ALTRINCHAM FC MATCH REPORTS
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ALTRINCHAM (0) 1
SOUTHPORT (0) 0
played on Saturday, 19 January 2019, at 3pm
SUMMARY
Altrincham made amends for a second-half beating at Chorley last time out.
In contrast today, there was a dominant second half from Altrincham, after a goalless opening 45 minutes, as the home side put an end to Southport's 12-game unbeaten league run. The result also completed a league double for The Robins.
After a fairly even but also pretty uneventful first period, Altrincham took a deserved 59th minute lead when Jake Moult scored, following a corner whose award the visitors had disputed.
The afternoon got worse for Port, who had already had five players booked, when Edwards picked up a sixth Southport card, and his own second yellow, to earn a dismissal. To compound their misery, second-half substitute Winnard had to be stretchered off when he hurt himself fouling Jordan Hulme (89 mins).
SCORERS:
- 59 mins: Jake MOULT (ALTRINCHAM 1 Southport 0)
REFEREE: Mr Nathanael Cox
ATTENDANCE: 1,102
TEAM NEWS
Altrincham started with the same eleven that had lost heavily at Chorley last Saturday but which had also won impressively at Boston. The bench was also unchanged.
Former Altrincham loanee, Andy Parry, was in the visitors' defence but Southport were without his injured defensive colleague, Ryan Astles.
LINE-UPS:
ALTRINCHAM (Red & white striped shirts, black shorts and red socks): 1. Tony Thompson, 2. Andy White, 3. Connor Hampson, 4. James Jones, 5. Tom Hannigan, 6. Jake Moult (c), 7. John Johnston, 8. Simon Richman, 9. Jordan Hulme, 10. Josh Hancock, 11. Max Harrop. Subs: 12. Kallum Mantack, 14. Sean Williams, 15. Chris Sang, 16. Shaun Densmore, 17. Ben Harrison.
SOUTHPORT (Gold shirts, black shorts and socks): 1. Daniel Hanford, 2. Jordan Richards, 3. Reagan Ogle, 4. Liam Edwards, 5. Andrew Parry, 6. David Morgan (c), 7. Devarn Green, 8. Marcus Wood, 9. Dion Charles, 10. Jack Sampson, 11. Bradley Bauress. Subs: 12. Jason Gilchrist, 13. Jordan Archer, 14. Dean Winnard, 15. Patrick Lacey, 17. Morgan Homson-Smith
BACKGROUND
After defeat at the league leaders last Saturday, things promised to get little better for Alty as they contemplated playing a Southport side unbeaten in its last twelve outings in the league. Back in August, Alty had beaten The Port 3-1 at Haig Avenue when the Sandgrounders were a pale shadow of their current selves.
REPORT
The floodlights were already illuminated before Southport kicked off towards the Golf Road end. After a Green shot had been comfortably saved, an Alty counter-attack yielded the match's first corner (2 mins).
But there was little to set the pulse racing in the ensuing minutes as Altrincham repeatedly played the ball back and forth and across their defence with no significant forward threat resulting. Indeed, goalkeeper Thompson was seeing far more of the ball to his feet from back passes than his team's striker Jordan Hulme was seeing the ball up front.
Southport captain Morgan hit a 30-yarder miles wide as the game drifted on (11 mins). Charles won the Port's first corner for which Alty withdrew all ten outfield players, as usual. But a more meaningful goal-threat came in the 16th minute when Sampson's impressive dribble and one-two ended with his shot being saved by Thompson.
Altrincham's first serious threat of scoring arose in the 21st minute when Hulme was set free but he shot weakly at Hanford. An error by Parry then allowed Harrop to earn a second Alty corner of the afternoon but this came to nothing.
Richards was fortunate to evade a booking for a deliberate trip on Harrop but the same Alty player made a complete hash of the resulting freekick, taking it short and losing possession after the big defenders had made a wasted effort to get up into the Southport box (27 mins). When Bauress clattered Harrop he became the first player to be cautioned (28 mins).
Next Morgan drove a freekick, conceded by Hannigan, into the wall before Green won his side two corners in succession (33 mins). For reasons that were far from clear, referee Cox now booked Southport defender Richards (36 mins).
Hulme then won Alty a corner before Bauress did likewise for Port, after Jones had failed to dribble his way out of defence (42 mins). Before half-time Hampson won Alty another corner but, when the ball came out, to Moult his drive went just wide (45 mins).
In added time Richman was harshly cautioned for a challenge near half-way (45+1 mins).
| Half-Time: ALTRINCHAM 0 SOUTHPORT 0 |
For the second half, the visitors brought on Winnard for the booked Richards. After a slow start to the half, Altrincham began to get the upper hand. However, there was a scare when Thompson failed to hold a low cross and only scooped the ball away before Jones completed the clearance (51 mins).
When Hulme was held on the front edge of the box, Harrop wasted the freekick with a poor effort, well over the bar (54 mins). Morgan soon became the third Southport player booked when he chopped down Hampson (57 mins).
Two successive corners for Alty helped them to maintain some pressure. The second, won by Hancock, was hacked clear and soon afterwards Harrop gained another corner for his side. Southport argued that Harrop had fouled his marker but the referee only reiterated his award of the corner.
From the left, the corner found its way, via a Richman effort, to Moult who drove the ball home, from a position towards the back post, to put his side ahead (59 mins).
Soon after this, Edwards tripped Hulme and became the fourth away player in the book (60 mins). Altrincham continued to be on top with Bauress's long range punt the Port's only threat and this was comfortably saved (66 mins).
Hulme then went close from a Johnston cross before yet another foul saw Green clatter Harrop. Moments later another foul was committed as Wood upended Harrop and joined his team-mates in the referee's increasingly full notebook (70 mins). And the assaults continued shortly afterwards as Edwards felled Hulme and was awarded his second yellow; the consequential red card was a fitting answer to this rugged Southport performance (71 mins).
With Southport now down to ten men, Altrincham's second-half dominance continued as a fine run up the left by Hampson ended with his shot narrowly over the bar (72 mins).
Next Paddy Lacey came on for Green, whose first-half promise had declined into a peripheral role after the interval (75 mins). Lacey, an ex-Alty midfielder, had been signed by Southport in the preceding week as he attempted to rekindle his career following off the field misdemeanours.
Once more, Hampson impressed as he played a one-two with Harrop up the left wing.
Two minutes after this, Hulme was brought down from behind by Edwards who seemed to drag the Alty striker on top of him. The offender came off worse and after attention from both clubs' physios, the Southport substitute was stretchered off in the 89th minute.
Liam Watson brought on Homson-Smith as the injured man's substitute.
In the final minute of normal time, Alty's loanee from Bury, Chris Sang, got his customary very brief outing when he replaced Hulme. This was the sixth league match for which Sang had been named on the bench but apart from 90 minutes against Guiseley, his total time on the field in his other five matches, excluding added time after the ninety, totals just 56 minutes.
Southport did create one late half-chance as Sampson scooped an effort well wide (90+6 mins).
After an indifferent first half Altrincham's second-half showing had been impressive against a Southport side which created little after the interval.
| Full-Time: ALTRINCHAM 1 SOUTHPORT 0 |