Match Report

REFEREE: Mr Robert Jones

ATTENDANCE: 745

Altrincham had Adam Flynn suspended but he was injured, in any case, so Mark Lees continued in his place with youth team central defender Joe Coombs again on the bench. Shaun Densmore, one of several players carrying knocks, passed a late fitness test.

BACKGROUND:

Mike Garnett's record show that our record against Hyde (United) FC is remarkably even;

The last league match between the sides at Ewen Fields was on 15 March 2003 in the UniBond Northern Premier League when Alty won 2-0 in front of 485 spectators.

Hyde, who went into this match with four wins from four games, had two ex-Alty men on their books in the shape of Matthew Berkeley and Andrew Pearson, whilst Alty included former Tigers, Mark Lees and Chris Lynch.

LINE-UPS

HYDE FC (Red shirts, blue shorts and socks) 1. David Carnell, 2. Joel Richardson, 3. Adam Griffin, 4. Gianluca Havern, 5. Andy Pearson, 6. Dave Birch, 7. Chris Worsley, 8. Callum Byrne, 11. Ryan Crowther, 10. Scott Spencer, 9. Matthew Berkeley, Subs: 15. Rory Fallon, 17. Luke Mack, 12. Mike Whitwell, 16. Adam Birchall, 14. Danny Broadbent

ALTRINCHAM (Yellow shirts, blue shorts, yellow socks): 1. Stuart COBURN, 2. Robbie LAWTON (capt), 6. Mark LEES, 5. Paul JONES, 3. Ryan BROWN, 7. Shaun DENSMORE, 4. Chris LYNCH, 8. Anthony DANYLYK, 11. Nicky CLEE, 10. Damian REEVES, 9. Michael TWISS, 18. Josh OLLERENSHAW, Subs: 12. Joe COOMBS, 15. Astley MULHOLLAND, 14. Brian SUMMERSKILL, 16. Simon RICHMAN.

REPORT

The Ewen Fields pitch looked in superb condition but, nevertheless, was liberally watered by the sprinklers before the kick off took finally place at three minutes past three. After an evenly contested opening, Altrincham won the first corner in the seventh minute. The home keeper, Carnell, fumbled this but Hyde got the ball clear. Lynch was then penalized for a foul on Worsley just outside the Alty box, left of centre. A team-mate laid the ball a few yards inside to Spencer, who was allowed time to hammer a shot past Coburn (11 mins).

Alty then saw a Danylyk shot deflected towards goal but Carnell held it (15 mins). After Jones had hooked the ball over the Hyde bar from the right, Twiss went close with a rising shot from an opening that he himself had created with an interchange of passes as he cut in from left of goal (18 mins). At the other end, a ball over the top caused a bit of confusion between Jones and Coburn before Berkeley hooked the ball well wide.

A foul by Lynch earned him a referee's lecture as the rain eased off briefly. Hyde continued to press forward and when a stretching Jones cleared a ball to Crowther, the Hyde man won his team a corner. Hyde continued to pass the ball about well, but then from a Clee corner from the right, Lees timed his run perfectly towards the back post and powered a header into the Hyde net to level the scores (27 mins). Seemingly taken aback by what was only the second goal conceded by Hyde this season, Mike Pavasovic, the local radio non-League pundit, described it on the tannoy as the "equalising goal for Droylsden" before correcting himself!

Altrincham now had the better of the game with Densmore, who had started on the right of midfield, switched over to the left, and Clee moved inside to a position behind Reeves and Twiss. This left midfielder Chris Lynch as the only outlet on the right and consequently virtually all of Alty's attacks went up the left. Next, a foul on Reeves gave Altrincham a freekick 30 yards out but Clee’s freekick rose over the bar (34 mins). Moments later a chance for Reeves also cleared the bar as Alty lacked the clinical finishing of Spencer.

Soon, Hyde almost put through their own goal when a Clee long throw from the left was misheaded towards the goalmouth by a Hyde head, where it struck a Hyde player and, fortunately for the Tigers, diverted straight into Carnell's arms (38 mins). But on a rare Hyde counter-attack, Brown committed a foul, which looked like obstruction, but he found himself booked to Lee Sinnott’s annoyance (40 mins).

Jones then had to be alert after a misheader by Danylyk. But, as the 45 minutes ended, a good Alty move ended with Densmore's cross from the left that was just inches too high for Reeves to head home, the ball skimming off his head wide of goal. As the game went into added time, Alty allowed the otherwise quiet Spencer the time to shoot but, this time, he did not get hold of his effort properly and Coburn saved. Half-time arrived with the scores level, which was a reasonably fair reflection of a half in which Alty had probably threatened the Hyde goal more than vice versa but had not been able to finish clinically.

Despite some first-half rain and a pre-match utilization of the Hyde water sprinklers, the Tigers sprayed gallons more water onto the pitch at the interval, continuing to do so, even when rain started to fall steadily. At the interval they brought on Birchall for Richardson, who had taken a first-half knock.

Densmore was still on the Alty left, with Clee remaining in a more central forward role behind Twiss and Reeves. Soon, Alty survived a goalmouth scare in which Coburn was hurt as he dived at the feet of Birchall before Danylyk finally cleared the danger and, soon afterwards, the Alty keeper needed treatment to his left arm (51 mins). Between the incident and Coburn's treatment, former Alty man, Andrew Pearson, was booked for a foul on Twiss. Rain was now pouring down and suddenly it became absolutely torrential - the main stand sprouting a leak directly above your correspondent!

Richman now came on for Lynch, who has not completed any of the last three games (55 mins). As the hour mark passed, Hyde were making the running but their second goal came out of nothing. Spencer received the ball from Birch with his back to goal, about 25 yards out. He turned and planted a powerful left-footed shot into the net to a motionless Coburn's right (61 mins). Spencer had had three chances and finished two of them very impressively; other than that, he was not greatly involved in the game!

Altrincham had a good chance to equalize soon afterwards when Danylyk won the ball and, from Clee's resulting cross, the unmarked but stretching Reeves screwed his shot across goal and wide of the keeper’s right post (63 mins). With torrential rain still beating down, an Alty freekick came and went before Hyde replaced former Alty man, Matty Berkeley by Broadbent (67 mins).

A blocked shot from Richman yielded a corner at which point Mulholland replaced Twiss (69 mins). Alty then optimistically appealed for a penalty when a Hyde player kicked the ball against his own hand. Hyde's Havern was now booked for dissent (71 mins) before Mulholland did well up the right, firing in an angled shot which Carnell beat out for a corner (72 mins). Another Alty corner soon followed but this was again unproductive. As the game approached its final minutes another Altrincham corner was won and then, a freekick 40 yards out, but neither of these dead balls produced any real danger to the Hyde goal (79 mins).

Hyde's next substitution surprisingly saw Spencer removed and Whitwell came on (81 mins). Later, crosses from Brown and then Richman could not locate team-mates in the box before Whitwell wasted an opportunity for Hyde. With time ticking away, Danylyk was booked for a foul on Birchall (81 mins). Hyde now enjoyed some possession and won two successive corners which they used to wind down the clock before three added minutes were announced.

It was Hyde rather than Alty who won a very late corner as Altrincham were unable to threaten at the other end. Spencer was the difference between the sides; without him, Hyde did not look particularly threatening and it was Altrincham, who brought a strong contingent of supporters with them, who had more shots on goal. It was not a bad performance from the Robins, but they will need to improve their finishing and their delivery of corners and dead balls if they are to convert their pressure into more goals.