After Altrincham had enjoyed the opening ten minutes, in which they saw the majority of the ball and territory, the rest of the first half largely belonged to Tamworth. The Lambs forced a couple of decent saves from Ross but Altrincham only seriously threatened in first-half added time when Newby's first-time effort was saved by Singh.

At the break, which was reached goalless, the cautioned Linney was replaced by Nuttall.

Against the overall tenor of the match, Altrincham took a 61st minute lead when Amaluzor held off a challenge on the right and fed Newby who converted the chance.

Amaluzor made it 2-0 when an Osbone freekick was helped on by Cooper for Amaluzor to head home but, in the aftermath, Crawford was sent off for over-celebrating and earning a second yellow card (79 mins). Cooper was also injured in the process and had to be replaced.

Tamworth pulled a goal back deep in added time through Creaney (90+5 mins) but Altrincham held on.

SCORERS:

• 61 mins: Alex NEWBY (Tamworth 0 ALTRINCHAM 1)
• 78 mins: Justin AMALUZOR (Tamworth 0 ALTRINCHAM 2)
• 90(+5) mins: Dan CRREANEY (Tamworth 1 ALTRINCHAM 2)

Altrincham were unchanged, apart from one alteration on the bench where Ollie Crankshaw was replaced by Max Haygarth.

It is said that Crnkshaw's omission was due to the artificial pitch at Tamworth, with the winger only just having rsturned to action from a year's lay-off.

Left-back Eddy Jones remained outside the squad.

As for Tamworth, they were also unchanged, except on the bench, where Curley and Lissimore dropped out and in came Acquaye and Cullinane-Liburd.

TAMWORTH (Red and black striped shirts, black shorts and socks) : 1. Jasbir Singh, 5. Kennedy Digie, 8. Ben Milnes (c), 11. Luke Fairlamb, 12. Chris Wreh, 14. Kai Williams, 15. George Morrison, 19. Tom McGlinchey, 20. Nathan Tshikuna, 26. Haydn Hollis, 28. Munashe Sundire. Subs: 21. Leon Phillips, 22. Beck-Ray Enoru, 27. Miracle Okafor, 4. Tom Tonks, 9. Dan Creaney, 16. Ben Acquaye, 18. Jordsn Cullinane-Liburd

ALTRINCHAM (Aquamarine shirts and socks, white shorts) : 1. Ethan ROSS, 2. Lewis BANKS, 6. James JONES (c), 5. Jake COOPER, 23. Tylor GOLDEN, 6. Elliot OSBORNE, 22. Tom CRAWFORD, 11. Justin AMALUZOR, 20. Kahrel REDDIN, 10. Alex NEWBY, 9. Regan LINNEY. Subs: 19. George WILSON, 7. Oliver CRANKSHAW, 14. Matty KOSYLO, 15. Liam HUMBLES, 24. Joe NUTTALL, 29. Jake BICKERSTAFF, 30. Harvey RANDLE (gk)

Tamworth were back in the National League after winning the North Division last season. They last met Altrincham in 2017 when both sides were in the North

The Lambs had won their three previous league games this season and were just a pointbehind 11th-placed Altrincham with a game in hand.

The late Mike Garnett's data, updated since his untimely death, revealed that Altrincham's record at The Lamb was not a good one before this match.

• Home: P6-W3-D2-L1-F7-A2
• Away: P7-1-2-4-7-10
• All: P13-4-4-5-14-12

The CR MOT Centre Community Stadium at The Lamb has an artifical pitch which had recently been installed before Alty's last visit in 2017.

Newby kicked off for Altrincham, who were attacking the away end, before an erroneous back pass from former Alty central defender Digie gifted the visitors an early corner (2 mins). Though this came to nothing a Wreh foul gave Alty a freekick and they went on to enjoy the majority of the ball and territory in the opening stages.

But it was The Lambs who landed the first shot on target, after a Banks lapse. Milnes, from distance, fired strongly at goal but Ross saved the shot comfortably (13 mins).

Now it was Tamworth who began to get the upper hand, and it was not long before Amaluzor conceded a corner from a long throw. Ross was called on to make another save when Tshikuna struck a shot at goal (16 mins).

The home pressing continued as Golden blocked a McGlinchy effort. Then Willimas got round Banks, which led to a Newby foul on Tshikuna. Brief respite from an Amaluzor counter was soon followed by a fine save from Ross, assisted by a defensive clearance by Golden (25 mins).

A Crawford foul on Tshikuna led to a spat between Newby and Digie but no cards were shown (27 mins).

Just after Amaluzor had gone down in the box under a Fairlamb challenge, the referee showed his first card, not to a player but to the Tamworth manager, Andy Peaks (31 mins).

Amaluzor was proving to be Alty's best outlet but his shot at goal went easily to Singh (32 mins). Next Linney fouled Sundire and was booked (35 mins).

With Tamworth on top, Wreh's header came off Jones for a corner (36 mins). Having commited an earlier foul, Crawford could not complain at seeing yellow for a late challenge on Milnes to halt a Tamworth attack (40 mins).

Play then stopped for an apparent hamstring injury to Sundire, who had to be replaced by Culinan-Liburd (45 mins).

In added time came Altrincham's best chance of the game to date when Banks's effort from the right set up Newby but he could not beat Singh (45+1 mins).

At the break Nuttall replaced the booked Linney. His side displayed some neat but unproductive passing to start the second half but Ross was soon in action again, saving a Cullinane-Liburd header (52 mins). Then Alty, in turn, tested Singh at the other end when Newby fed Banks whose shot was stopped by the keeper's legs.

Tamworth immediately countered with a run from the lively Williams before Newby found himself in the book for a spooiling foul on Williams(55 mins).

Play went through a nondescript phase before Altrincham took an unexpected lead. From an Osborne ball, Amaluzor shrugged off a challenge from Fairlamb on the right before laying the ball into the centre where Newby poked the ball through Singh's legs to give Alty a lead against the overall pattern of the match (62 mins).

But it was Ross who was by some distance the busier keeper and he now had to make a fine save from Williams, tipping the ball over the bar, at the cost of a corner (63 mins).

Tamworth made a swap with Creaney replacing Wreh (65 mins) and they soon won another corner, followed by a long throw.

There were then three changes in six minutes as Wilson came on for Redin (70 mins), before Tonks replaced Milnes for the hosts (72 mins).

Another home change saw Acquaye replace Williams (76 mins).

More scrappy play led to a freekick for Alty some 40 yards out. From this, taken by Osborne, Cooper headed the ball back into the goalmouth from th lef to where Amaluzor rose to head home a second goal for his side (78 mins).

But what should have been unalloyed joy was doubly undone. Firstly, Crawford was booked for running to the Alty fane behind the goal before Cooper had to go off injured leaving Alty down to nine men as they were slow in getting a replacement ready.

Eventually Haygarth came on for the injured centre-back (82 mins).

Tamworth were noe applying pressure to the ten men and Alty reacted by bringing on Humbles in midfield as Newby was taken off (86 mins).

As time ticked away McGlinchey produced a weak shot at Ross as six added minutes were decreed.

Creaney and Acquaye were both booked (90+2 mins) but it was Creaney who then finished a well-worked move up the left with a header to score for Tamworth and give Alty an anxious couple of minutes before the final whistle.

The win lifted Altrincham to ninth, in a match which will not live lng in the memory.