wasn't just Carlos Logan who was brought down to earth at Nuneaton but all of Altrincham's team will have been disappointed to have let victory slip from their hands at Liberty Way.

    Altrincham threw this game away in the last few minutes with Boro' substitute Brian Quailey netting in the 86th and 92nd minutes. Despite gradually getting on top in the first half it was not until the 48th minute that Chris Senior fired Altrincham ahead, from Jake Sedgemore's fine pass. Alty then looked fairly comfortable till Quailey hammered a shot from 25 yards past a seemingly wrong-footed Coburn, with four minutes left. With the ball in the net, the goalkeeper held his head in his hands in despair. Nuneaton then penned Alty back and when Lane and Aspinall went for the same ball on the Alty right, it broke for Franklin who miscued a drive at goal but his effort turned into a perfect low cross for Quailey to convert (90+2 mins). Had Lane's header not come back out off the bar when Alty led 1-0, it might have been a different story but the visitors paid for not turning their dominance into goals.


    SCORERS

  • 48 mins: Chris SENIOR (Nuneaton Borough 0 Altrincham 1)
  • 86 mins: Brian QUAILEY (Nuneaton Borough 1 Altrincham 1)
  • 90(+2) mins: Brian QUAILEY (Nuneaton Borough 2 Altrincham 1)


    REFEREE: Mr S Martin


    ATTENDANCE: 533


    TEAM NEWS

    Alty drafted in youth teamers Tom Bailey and Danny Browne to join the bench as they went into this game with only 13 fit players. Richard Acton, who was going to keep goal, and midfielder Gareth Whalley cried off with illness while Carlos Logan started despite a heavy cold. Val Owen and Karl Munroe were both out injured though the latter was named on the bench.


    BACKGROUND:

    As well as the Conference North Play-Off game which Alty won against Nuneaton in 2005, the two sides have met in two other cup competions in the last decade. In the FA Trophy 3Q in 1997-98 Alty won 2-0 at Nuneaton, whilst in 2001-02 at Moss Lane, there was role reversal of today's game. Then, Nuneaton were struggling in the Conference whilst Alty were the underdogs from the UniBond League. But, with Stuart Coburn inspired in goal, Alty won 3-0 with two goals from Rod Thornley (one a penalty, seen left) and one from Kevin Hulme.

    This was Alty's first visit to Liberty Way, the stadium that Borough share with the Nuneaton rugby union club.


    LINE-UPS

    NUNEATON BOROUGH (Blue and white striped shirts, blue shorts and socks) 1. Darren ACTON; 2. Rob ODDY, 5. Neil MOORE, 6. Daryl BURGESS, 3. Connor FRANKLIN; 7. Matty COLLINS, 4. Tom CURTIS, 8. Carl PALMER, 11. Craig McILWAIN; 9. Andy BROWN, 10. Jordan STEPIEN. Subs: 12. Bradley PRITCHARD, 14. Brian QUAILEY, 15. Danny WILLIAMS, 16. James ARMSON, 17. Danny EDMOND.

    ALTRINCHAM (Red and white striped shirts, black shorts and red socks) 1. Stuart COBURN; 2. Steve ASPINALL, 5. Darren TINSON (capt), 15. Chris LANE, 3. Gary SCOTT; 7. Robbie LAWTON, 6. Jake SEDGEMORE, 11. Warren PEYTON, 22. Carlos LOGAN; 19. Chris SENIOR, 9. Colin LITTLE. Subs: 4. Karl MUNROE, 12. Joe O'NEILL, 14. Tom BAILEY, 18. Pat McFADDEN, 20. Danny BROWNE.

    Alty Subs:

  • 81mins: O'Neill for Peyton
  • 85 mins: McFadden for Logan


    REPORT

    On a dank afternoon the game kicked off four minutes late when one of the linesmen had to cry off with injury. As Nuneaton's rugby club was due to play a game on the Liberty Way pitch at 3.30pm, there must have been some anxiety in their clubhouse at this delay as the football match was to be played to a finish, with extra time and penalties if necessary.

    After a slow start, Coburn almost gifted Nuneaton a goal in the sixth minute when he came outside the left of his box but miskicked to leave the striker with an open goal. But from a difficult angle his drive went past the back post. Logan responded with a good run on the left but his cross to Little was lost by the striker. Next, Brown got behind Lane, but Coburn was out quickly to force the striker to fire over the bar (10 mins). Alty were making a faltering start and giving the ball away too cheaply.

    But then Chris Senior forced a good, low save from Acton following good work by Logan (14 mins). Stepien now won Borough a corner for which Alty brought everyone back into their box. But Alty were gradually getting the upper hand and from a fine pass from Sedgemore, Senior forced a good save by Acton, going to his left (20 mins). Moments later, Senior volleyed wildly over the bar, after which Burgess needed treatment before hobbling off injured.

    From Oddy's freekick, Nuneaton gained a corner after which Williams came on to replace Burgess (25 mins). Oddy then received a deserved lecture for upending Logan. Alty went close to scoring in the 29th minute when, following Scott's cross from the left, Little fed the ball from the right by-line into the path of Lawton whose shot hit the net-support rather than the target (29 mins). But Alty continued to have the better of the proceedings as the game went beyond the half-hour mark. Little again got to the by-line, right of goal in the 38th minute but Senior's resulting shot was blocked at source. However, an Alty corner arrived soon after when Peyton's shot was deflected. The short-corner came to nothing.

    Following an error by Scott, a fierce shot was bravely headed out by Lane, who is playing with a broken nose. As half-time approached, Senior won the ball before shooting 20 yards wide of goal (44 mins). A Peyton shot was comfortably saved by Acton as play went into a third added minute.


    Half-Time: NUNEATON BOROUGH 0 ALTRINCHAM 0

    An early lay-off by Senior gave Little a chance but he fired well wide (46 mins). Alty continued to press and after Nuneaton seemed to have cleared the danger, Sedgemore played a well-judged ball forward into the box, where Senior did well to strike it past Acton to give Alty the lead (48 mins). An Alty corner soon followed, again taken short and, again, to little effect.

    Alty had a let-off in the 52nd minute when Stepien went down in the box under Aspinall's challenge and shortly afterwards Stepien got behind the Alty right-back and from his feed, Palmer laid a dangerous ball across the Alty goalmouth. Nuneaton's pressing continued as Brown shot narrowly wide from the edge of the box (54 mins). However, Alty then won three corners in as many minutes, none of which were productive (61 mins). But from an Alty freekick, from the right by-line by Sedgemore, Chris Lane powered a header off the underside of the bar and from Logan's follow-up, the ball cleared the bar (64 mins).

    Two Nuneaton corners were cleared but when a good ball from Lawton set Little running at the defence from half-way, Franklin's deliberate hand-ball would have brought him a red card from many a referee but only a yellow from Mr Martin (67 mins). It was a decision that was to have repercussions in the decisive closing minutes of the game. Borough now brought on Quailey for Oddy (68 mins). Alty looked generally comfortable with their lead and might have gone further ahead when Little's cross from the right found but his attempted back-heel at goal failed to come off (71 mins).

    However, Alty were relieved to survive another decent penalty appeal when Scott appeared to knock over Palmer in the box. Play continued without any great excitement until 10 minutes from time when Brown's shot clipped the cross-bar but the referee felt Coburn had turned it over the bar and gave a corner, which Alty again defended with all 11 men in their own box. Joe O'Neill now came on for Peyton, so Lawton moved to centre-midfield (81 mins). With five minutes left, Pritchard replaced Boro' captain, Curtis and McFadden came on for Alty's Logan. Almost immediately Borough equalized. The ball came from the left to Quailey, 25 yards out. Though he hit his shot well, Alty keeper Coburn seemed confused by its trajectory and the ball fizzed past the motionless keeper (86 mins). The home fans seemed as stunned at Quailey's goal as the visitors' supporters were..

    Two minutes later, Little shot wide from 25 yards but generally Alty were now on the receiving end of belated home pressure. As three minutes of added time were signalled It looked as if the rugby players, watching from their clubhouse were in for a delayed kick off caused by extra-time. Alty continued to defend deep in their own half and paid the price in the second added minute. As Aspinall made to head the ball on the right touchline 25 yards out, Lane seemed to shout to him to leave it to him, but the outcome was that Franklin, who might have been dismissed earlier in the second half, got free. He powered a shot at goal but miscued his effort into the goalmouth where Quailey got ahead of his marker to score from close range and stun everyone in the ground (90+2 mins). From seeming victory six minutes earlier, Alty had allowed the game to slip from their grasp. Manager Graham Heathcote, confined to the stands by a touchline ban, headed off immediately towards the dressing rooms. The final whistle went as the game entered the fifth added minute. Alty must now, as the cliché goes, concentrate all their efforts on the league as they go into Christmas with a threadbare squad and just two wins in their last 12 games at Conference, Trophy or FA Cup level.


    Full-Time: NUNEATON BOROUGH 2 ALTRINCHAM 1