Match Report

COLWYN BAY (0) 0 ALTRINCHAM (0) 2

FA Trophy 3QR re-match
played on Tuesday, 19 November 2013, at 7.45pm

SUMMARY

For the second time in 72 hours Altrincham travelled to Colwyn Bay. This time the referee lasted the full ninety minutes and so goals from Wilkinson and Walshaw (the same duo who had scored in the aborted game last Saturday) ensured that hosts' spoiling tactics in failing to agree to finish the first match did not get an undeserved reward.

Bay played better in the first half than they had in the initial game without threatening Coburn's goal too seriously. The turning point came when Joyce got himself sent off for pulling back Walshaw. Having already been booked, he was now dismissed (54 mins).

Alty took the lead on 63 minutes when Wilkinson fired home from 25 yards and Walshaw, who had missed the best chance of the first half, made amends with a second goal on 74 minutes. Alty now have a home tie aganst Brackley Town or Leek Town.

SCORERS:

REFEREE: Mr Ryan Johnson (Swinton)
ATTENDANCE: 280
TEAM NEWS

Altrincham were unchanged but Bay manager Frank Sinclair started at centre-back in place of Meadowcroft, whilst Joyce replaced the injured Royle.

LINE-UPS:

COLWYN BAY (Sky blue & claret) 1. Christopher Sanna, 2. Danny Taylor, 3. Michael Lea, 4 Frank Sinclair, 5. Tom Smyth, 6. Jamie Crowther, 7. Gareth Evans, 8. Sean Williams, 9. Rob Hopley, 10. Charlie Joyce, 11. Cameron Darkwah. Subs: 13. Louis Moss, 14. Ed Moss, 15. Danny Meadowcroft, 16. James Ellison, 17. Jamie Matthews.

ALTRINCHAM (Red & white striped shorts, red shorts and socks) 1. Stuart COBURN, 2. Shaun DENSMORE (capt), 3. Matt DOUGHTY, 4. Jake MOULT, 5. Gianluca HAVERN, 6. Scott LEATHER, 7. Greg WILKINSON, 8. Simon RICHMAN, 9. James WALSHAW, 10. Damian REEVES, 11. Nicky CLEE. Subs: 12. Carl RODGERS, 14. Junior SMIKLE, 15. James LAWRIE, 16. Kyle PERRY, 18. Adam REID

BACKGROUND:

This match had been ordered to take place by the FA after the encounter last Saturday ended with an 81st minute injury to referee Mr Ackerman and Colwyn Bay had refused to complete the game despite being offered their choice of linesman.

Mike Garnett summarises the previous meetings between Altrincham and Colwyn Bay, excluding Saturday's aborted game...

REPORT

after kicking off, Alty passed the ball neatly in the opening stages but, until a Moult shot was blocked and Clee hooked a shot wide after a defensive error by Bay in the ninth minute, there was little of note in the game.

Soon, however, Clee won a corner on the left but he struck this so fiercely that Walshaw could only divert it wide for a goalkick. Bay's Hopley now miscued badly off target before a Walshaw shot was saved at the other end (12 mins).

Bay went closer than previously after 15 minutes but, again, their shot went wide from left of goal. However, a poor ball by Doughty to Williams earned a Bay corner as The Seagulls enjoyed a decent spell.

After 21 minutes, from a Smyth long throw, Bay won another corner and a second followed, after which Smyth fired over the bar as Bay applied some concerted pressure.

For Altrincham, Reeves was caught offside after a promising move and then good play by Clee play found Doughty off balance as he crossed the ball. It had been a fairly even game so far, played at a fast tempo (28 mins).

Good covering by Moult halted Darkwah as Bay pressed forward but Altrincham almost took the lead in spectacular fashion as a Clee rocket from 30 or more yards struck the crossbar (35 mins). Bay's Joyce got booked for a foul on Clee and, a few minutes later, Walshaw was played in but shot badly off target, hitting the side-netting from 12 yards (41 mins).

A Doughty error drew him to foul Evans and the left-back was deservedly booked (42 mins). But it was a harsher decision when Leather joined him in the book a minute later after a seemingly important but fair clearance (43 mins). Bay's freekick from a central position, 25 yards out, was saved by Coburn from Williams. But it was Bay who were on top at this stage.

In added time, Doughty won a corner on the left but Clee's kick went to Sanna. As Alty finished the half well, Walshaw won another corner (45+2 mins). Bay had had slightly the better of the first half but Alty had created the better chances.

Half-Time: COLWYN BAY 0 ALTRINCHAM 0

Alty started the second half poorly, giving the ball away four times in as many minutes. Things improved when Densmore fed Wilkinson, whose shot from right of goal was smartly tipped over the bar by Sanna for a corner (51 mins).

Sanna punched the corner clear, after which a Clee curler landed on the roof of the net. Then, on 54 minutes, as Walshaw threatened to run at goal from half way following an error by Joyce, the Bay player pulled Walshaw back and was shown a second yellow and a red card to reduce his side to ten men (54 mins).

Referee Johnson then allowed play to continue after Moult had committed a similar foul to Joyce's. Play continued for two minutes before the ball went dead and Moult became Alty's third player to be booked (59 mins).

The visitors were playing a patient game and, indeed, Havern had to be alert to halt the advancing Hopley. Soon after this, Walshaw brought down a ball well from Wilkinson but saw his shot blocked. However, Alty immediately took the lead out of nothing. Repeating his goal on Saturday, Wilkinson simply fired home from 25 yards, from a central position, to make it 1-0 (63 mins).

Next, Ellison came on for Bay's Crowther (65 mins), after which a Bay corner was won. In the 70th minute Sanna's save, after an Alty freekick, gave Altrincham a corner, Darkwah being booked for the offence. sinclair's last task was to lean on Walshaw as he got into the box but he soon took himself off as Matthews came on to replace him (72 mins).

soon after this, a defensive error let in Walshaw who coolly slotted home a goal to make it 2-0 (74 mins). For the visitors, Rodgers came on for Moult (77 mins) followed by Ed Moss for Bay's Hopley (78 mins). As Reeves got clear keeper Sanna did well to deflect the ball for a corner, after which an impressive, looping 30-yarder from Wilkinson landed on the roof of the net.

Alty were now well in control, as Perry came on for Walshaw and Smikle for Doughty (82 mins). Next, Smikle won a corner on the left before Perry's chest-down led to a snap shot, left-footed by Wilkinson, which went wide (86 mins).

When Reeves was fouled, Moss got booked. A late Bay flurry required excellent cover by Havern against Darkwah. as the visiting fans ironically chanted "Four-nil to the Altrincham", in reference to having now led two games 2-0 against the Bay. Next, Wilkinson got clear and his chip just went over the bar (89 mins).

More than four minutes of added time were mostly memorable for the Alty supporters chants aimed at Frank Sinclair but, on the field, there was a very late Alty corner, won by Densmore (90+4mins).

So history had repeated itself as Altrincham recorded a 2-0 win, which had cost their supporters two return travel fares and two payments at the turnstile.

Full-Time: COLWYN BAY 0 ALTRINCHAM 2
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