Match Report


DROYLSDEN (0) 0 ALTRINCHAM (0) 2

Blue Square Premier match,
played on Saturday, 9 February 2008, at 3pm.


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    SUMMARY:

    Altrincham's improved form in 2008 continued as they recorded their first "double" of the season at the Butcher's Arms. It was not particularly pretty but Alty kept their third league clean sheet of the season to win this vital game 2-0. Droylsden, for whom Jody Banim was by far their best player, had the better chances of the first half but an Alty goal, just a minute into the second half, by Robbie Lawton turned the game. He drove the ball home from 15 yards when Jennings's cross from the left was cleared to him. Alty sealed the game in the 72nd minute when Jennings's freekick, this time from the right by-line, found Colin Little totally unmarked at the back post and he headed home.


    SCORERS

  • 46 mins: Robbie LAWTON (Droylsden 0 Altrincham 1)
  • 72 mins: Colin LITTLE (Droylsden 0 Altrincham 2)


    REFEREE: Mr D Webb (Durham)


    ATTENDANCE: 1,178


    TEAM NEWS

    Alty had Darren Tinson back from injury and Tom Cahill had also recovered to be included on the bench. Former Alty defender Karl Munroe was on the bench for the Bloods whilst Droylsden's ex-Robins' midfielder Ged Murphy was sitting in the stand. Also in the stand were Alty's former captain, Mark Maddox of Leigh RMI, Val Owen, and the ex-Alty manager Bernard Taylor, who had recovered sufficiently from illness to watch the game with former Alty kitman Vic Green.


    BACKGROUND:

    The Butcher's Arms pitch was heavily sanded as Droylsden's biggest crowd of the season gathered for this local derby. The Alty contingent at the away end far outnumbered the home support as their team looked to continue its improved from since the New Year.


    LINE-UPS

    DROYLSDEN (Red shirts, black shorts and red socks): 1. Paul PHILLIPS (capt); 2. Lee ROCHE, 16. Adam DUGDALE, 5. Greg STRONG, 22. Steve HALFORD, 11. Chris DENHAM, 19. Levi MACKIN, 14. Connall MURTAGH, 8. Jamie McGUIRE; 9. Terry FEARNS, 12. Jody BANIM. Subs: 3. Karl MUNROE, 4. Colin CRYAN, 6. Gareth MORRIS, 15. Ashley BURBEARY, 26. Danny ELLIS.

    ALTRINCHAM (Pale and dark blue shirts, pale blue shorts and socks) 1. Stuart COBURN; 16. Ryan SHOTTON, 5. Darren TINSON (capt), 10. Greg YOUNG, 24. James JENNINGS; 23. Ryan TOULSON, 7. Robbie LAWTON, 25. Liam KING, 11. Warren PEYTON; 9.Colin LITTLE, 19. Chris SENIOR. Subs: 3. Gary SCOTT, 14. Tom CAHILL, 12. Joe O'NEILL, 15. Chris LANE, 22. Carlos LOGAN

    Alty Subs:

  • 80 mins: O'NEILL for SENIOR
  • 87 mins: LOGAN for LITTLE


    REPORT

    After a minute's impeccably observed silence for the 50th anniversary of the Munich air disaster, Droylsden kicked off into the sun, towards the massed ranks of Alty’s supporters. Play was fairly scrappy but Alty won the game's first corner from Jennings's freekick from the right when Phillips tipped the ball over but referee Webbunbelievably awarded a goalkick to the home side, which even bemused the Droylsden players (7 mins). Senior then threatened the Droylsden goal, but Dugdale made an important challenge to clear the danger (10 mins). Next, Alty allowed Banim's ball to set McGuire free but he toe-poked a weak effort to Coburn, from left of goal (11 mins). Senior was then caught offside as Phillips saved his shot. Soon a neat move from Alty ended when King shot across goal from Little's neat nod-on (14 mins). The Alty back four were all doing well at the other end, keeping Banim and Denham at bay. But King was now hobbling, troubled by his left leg, but he was to run it off and, soon, was impressing once more in midfield as Alty were now marginally on top.

    From a Coburn punt the ball dropped behind the Droylsden back line to Senior, but he failed to control the ball cleanly and it ran to Phillips (23 mins). Play continued in fairly unremarkable fashion with the ball spending a fair bit of time in the air. Things improved when Shotton’s cross from the right was met by a good shot from Little but it went wide (27 mins). Young was then penalised for a trip on Fearns as he got to the edge of the box, left of goal. Murtagh's well taken free kick was expertly tipped over the bar by the alert Coburn for a Droylsden corner. From Banim's corner, the ball was half cleared but Lawton went down clutching his head and later got up to remonstrate with the referee that he had been elbowed, off the ball (30 mins). From a long throw from Shotton, 23 yards out, the ball came out to Toulson whose low shot forced a decent save from Phillips, low down by his left upright (31 mins).

    Coburn was then judged to have conceded a corner when he caught the ball on his by-line and from the corner-kick, Strong headed over the bar. Droylsden now applied some pressure but when Coburn saved from Fearns, the offside flag had, in any case, been raised (37 mins). More head tennis was played before Denham got past Jennings but his low shot was comfortably held by Coburn. After Halford's foul on Little, Jennings sent his freekick straight to an opponent and when Senior was offside shortly afterwards it epitomised another scrappy period of play in which honest endeavour was in evidence but skilful ball play on the bobbly pitch was not. Coburn then did well to tip McGuire’s header over the bar for a corner from Banim’s chip (42 mins). Alty cleared the corner but had no one in the 70 yards of the pitch furthest from their goal so possession was immediately lost. Fearns then got in a smart hook at goal when facing away from the target, but this effort cleared the bar. Following a Shotton throw from the right just before half time, the ball came back to the defender but his strongly hit low cross evaded everyone. A minute of added time was indicated during which Altrincham won a corner, but Phillips caught Jennings' ball and so the first half ended goalless, which was perhaps surprising given that between them the two sides had conceded 103 goals so far this season.


    Half-Time: DROYLSDEN 0 ALTRINCHAM 0

    Alty kicked off the second half playing into the sun and attacking the end where their supporters were gathered. As the first minute of the half ended an Alty throw on the left led to a cross from Jennings which came out towards the edge of the box, from where Robbie Lawton lashed it low into the net, though it appeared to take a deflection before entering the bottom corner of the net to Phillips's right (46 mins). Droylsden responded immediately with a corner, which Shotton cleared. Soon Colin Little threatened from Ryan Toulson's feed but Phillips was out smartly to block the effort. With Banim now on the Droylsden right, a freekick was won but this came to nothing. Banim continued to be a threat and Tinson had to make an excellent block from him; the Alty captain had a good game on his return from injury.

    Then Shotton did well to shepherd a ball out but broke the corner flag in the process as Alty continued to prevent the Bloods from creating any clear chances (56 mins). Dave Pace made his first change as Fearns gave way to former Stalybridge youngster, Ashley Burbeary (58 mins),. McGuire now moved up front as the new player slotted in on the left. Alty then moved forward thanks to King’s advance and he found Toulson on the right. In turn, the right-midfielder fed Senior who was closed down and a goalkick resulted. Another period of uninspiring play continued including another set of head tennis before Droylsden won a corner which Halford headed wide (66 mins). Ellis then replaced the former Alty trialist Conall Murtagh for Droylsden (66 mins).

    More minutes ticked by with honest but imperfect effort holding sway over flowing football. Ellis saw a shot comfortably saved by Coburn before Shotton surged forward for Alty and won a freekick to the right of goal near the by-line. Jennings took the freekick and Little superbly evaded his markers with a darting run which left him completely unmarked towards the back post from where he made no mistake in heading the freekick into the inviting net to give Alty a 2-0 lead (72 mins). It took Little's tally to 13 this season, 10 of which have come in the league, five of them in the last four games. Alty attacked again soon afterwards following a foul on Peyton. Jennings's freekick was met by a stretching Senior who put his effort well over the bar (74 mins).

    Droylsden then rallied to win two corners in a minute and soon after this Denham fired in a low shot which Coburn punched. But manager Graham Heathcote was still concerned as he shouted to his men "Who's marking Banim?", correctly identifying the Bloods' danger man as a continuing threat. Next, Cryan replaced Roche for the home team (78 mins). Two minutes later Alty made a swap as Joe O'Neill came on for Chris Senior up front (80 mins). Droylsden then won another corner but Altrincham's defence stood firm as time ticked away. Banim continued to show great skill, getting past two Alty men on the Droylsden right but firing a low shot which Coburn saved competently.

    Three minutes from the end Carlos Logan replaced Colin Little (87 mins), but the new player was destined not to touch the ball before the game ended, despite the addition of three minutes beyond the ninety. In the second added minute more great skill from Banim won his side a corner from which Coburn was fouled. After O'Neill had been harshly penalised, Burbeary got into the left of the box but shot wide (90+3 ins). In the fourth added minute more Banim skill led to the Droylsden man's shot from the edge of the box coming back of the Alty crossbar but his effort was too late to rescue anything from this match. Alty recorded their third win of the new year and made it 11 points from seven games this year. It was Alty's third clean sheet of the league campaign but only the first for goalkeeper Stuart Coburn who showed his delight by racing to the other end and punching the air in front of the chanting Alty fans who had turned up in large numbers and given great support throughout. Alty now have a five point buffer between them and the relegation places, but the team below them, Farsley Celtic, have two games in hand. However, Alty and Celtic meet on Tuesday so Alty will need to see off their challenge if they wish to consolidate their place outside the relegation zone.


    Full-Time: DROYSLDEN 0 ALTRINCHAM 2