Match Report

REFEREE: Mr P Curry

ATTENDANCE: 804 (71 through away turnstiles)

Alty captain Robbie Lawton remained sidelined by his tendinitis but, otherwise, everyone was fit, though four players (Clee, Brown, Summerskill and Lynch) had been ill in the past week from a bug doing the rounds at Moss Lane. Rob Williams was making his hundredth start for Alty, his current loan from AFC Telford having been extended in the days prior to this match.

Adam Flynn returned in the centre of defence, having been injured and failed to start the previous eight league matches.

Boston, like Alty, had been knocked out of the FA Cup in the previous week by a lower league side. So changes were made with loanees Jordan Burrow and Sam Mulready starting up front. Former Alty man, Ben Wilkinson, played in midfield, having recently turned out at right-back.

BACKGROUND:

Mike Garnett kindly supplied data on past encounters between Altrincham and Boston United.

LINE-UPS

ALTRINCHAM (Red & white striped shirts, black shorts and red socks) 1. Stuart COBURN, 2. Mark LEES, 6. Adam FLYNN, 5. Rob WILLIAMS, 3. Ryan BROWN, 7. James LAWRIE, 4. Anthony DANYLYK (capt), 8. Shaun DENSMORE, 11. Nicky CLEE, 10. Damian REEVES, 9. Michael TWISS. Subs: 12. Chris LYNCH, 14. Brian SUMMERSKILL, 15. Simon RICHMAN, 16. Astley MULHOLLAND, 18. Adam REID

BOSTON UNITED (Amber & black): 1. Paul Bastock; 2. Jordan Fairclough, 3. Gareth Jelleyman, 4. Craig Armstrong, 5. Kevin Austin, 6. Nathan Stainfield, 7. Ben Fairclough, 8. Ben Wilkinson, 9. Jordan Burrow, 10. Sam Mulready, 11. Chris Hall. Subs: 14. Ben Milnes, 12. Marc Newsham, 13. Ricky Drury, 15. Ryan Semple, 16. Jason Lee

REPORT

TThe game got under way in dismal, steady drizzle, with Boston attacking the virtually empty away end, the Boston supporters having been accommodated under cover on the Popular Side. The floodlights were needed from the start as the game got off to a quiet start; an off-target Clee shot hit a defender (4 mins) before a Hall freekick from Boston was cleared (8 mins), but that was about it on the excitement front.

However, things got better as a fine cross from Lees was only just reached by Bastock, who patted the ball out of the path of the incoming Damian Reeves (9 mins). The improvement continued as a Lawrie shot yielded a corner, followed immediately by a second, from which Rob Williams was penalised for "climbing" (11 mins).

Both sides were making errors, before a neat Alty move ended with a blocked shot from Clee (13 mins). Then, following a Lees clearance, Twiss fed Densmore, who advanced before supplying Danylyk. He, in turn, found Lawrie, whose impressive raking cross from wide right, about 35 yards out, was met by a stretching Reeves who had timed his run perfectly to get behind Austin and divert the ball into the net for his 11th goal of the season (14 mins).

Soon, another good Alty move produced a corner on the left from Ryan Brown's cross (17 mins). Following this, a well struck shot from Clee rose narrowly over the bar. With the heavy drizzle still falling, Altrincham continued on the front foot but there was no serious threat of a further goal till the 26th minute when Boston's 41 year-old keeper, Paul Bastock, made an impressive double save from Reeves, who had been played in by Lawrie, who was having a good game.

A minute later, Alty made it 2-0 with a finely taken goal. Densmore, Reeves, Lawrie and Densmore, again, were involved before Lawrie received the ball back, just outside the box. He made space and time for himself with an excellent feint, as he drifted infield, before driving a low shot across Bastock into the far side of the net (27 mins).

At the back, Alty were looking secure, with the backline allowing Coburn a quiet afternoon. It had also become a quiet afternoon for the Boston supporters' drum which had been beaten steadily from the kick off but was now silenced for a while. As Alty passed the ball around well, a wag in the main stand declared their play to be "mesmerizing". Boston did win two corners, the second disputed by Coburn who claimed only to have touched a shot after it had gone out of play at his near post (36 mins)

Soon, however, Reeves threatened again after a seven-pass move, but a flying save from Bastock stopped the ball (38 mins). Next, a low cross from Clee went across the Pilgrims’ goalmouth before another pass from Lawrie set Reeves running towards the box, only for him to be "taken out" by Austin, who was booked for his foul, a few yards outside the box. After Clee had stepped over the ball, Lawrie's freekick forced another good stop from Bastock (42 mins).

Following a freekick conceded by Lees, Boston won two successive corners as the 45 minutes came towards its conclusion. But in the one added minute of play Clee advanced but saw his shot again capably stopped by Bastock who was standing between Altrincham and a bigger half-time lead.

At the interval, Boston brought on Semple for Armstrong, the former Eastwood Town joint manager. But the new man hardly had time to blink before Alty made it 3-0 as Lawrie crossed the ball in from the right. Though Clee could not turn the ball in, it looped up for Reeves to nod carefully into the net with just 45 seconds having elapsed.

When Clee was barged over, Ben Fairclough became the second Boston player to be booked (52 mins). Flynn put the freekick wide before Reeves went closer following good play from Clee (54 mins). Altrincham were now in complete control and Lawrie was very unlucky to see a fine strike from 40 yards smash back off the crossbar with Bastock beaten (55 mins). The barrage continued as, now, Danylyk had a shot saved by the busy Bastock.

With Boston playing poorly, they made a double change in the 58th minute when Newsham and, joint manager, Jason Lee replaced the ineffectual Burrow and Mulready up front for the visitors. Two Alty corners followed this change before Clee was replaced by Mulholland for Alty on the hour mark. Almost immediately, Mulholland had a shot blocked before Reeves and Mulholland fed the irrepressible Lawrie whose shot forced yet another save, at the second attempt, from Bastock (64 mins).

Next, a strong shot from Twiss, from 35 yards, was beaten out by Bastock. But then, out of the blue, Boston scored. A long cross from the right was volleyed, side-foot, into the net past an exposed Coburn by Jason Lee from close range to make it 3-1 (65 mins). For a few minutes, the Pilgrims looked more lively and with Alty having twice conceded two-goal leads this season, even at 3-0 the home crowd was quietened.

Jason Lee, in particular, was having an influence as Boston now got forward more than in any other part of the game. But Alty reasserted themselves, firstly with another good effort from Reeves, which Bastock beat out (75 mins). And a minute later Reeves completed his hat-trick, scoring from close range after good work from Twiss and Densmore (76 mins). It was the first league hat-trick for Alty since 2007 when a 5-1 win at St Albans included a Colin Little hat trick. Unfortunately for Bastock, he had been the St Albans keeper that day.

Reeves was now withdrawn, as Richman came on, the new man inadvertently amusing the crowd by putting on his shirt on back to front as he rushed to the touchline to join the game (80 mins). Reeves, with 13 league goals in 12 appearances in the BSB North this season, was given generous applause as he left the field. But any thoughts that Alty would ease up were unfounded as Mulholland burst towards the box, clearly having his shirt pulled but, inexplicably, the linesman nearby saw nothing untoward. However, Boston's respite was short as Twiss deservedly got on the score sheet having played well throughout. Once again the supplier was Lawrie, seizing on a misheader by Jordan Fairclough, following which Twiss calmly planted the ball into the net (84 mins).

And Lawrie was again the provider as Astley Mulholland scored his first senior goal for Altrincham, converting impressively from wide left, his low shot rebounding into the net off the base of the far post to make it 6-1 (88 mins). Two minutes of added time did not see any change to the score line so it was the second time in three league matches that Alty had recorded a 6-1 win.

The win moved Alty up to the fringes of the play-offs, in sixth place, with only Stalybridge having scored more goals this season than the Robins.