ALTRINCHAM FC MATCH REPORTS

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WORKINGTON (2) 5
ALTRINCHAM (1) 2

Evo-Stik League Premier Division match
played on Tuesday, 12 September 2017, at 7.45pm

SUMMARY

Altrincham suffered a heavy defeat at a rain sodden Workington. Alty started the game already much weakened by injury, as Poole and Short were unfit to start tonight, whilst Amis, Miller, Richman and Taylor remained sidelined.

But the Robins made life even harder for themselves as they conceded two penalties and had Harrop sent off, forcing them to play with ten men for more than half of the game.

The hosts took a 23rd minute lead when Joel nodded a cross back to Allison who hit the back of the net with an impressive left-foot shot from 20 yards.

Five minutes later, Alty were level as Harrop controlled the ball superbly before striking a fine shot from 20 yards past the keeper.

Hannigan then conceded a penalty which Tinnion converted on 38 minutes.

Four minutes afterwards Harrop saw red for a rash challenge.

But the ten men drew level as Hancock won a header and Hulme went on to score in the 66th minute. Parity lasted just two minutes before Alty's offside trap failed and Allison scored.

After 76 minutes a Workington counter-attack led to Joel getting free and he beat Deasy to make it 4-2. And Allison completed his hat trick five minutes from time after Harrison had conceded a penalty. Tinnion's spot kick was saved by Deasy but the ball ran to Allison, who put the ball in the net.

SCORERS:
REFEREE: Mr S Sugden
ATTENDANCE: 339
TEAM NEWS

Alty started the game weakened by injury, as Poole and Short were unfit to start whilst Amis, Miller, Richman and Taylor remained injured.

LINE-UPS:

WORKINGTON (Red) 1. Aaran Taylor, 2. Jake Simpson, 3. Dave Symington, 4. Dan Wordsworth, 5. Josh Calvert, 6. Anthony Wright, 7. James Earl, 8. Jordan Holt, 9. Scott Allison, 10. Sam Joel, 11. Conor Tinnion. Subs: 12. Jack Ryan, 14. Matty Douglas, 15. Sam Smith, 16 Jamie Mellen, 13 Tom Fowler (gk)

ALTRINCHAM (Purple) 1. Tim DEASY, 2. Joel BEMBO-LETA, 3. Shaun DENSMORE, 4. Tom HANNIGAN, 5. Ben HARRISON, 6. Jake MOULT (c), 7. John JOHNSTON, 8. Sam SHERIDAN, 9. Jordan HULME, 10. Josh HANCOCK, 11. Max HARROP. Subs: 12. James JONES, 14. Lewis SHORT, 15. Tom PEERS, 16. James POOLE, 20. Tony THOMPSON (gk)

BACKGROUND

Our clubs last met in the league in 2013-14, at the end of which Altrincham were promoted back to the Conference National via the play-offs while The Reds finished bottom and were relegated. In that campaign Alty won 6-1 in Cumbria thanks to goals by Densmore, Walshaw (2), Perry (2) and Moult. The original fixture that season was postponed just an hour before kick off with supporters and the team having already travelled from Altrincham.

Mike Garnett's data remind us of the full historical record...

REPORT

The match kicked off in heavy rain which was to become torrential at times but the threatened gales did not materialise.

After Alty had kicked off, they won a third-minute freekick, 30 yards out, and this was followed by a Densmore cross to the keeper.

Workington's Sam Joel then beat Densmore and his dangerous cross flew across the Alty goalmouth (5 mins). Alty's only effort at this stage was a wide shot from Sheridan which came from a Harrop feed following a promising build up (8 mins).

As the rain intensified, Hulme went down in the box but he was the one to be penalised. When the referee spotted a foul on Hannigan the partisan crowd was on the referee's case already, suggesting the freekick award was unjustified!

The Reds were getting on top as Symington's excellent 22-yard shot just cleared the bar (15 mins). As ever, for Alty, Hulme was proving a willing chaser but now keeper Taylor just beat him to the ball. The already heavy rain got even worse as Sheridan was fouled but, following this, Johnston’s shot-cum-cross drifted across goal.

When Symington tripped Harrop, cynically, as he approached the box, he should have been booked but was not. Hancock's freekick cleared the bar (22 mins) and moments later Workington took the lead. A cross to Joel towards the back post saw him nod the ball back to the right, where Allison struck a fine left-footed shot into the corner of Deasy' net, to his right, from 20 yards (23 mins).

Alty responded, but Johnston fired over from 20 yards before, a couple of minutes later, his well-hit goalbound effort was deflected for a corner on the left. Keeper Taylor missed the corner and the ball subsequently came out to Harrop, on the left. He controlled it impressively before scoring with a fine shot from the left from 18 yards to make it 1-1 (28 mins).

A poor challenge by Earl on Densmore earned the Reds' man a yellow card (31 mins). The home crowd jeered at Densmore but it was a deserved booking for Earl.

The monsoon continued as Deasy punched clear and was awarded a freekick; a foul on Sheridan followed. But then Densmore delayed a clearance and lost the ball. He claimed a foul, with some justification, but he was booked himself for holding (36 mins). Following the freekick Hannigan wrestled his man to the ground and a penalty was duly awarded. Before it could be taken, the referee flashed a card at someone (later confirmed as Hulme) on the edge of the box but then Tinnion netted the penalty, sending Deasy the wrong way (38 mins).

Things got worse when Harrop made a poor challenge on the Alty right some 40 yards from goal. A melee ensued from which the Alty man was sent off (42 mins). A difficult task had just got even harder.

As half-time approached, Moult and then Hulme committed needless fouls, with the striker receiving a final warning lecture from Mr. Sugden (45 mins). So, Alty trailed 2-1 and could not really complain about the score but as they left the pitch at the interval Densmore argued with the referee about the earlier incident in which he had been involved.

Half-Time: WORKINGTON 2
ALTRINCHAM 1

Rain continued to fall heavily during the interval before The Reds kicked off towards the semi-covered end.

Sam Joel soon got past Densmore but Deasy blocked his shot as the rain became the heaviest yet (48 mins). At the other end, Hulme got into the box but shot wide. After a good Hannigan tackle, a Johnston cross won Alty a corner, but it was poorly taken. Alty were not lying down and, soon, Hulme again got into the box but his lay-off fell to no one (52 mins).

Workington made a swap, as Smith replaced Holt (59 mins), before a Wright sliced shot almost ran as far wide as the corner flag. As the rain eased again, Harrison made a good tackle but then a blatant two-handed push on Hancock went unpunished. Next, Hulme almost got clear but his shot was blocked and play switched ends to where Deasy had to save a low Joel shot (63 mins).

The ten men of Altrincham got their reward on 66 minutes. Deasy's kick upfield was won impressively, in the air, by Hancock whose flick on set Hulme running at goal. He drifted to his right before planting a shot into the net to level the scores (66 mins).

Soon, Harrison had to cut out a dangerous cross and a Reds' corner followed. But, a minute later, as Alty stopped, looking vainly for an offside flag, the ball was chipped over the back line to Allison, who had a simple close-range task of beating Deasy to restore the Cumbrians' lead at 3-1 (68 mins). That was the turning point of the second half.

But Alty kept going as Hulme ran forward but his shot from the left went wide of the far post. At the back Deasy beat away a long shot by Tinnion for a corner (70 mins).

Following a foul on Bembo-Leta on Alty's right, 40 yards out, Moult hooked Johnston's low freekick over the bar (74 mins). Alty now brought on Peers for Hancock (75 mins).

From an Alty freekick in their own half, the Reds counter-attacked up their inside-right channel and, with three attackers against two defenders, the ball was relayed leftwards to Joel, who beat Deasy as the exposed keeper tried to anticipate his shot (76 mins).

Hulme won his side a corner, after the restart, which was cleared at the second attempt as the rain intensified again. A Johnston effort then won a corner as the ten men battled in conditions that were adverse both meteorologically and in football terms. After a Sheridan error, Alty escaped as Tinnion fired over the bar (80 mins).

For a foul on Johnston, Wordsworth was booked (81 mins) and following the freekick, Alty won themselves a corner on the left, followed by a second, but this was cleared.

With five minutes left on the clock, Harrison conceded a penalty as Workington got in to the box on their left. Tinnion's spot kick was well saved by Deasy, to his left, but Allison netted the loose ball to complete his hat-trick (86 mins).

Alty's last chance to recover some pride came in the 89th minute when they won a freekick on the edge of the box but Sheridan hit this well over the bar.

So Altrincham lost to a team which belied the 20th place it occupied at kick off. With an already weakened squad at kick-off, Alty paid the price for conceding two needless penalties and a red card and ended the night four places lower than where they had started it, in twelfth place. On the positive side they had shown good spirit in adversity and kept going forward even in the later stages of the game. On this form Workington will be back towards the top of the table before the season is much older.

As in Alty's last trip to Borough Park, seven goals had been witnessed in an entertaining game but, sadly, their distribution was somewhat different this time around.

And, finally, the groundsman was to be congratulated on an excellently drained pitch, which took the rain well throughout. On many another ground this match would not have been completed.

Full-Time: WORKINGTON 5
ALTRINCHAM 2