ALTRINCHAM FC MATCH REPORTS

Return to News Page

ALTRINCHAM (1) 1
VAUXHALL MOTORS (0) 1

Altrincham won penalty shootout 2-0

Match switched to Vauxhall Motors, at Altrincham's request.

Cheshire Senior Cup match
played on Tuesday, 31 January 2023 at 7.45pm

SUMMARY:

Alty led from the 25th minute through an own goal before Bobbie McDonnell equalised (84 mins), which sent the game into a penalty shoot-out.

In a woeful shoot-out, eight penalties were taken but only two were scored, both by Altrincham. Eddy Jones and Ben Pringle scored but Elliot Osborne and Miles Welch-Hayes saw their spot-kicks saved. So Alty progress to the semi-finals.

Matty Gould saved two penalties as Alty won a penalty shoot-out.

SCORERS:

REFEREE: TBC

ATTENDANCE: 211

TEAM NEWS:

For this home tie, which was switched to Rivacre Park at Altrincham's request, Alty fielded a team including many players who had little recent game time for the first eleven and reserves. Eddy Jones and James Jones were the two most regular first-teamers in the line up tonight, with Marcus Dinanga and Elliot Osborne also starting.

LINE-UPS:

ALTRINCHAM (Red & white striped shirts, black shorts, red socks): 21. Matt Gould, 2. Eddy Jones, 10. Elliot Osborne (c), 14. Ewan McGeady, 18. Ben Pringle, 25. Harlan Rodgers-Morris, 26. James Jones, 28. Maxi Oyedele, 30. Marcus Dinanga, 31. Michael Gyasi, 34. Miles Welch-Hayes. Subs: 6. Lewis Baines, 9. Jordan Hulme, Lewis Billingsley, Josh Jordan, Owen German.

VAUXHALL MOTORS (White shirts and black shorts): 1. Matthew Corran, 2. Jake Hulley, 3. Greg Drummond, 4. Marcus James, 5. Simon Thelwell, 6. Aaron Dawson, 7. Joe Brandon, 8. Sean Moscrop, 9. Conor Harwood, 10. Ben Holmes (c), 11. Bobbie McDonnell. Subs: 12. Buckley, Burkey, Deer, McCulloch, Dufton-Kelly.

BACKGROUND:

This was officially a home tie for Altrincham but the Robins had asked to switch the game to Rivacre Park to save the Moss Lane pitch.

At one time regular opponents of Altrincham, Vauxhall had dropped down the league volunterily in 2014 to avoid mounting operational costs. But they were currently in good form and were leaders of the NW Counties Football League Premier Division. Former Altrincham player Steve Aspinall is the Motormen's assistant manager these days.

REPORT:

The opening stages were fairly uneventful with possession being shared. Alty, captained tonight by Elliot Osborne, won two corners in succession, the first won by Michael Gyasi, the Harrogate Town loanee (15 mins).

But the Robins were nearly caught out soon afterards when James Jones's back pass to Matt Gould led to the Alty keeper dwelling on the ball and finding himself almost embarrassed by striker Harwood who was to be the hosts' most lively forward player (19 mins).

After a decent spell for the Motormen it was the visitors who took a fortuitous lead. Alty had won another corner (24 mins), taken by Pringle, from whch Harwood arrowed a bullet header into his own net (25 mins).

Vauxhall almost replied after 28 minutes when a well-struck shot by McDonnell was palmed away by Gould. Then a Vauxhall shot cleared the bar (29 mins).

But after an overall fairly even first half, the interval arrived with Altrincham a goal to the good.

Half-Time: ALTRINCHAM 1
VAUXHALL MOTORS 0

For the second half Jordan and Baines replaced the centre-back pairing of Jones and McGeady (46 mins), both duos pairing a regular first-teamer with a reserve.

A freekick, from around 25 yards, by Vauxhall came to nothing before a shot from Jordan went close at the other end.

Each side then made a change or two. For Vauxhall, McCulloch replaced Dawson (56 mins), then Altrincham brought on German for Rodgers-Morris (57 mins) and, finally, Buckley replaced Harwood for the hosts (58 mins).

On the hour Gyasi set up Dinanga but he fired over the bar. In the first half the Alty striker had seen little of the ball.

Manchester United loanee Oyedele was impressing for Altrincham before another change saw Holmes, the captain, replaced by Buckley (69 mins).

A skilful turn and pass by Gyasi again fed Dinanga but the striker put his effort wide from 15 yards (72 mins). Immediately Gyasi and Dinanga were withdrawn in favour of Billingsley and Hulme respectively (72 mins).

At the other end, a shot cleared the bar before Pringle and Hulme prompted a corner for their side (75 mins)

As time ticked away, with little goalmouth action, Dufton-Kelly replaced Thelwell for the Motormen (83 mins). Almost immediately the hosts equalised when McDonnell sidefooted impressively into the bottom corner of Gould's net to level the score at 1-1 (84 mins).

The game then petered out, despite Hulme earning a late corner (90+2 mins). And so, the game went straight to penalties, which constituted Altrincham's second shoot-out inside three weeks after the victory from the spot over Wrexham in the FA Trophy.

90 mins: ALTRINCHAM 1
VAUXHALL MOTORS 1

Shoot-Out

To describe the shoot-out as being of high quality would be way off the mark, as were some of the spot-kicks.
  1. Altrincham captain Elliot Osborne saw his effort saved. 0-0
  2. Buckley hit his kick well but very wide 0-0
  3. Eddie Jones showed how it should be done as he made 1-0 to Altrincham
  4. McDonnell put his penalty over the bar, so still 1-0
  5. Welch-Hayes saw his penlty saved by Corran, 1-0 still
  6. Gould saved the Vauxhall effort, it remained 1-0 after six penalties!
  7. Ben Pringle netted comforrtably down the middle, to make it 2-0
  8. Gould again saved the next Vauxhall spot-kick to clinch a 2-0 win in the shoot-out, and progression to the semi-finals.

Result: ALTRINCHAM won 2-0 on penalties

Link to ARCHIVE INDEX