ALTRINCHAM FC MATCH REPORTS
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ALTRINCHAM (0) 1
ALDERSHOT TOWN (0) 0
played on Saturday, 24 September 2022 at 3pm
SUMMARY:
Altrincham finally won their first match of the season against an Aldershot Town side which paid the price for three rash challenges in a game low on quality.
Two of those ill-judged challenges came from Tom Whelan and the latter of these saw him dismissed in first-half added time when he picked up his second yellow card for a foul on Colclough. The third incident was a trip on Osborne when he was going nowehere on the far left of the box and that gave Altrincham a penalty which Colclough converted cleanly in the 76th minute.
Alty were the more enterprising team throughout but lacked the guile to creat any clear opportunities. Byrne in the home goal was hardly troubled all afternoon though he will have been grateful to see a first-half Glover header go narrowly wide with him beaten.
SCORERS:
- 77 mins: Ryan COLCLOUGH (penalty) (ALTRINCHAM 1 Aldershot Town 0)
REFEREE: Mr Andrew Miller
ATTENDANCE: 1,844 (178 in away section)
TEAM NEWS:
For this game, Alty had three of their loanees missing as they had been called up for international duty for their respective age groups. Dermot Mee (Northern Ireland) and Wales duo Aaron Bennett and Dan Malone were the players unavailable for selection this week.
There was a big surprise before kick-off with striker Byron Harrison (right) returning to Moss Lane after a brief stay in 2020-21; he was named on the bench. As for the starting eleven, Phil Parkinson brought in Cooper and Jackson to replace James Jones and Malone.
LINE-UPS:
ALTRINCHAM (Red & white striped shirts, black shorts, red socks): 1. Oliver Byrne, 22. Ross Barrows, 5. Toby Mullarkey (c), 23. Jake Cooper, 2. Eddy Jones, 10. Elliot Osborne, 8. Josh Lundstram, 16. Chris Conn-Clarke, 17. Brad Jackson, 11. Ryan Colclough, 30. Marcus Dinanga. Subs: 3. Liam Brockbank, 21. Matt Gould, 26. James Jones, 18. Ben Pringle, 34. Byron Harrison
ALDERSHOT TOWN (All yellow) 1. Luca Ashby-Hammond, 2. Archie Davies, 3. Ollie Harfield, 5. Tyler Cordner, 7. Justin Amaluzor, 8. Frank Vincent, 9. Inih Effiong, 15. Tom Whelan, 16. Corey Jordan, 23. Ryan Glover, 27. Tommy Willard. Subs: 32. Toby Fisher, 11. Harrison Panayiotou, 14. Francis Amartey, 17. Faysal Bettache, 18. Ody Alfa
BACKGROUND:
Altrincham started the match in bottom place in the National League, whereas The Shots arrived buoyed by a 5-1 win last time out, against FC Halifax Town.
REPORT:
Altrincham kicked off towards the away end on a bright but breezy afternoon. The ball was played from the kick-off to Osborne who overhit it beyond the Aldershot byline to concede a goalkick (10 secs). The game started at a quick pace and was fairly even, as possession was surrendered cheaply by both sides.
Alty survived an early scare when a cross from the left was met by a glancing header from Gover which only just went wide of the angle of the far post and crossbar, with Byrne stranded. Manager Parkinson protested to the fourth official about a perceived foul in the build-up.
Play continud with plenty of effort from both sides but no end product from either. Oddly, after Colclough had slipped going for a ball, he sat down but got up again when play continued regardless. So he sat down again a couple of minutes later and, this time, the referee stopped play and directed the winger to leave the pitch where he changed his boots (18 mins).
Aldershot earned the first corner (20 mins) before unforced errors from Cooper (conceding a throw) and Jackson (losing possession) reflected the lack of quality in the game.
When Cordner hauled down Dinanga with a protracted double-handed grab round the striker's waste, he avoided what should have been a definite yellow card (21 mins). For the third time in the game, so far, Osborne again overhit a long ball out of play (22 mins).
On the positive side, Dinanga was working hard but fruitlessly and Colclough was popping up all over the pitch. Next, Cordner again escaped a card for another foul (24 mins) before Colclough fired wildly over the bar (26 mins). Referee Miller did produce a crad, however, when Whelan felled Colclough (28 mins).
At last there was some meaningful action for the keepers as a Jackson cross came out to Conn-Clarke who forced a save from Ashby-Hammond (30 mins).
When Harfield dithered over taking a throw-in, the referee had had enough and re-awarded the throw to Altrincham (32 mins).
Play continued without any further threat of a goal before the visitors won two corners in a minute, neither of which came to anything.
Osborne still could not find his range as he lumped the ball long and out of play for a fourth time (43 mins).
After one added minute had been announced, Colclough was drifting inside from the right, just inside the Aldershot half. As he did so, he was brought down by a mistimed challenge from Whelan and the midfielder was duly shown a second yellow and then a red card (45+1 mins).
Alty had time to win a corner before the break but the game remained goalless at the interval
Half-Time: ALTRINCHAM 0 |
No changes were made at the break. After Aldershot had kicked off, Colclough fired over the bar following a good move (46 mins). But Aldershot won the half's first corner.
However, the game remained error-ridden, with Lundstram now playing a misguided ball before Mullarkey lost possession before Glover's resulting shot cleared the bar (52 mins).
A fine snap-shot from Conn-Clarke raised the tone and forced a save (54 mins). With their one-man advantage Alty were getting on top but Colclough's shot at Ashby-Hammond, on the hour, did not threaten to convert superiority into a goal.
Soon afterwards a good run by Conn-Clarke fed Colclough, whose shot this time was much better and had to be beaten away by the keeper for a corner (61 mins).
Mullarkey next produced a 30-yard shot which again called the Aldershot keeper into action (65 mins).
Jackson then won a corner and, shortly afterwards, Jackson was played into the box but decided to pass rather than shoot before the ball came out to Conn-Clarke. He again hit a fine 25-yard shot, which Ashby-Hammond did well to push over the bar for a corner (68 mins). This produced an almighty scramble in the Aldershot box with Dinanga seeming to hit the post before the ball was scrambled away (69 mins).
Now, Pringle came on for Jackson (69 mins) before Alty's two best forward playes Conn-Clarke and Colclough again comnbined for the latter to force another save and a corner (71 mins).
As Alty dominated, Dinanga was played in but his effort was blocked (73 mins). But then, as Osborne and Lundstram got forward, a rash challenge on the former on the very edge of the box, left of goal, gave Altrincham a spot-kick. Coclough took responsibiltiy and beat Ashby-Hammond comprehensively from the spot (77mins).
The impending arrival of Harrison was delayed by the goal before he made his appearance, replacing Dinanga (79 mins). Alty then survived an appeal for handball in their own box before Alfa replaced Jordan for the Shots (83 mins).
After a Conn-Clarke shot had gone close, the visitors made a double change with Bettache and Amartey replacing Amaluzor and Glover (87 mins).
Alty then made a final swap as Brockbank came on for Conn-Clarke (89 mins). Three added minutes were played out before Altrincham emerged with a deserved win, at the tenth attempt.
That lifted the Robins off the bottom on goal difference, courtesy of Torquay's six-goal hammering by Wrexham.
Full Time: ALTRINCHAM 1 |