It was a close encounter of the fifth kind this season as Altrincham lost to a goal scored in added time after four previous league defeats to goals netted after the 90th minute.

On this occasion, after Alty's Knowles had rattled the underside of the bar in the 72nd minute, Turner-Cooke's low shot from a Kawa advance on the left in the 94th minute was the decider for the Shaymen.

The match was generally of medicocre quality with injury ravaged Altrincham further incommoded by the absence of Barnes and Reddin through suspension. There was little goalmouth excitement and the game, which was subject to heavy rain showers, was not enhanced by an eccentric performance from referee Burgin.

SCORERS:

• 90(+4) mins: Jay TURNER-COOKE (ALTRINCHAM 0 FC Halifax Town 1)

REFEREE: Ms Melissa Burgin

ATTENDANCE: 2,572 (505 in away section)

TEAM NEWS:

Altrincham were still without five injured players (Ross, Banks, Sass-Davies, Olson and Forde) but Khan, Reed and Crankshaw returned to the squad today after their injuries. Also missing were the suspended Barnes and Reddin. Two changes were made to the starting eleven as the suspended Barnes, and fellow centre-back Cooper, were replaced by Sassi and Weaver.

LINE-UP:

ALTRINCHAM (Red shirts with with white pinstripes, black shorts and white socks): 30. Luke Hutchinson, 14. Matty Kosylo, 34. Dan Sassi, 6. Josh Grant, 23. Tylor Golden, 22. Tom Crawford (c), 28. Liam Humbles, 8. Isaac Marriott, 40. Charlie Kirk, 17. Lucas Weaver, 11. Jimmy Knowles. Subs: 27. Louie Fallon (gk), 3. Sam Reed, 5. Jake Cooper, 7. Olly Crankshaw, 10. Otis Khan, 12. Kian Breckin, 33. Eddy Jones.

FC HALIFAX TOWN (White shirts and shorts, blue socks) 1. Sam Johnson (c), 24. Ash Palmer, 5. Shaun Hobson, 15. Will Smith, 36. Thierry Latty-Fairweather, 23. Dylan Crowe, 30. Cody Johnson, 27. Jay Turner-Cooke, 8. Josh Hmami, 4. Will Hugill, 9. Will Harris. Subs: 12. Nat Ford (gk), 16. Jevon Mills, 17. Owen Bray, 18. Florent Hoti, 19. AJ Warburton, 22. David Kawa, 28. Kieron Morris

BACKGROUND:

Following two red cards on Tuesday, and resulting suspensions , as well as a tiring match at Woking in midweek with ten- and then nine-men, Alty's playing resources were severely stretched.

Pushing for the play-offs, FC Halifax Town had faltered recently. Their last twelve league games had yielded just four wins, three draws and five defeats

REPORT:

Heavy swirling rain had drenced the Halifax supporters before kick off but it had eased off before the game was started by Alty's Marriott whose side was playing towards the away end. Having required a re-take of the kick-off, referee Burgin soon lectured Golden for what was a trivial foul (2 mins).

The opening five minutes were scrappy but then Halifax threatened when a low cross from the right evaded Hutchinson and prompted pinball in the goalmouth which produced a corner for the visitors. The corner was half-cleared but a Halifax player then struck the bar from twenty yards as Alty lived dangerously (7 mins).

Latty-Fairweather now required treatment but he resumed afterwards. Neil Gibson was annoyed when the referee ignored a mauling of Sassi which led to a Latty-Fairweather effort which was blocked.

However, the same Halifax player then had to be taken off with his injury and was replaced by by Warburton (14 mins).

A measure of the lack of quality in the game was the almost sepulchral hush which affected both sets of supporters (19 mins).

What seemed to be a fine block-tackle by Kosylo was punished by Ms Burgin both by a freekick to the visitors and a booking for the former Halifax man who was the away supporters' pantomime villain following two dismissals in games against the Shaymen (20 mins).

Marriott then also seemed to make an excellent tackle only to suffer the same double whammy of being penalised and booked (25 mins).

What was a poor spectacle of a game meandered on with Humbles's twenty-yarder over the bar the nearest to a goal from either side (28 mins). The referee then penalised Turner-Cooke for a robust foul on Humbles but elected not to produce a yellow card for the Halifax man to the annoyance of the home crowd (32 mins).

You could hear a pin drop such was the level of excitement induced by the game before even Ms Burgin had to produce a card when Hobson dragged Knowles to the ground. Ironic cheers from the home fans greeted her decision (36 mins).

Soon afterwards a rising shot from Kosylo from twenty yards cLeared the bar comfortably. When a Halifax defender played the ball back to his keeper's hands, the referee did not see it as a back pass which further irked the home support (40 mins).

Soon a 30-yard effort from Kirk flew high and wide (42 mins), followed by a Hugill run which earned a corner (43 mins).

Alty's best chance of the half fell to Jimmy Knowles but he was unable to generate enough power off a slow-moving ball to beat the keeper from close range (45 mins).

In the two added minutes Sassi was quite clearly pulled over as he went to meet a Kirk freekick in the air but the referee again saw no infringement and so a dismal 45 minutes was concluded goalless.

Halifax went close early in the second half when Hugill's curling freekick from the right evaded everyone and was heading into the net at the back post before Hutchinson dived to his right to tip it round the post for a corner (48 mins).

The corner led to a second, off Crawford's head, this time on the right. A goalmouth scramble ensued but the Alty goal just about survived intact as Hugill hoofed a shot 40 feet over the bar from 18 yards (53 mins).

After an impressive sliding tackle in his own box by Golden, Alty got in a snap shot from Humbles whose left-foot effort earned a corner from Johnson's save (56 mins).

A Halifax corner followed two minutes later before Weaver appeared, to the nearby Golf Road supporters, to have won a corner only for a goalkick to be awarded (59 mins).

Next, a foul on Marriott prompted more ironic cheers at a rare decision in Alty's favour as rain started and soon became intense. Marriott was then tripped in full flight by Cody Johnson who was duly booked (63 mins). As the rain eased Hugilljoined his team mate in the book for his foul on Crawford (70 mins).

From a Kosylo freekick Alty earned a corner after which Knowles poked a shot at goal from the left of centre but it came back off the underside of the crossbar, prompting a melee in the Halifax goalmouth (72 mins); a corner resulted from which Knowles headed wide as the weather brightened up.

Alty were now enjoying a dominant spell and after Weaver had won a corner, Kirk flashed a ferocious volley very wide (75 mins).

The visitors now brought on Kawa for Hugill (75 mins) as the sun made a belated appearance.

Hobson then went down for treatment after which he was subbed by Morris (79 mins). A Halifax corner came and went before Alty prepared a triple substitution only for Grant to pull up injured and prompt a fourth new player to be introuduced in the same stoppage. A Halifax corner was dealt wih (86 mins) before, at the other end, a Crankshaw effort was deflected narrowly over the bar for a corner (89 mins).

Six added minutes were announced with Halifax pressing forward. In the fourth such minute, Kawa advanced towards the left bye-line before laying the ball inside to Turner-Cooke who found the bottom corner with a low shot to Hutchinson's left, which went through Dan Sassi's legs.

And so, Alty had succumbed to an added-time winner for the fifth time in the season.

Altrincham dropped a place but barring some bizarre results they look safe in the National League for next season.