Match Report

SOLIHULL MOORS (0) 0 ALTRINCHAM (1) 1

Skrill North match
played on Saturday, 15 March 2014, at 3pm

SUMMARY

After the Moors had enjoyed some pressure midway through the first half, Altrincham twice hit the bar and then went ahead in the final moments of first-half added time. Clee's toe-poke and Walshaw's lob had both hit the woodwork before an excellent freekick from the left by Lawrie was glanced home by Marshall's head to give Alty an interval lead.

Moors came at Alty in the second half till Alty raised their game late on and deservedly held on.

SCORERS:

REFEREE: Mr J.Johnson
ATTENDANCE: 438
TEAM NEWS

With Joe Mwasile having returned to Morecambe, Greg Willkinson returned to the squad. Tom Marshall started at centre-back, having replaced the injured Scott Leather in Alty's previous game.

LINE-UPS:

SOLIHULL MOORS

(Blue & Yellow hooped shirts, blue shorts)		 1. Jasbir Singh, 2. Michael Nottingham, 3. Michael Blackwood, 4. Jay Denny, 5. Rob Elvins (capt), 6. Exodus Geohaghon, 7. Junior English, 8. Reece Fleet, 9. Dior Angus, 10. Richard Taundry, 11. Darryl Knights. Subs: 12. Gary Birch, 13. Deale Chamberlain, 14. Trey Braithwaite, 15. Alex Dean, 16. Stuart Pierpoint.

ALTRINCHAM

(Red & white striped shirts, red shorts and socks) 		1. Stuart Coburn, 2. Shaun Densmore (capt), 3. Adam Griffin, 4. Jake Moult, 5. Gianluca Havern, 6. Tom Marshall, 7. James Lawrie, 8. Simon Richman, 9. James Walshaw, 10. Damian Reeves, 11. Nicky Clee. Subs: 12. Matt Doughty, 14. Carl Rodgers, 15. Greg Wilkinson, 16. Kyle Perry, 18. Josh Samberg.

BACKGROUND:

Mike Garnett's reveals the record in all matches between Alty and Solihull Moors

Altrincham won the reverse fixture this season, 1-0.

REPORT

The Moors kicked off on a bright and dry afternoon at Damson Park, where the pitch looked in very good condition for this time of the season.

After the game had belatedly got under way, a foul apiece was exchanged in the opening stages. Play was pretty uneventful with the home side blocking a Clee cross, before Walshaw was likewise halted from a Reeves feed. After eight minutes a Marshall error let in English but he shot poorly wide.

Next, Richman won the ball, only to be tripped, giving Altrincham a freekick 30 yards from the Moos' goal in a central location (10 mins), but Clee's freekick went into the wall.

From an awkwardly bouncing ball from the left, Richman fired just wide with a half volley (13 mins). However, it was the home side who won the first corner, the ball coming off Densmore from a right-wing cross. A second corner followed, off Walshaw.

At the other end, Singh had the first of several jittery moments as Reeves almost intercepted the keeper's kick. The Moors now exerted some pressure; a freekick was followed by a Geohaghon long throw before English was halted in Alty's box by Havern (18 mins).

After Lawrie had fed Walshaw, who went down in the box, appeals for a penalty were righty waved away. Richman was now penalised and lectured near half way, and then Moult was likewise judged to have committed a foul, near half way.

After 22 minutes, Moult was booked for a foul on Taundry, which gave the Moors a freekick on the front edge of Alty's box. Coburn smartly tipped Angus's freekick round his right post for a corner. The Moors now continued to apply pressure, aided soon afterwards by another Geohaghon long throw, which Altrincham had some difficulty clearing.

When Geohaghon was all over Reeves, nothing was given. But then the already booked Moult fouled Knights. The midfielder escaped with a lecture. Afterwards, Densmore hacked the ball clear for a Moors' corner, which was cleared by Marshall (30 mins). Presumably because he was walking a disciplinary tightrope after his booking, Rodgers came on to replace Moult in midfield (31 mins).

The hosts continued to have the better of the game but spirits were raised when Reeves chased a lost cause and won a throw after Singh had tried to shepherd the ball out of play. The keeper’s unconvincing afternoon continued as Walshaw almost blocked his clearance.

Just after an Angus cross had gone across the face of goal, an excellent Altrincham attack saw Walshaw advance before the ball came to Clee who, under a challenge, toe-poked a shot onto the crossbar from the central goalmouth area (36 mins).

Clee was having a good game and, from one of his crosses, Lawrie's shot was driven into the ground and bounced up just over the bar. Singh then sat down for treatment but after he had recovered, Altrincham continued to have the better of the closing stages of the half.

After Singh had miskicked into touch, a Denny mis-pass led to an Alty attack but Richman was unable to get in a shot at the back post. As the 45 minutes drew to an end, on the front corner of the box Walshaw beat keeper Singh to the ball but his lob hit the bar and went out of play, with Reeves lurking for a rebound (45 mins).

In the two added minutes of first-half time, Alty pressed again and Walshaw was felled from behind; the offender was merely lectured. But Altrincham extracted revenge. From the left, about 30 yards out, Lawrie's excellent freekick was glanced home by the head of Tom Marshall to give Altrincham the lead (45+2 mins).

As soon as the game restarted, the half-time whistle sounded. After dealing with a period of pressure from Solihull, Altrincham had ended the half well and, but for the woodwork, would have had a bigger lead.

Half-Time: SOLIHULL MOORS 0 ALTRINCHAM 1

The second half witnessed two early appeals for handball and a penalty from Altrincham but neither call was answered. A Geohaghon foul, not his first, led to a Lawrie freekick, which hit Walshaw and went for a goalkick (49 mins).

Birch now replaced Denny for Solihull (50 mins) as "Wake up" was the cry from Lee Sinnott to his Altrincham side. They responded as a Clee throw from the left corner led to Densmore winning a corner; from it, a Richman shot won another corner on the right, taken by Clee but caught by Singh (53 mins).

A Lawrie trip conceded a freekick on the edge of Alty's box and Lawrie was booked for the offence (55 mins). Taundry's freekick flew just wide of the post (56 mins).

After Nottingham had conceded an unnecessary corner with a poor back header, there was a bizarre moment when Coburn overshot the ball as he ran out of his goal but he just managed to recover and smother the ball! (59 mins).

As the hour passed, Clee won and took a freekick, which gained his side a corner, as Alty enjoyed a good spell. But then four Geohaghon long throws from the right produced two corners for his side. But Alty defended well.

Solihull now introduced Braithwaite for Knights. On a counter-attack, Angus ran into Griffin who became the third of the visitors to be booked (70 mins). Braithwaite's freekick went straight to Coburn. But Altrincham proved unable to keep the ball for long and soon another massive throw from Geohaghon came in. It was nodded on but saved by Coburn (73 mins).

Moors next won a corner but it was very badly taken. At this point, Perry came on for Walshaw (76 mins). When Braithwaite bowled over Densmore, Mr. Johnson again gave no foul. After Angus had got behind Marshall, Fleet got in a shot at Coburn.

Ten minutes from time, Lawrie's cross was headed to the keeper by Reeves. Following a long ball upfield from Marshall, "Make the ball work" yelled Lee Sinnott. As time ticked away Perry used his physique to keep the ball in the corner at the Moors' end. He managed to get the ball to Clee but, from his pass, Lawrie shot well over the bar (87 mins).

Now Moors brought on Dean to replace substitute Birch (88 mins). Perry now won a freekick which saw Geohaghon finally booked (90 mins). P> Altrincham saw out four added minutes without undue alarm to record a second successive away win following the victory at Brackley last weekend. They moved up to fourth pace with games in hand and have control over their own destiny so far as a place in the play offs is concerned. However, they now take a break from league action, with a Cheshire Senior Cup semi-final at Tranmere on Tuesday.

Full-Time: SOLIHULL MOORS 0 ALTRINCHAM 1
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