ALTRINCHAM RESERVES (Red & white striped shirts, black shorts, red socks): 1. Richard ACTON, 2. Keith WEDGE, 3. Ashley BROWN, 4. Stephen ROSE, 5. Laurence BALL, 6. Eddie HUSSIN (capt), 7.Rod THORNLEY, 8. Lewis CHALMERS, 9. Kieran LUGSDEN, 10. Mark SMYTH, 11. Blake NORTON. Subs: 12. Lee HENDLEY, 14. Pat McFADDEN, 15. 15. Richard NORRIS, 17. James MARSDEN.

FLEETWOOD TOWN RESERVES (All white). 1. Michael HALE, 2. James WAY, 3. Ron BUSCHINI, 4. James HONE, 5. Stephen ? 6. Mark ? 7. Mark DAVIS, 8. Mark BUTLER, 9. James BROADBENT, 10. Jason RAWCLIFFE, 11. Richard SINGLETON. Subs: 12. Chris SINGLETON, 14. Chris WATKINSON, 15. Dan ??. (Team sheet not fully legible)

Referee: Mr Dermott

REPORT

This was only Alty Reserves' second game since mid-February but, as last Saturday, the normal reserve players mostly gave way to first-team fringe players and players returning to fitness. So seven players with current first-team squad numbers started the game, plus two trialists, Mark Smyth and Keith Wedge. Smyth is an ex-Liverpool player with a first team appearance under his belt from December 2004, whilst Wedge had been at Bury. It was good to see Eddie Hussin starting his first game of the season after injury and he was captain tonight, following his completion of 30 minutes as sub in the Reserves' last game. On the bench was Richard Norris, making his first appearance of the season after his operation.

On a cold but dry night, Alty kicked off towards the Golf Road End. Wedge soon made an impression with a fine cross from the right which Kieran Lugsden headed onto the top of the cross bar (2 mins). There was then a controversial moment as a very late challenge by Davis on Chalmers left the young midfielder in a heap near the centre line, in front of the Fleetwood technical area. The vocal Fleetwood manager had seen nothing wrong in the challenge and taunted Chalmers, shouting at him "That's embarrassing, son", implying that the Alty man was feigning injury. After treatment Chalmers continued and soon Fleetwood won a corner when Rose sliced a clearance over his own bar. From this Butler headed over the bar. Alty then had a good chance when Smyth, who started well, fed Lugsden, who had got behind the defence but he fired his low shot wide of the keeper's left stick (9 mins). Hale then palmed away a good cross from Norton and soon Norton was powering past the visitors' number two only to have his legs taken from him from behind. Alty then put together a good movement which ended as Lugsden slipped the ball through to Smyth but his shot hit the keeper's legs (17 mins). But just when it seemed that Alty's attacking would bear no fruit, Lugsden turned a routine pass, 25 yards out, into a defence splitting one with a superb turn which left his marker for dead. Lugsden then advanced towards goal and coolly slotted a low shot just inside the keeper's left post to put Alty ahead (20 mins).

Alty continued to have the upper hand and another incident involving Chalmers led to Butler being booked. Chalmers had dived in late on Fleetwood's Hone, who went down and needed lengthy treatment. Immediately Butler stormed in for retribution and hacked at Chalmers to earn his booking but the Alty midfielder was lucky to escape wuthout a booking himself (25 mins). After a full four minutes of treatment, Hone hobbled off to be replaced by the number fifteen (30 mins). Alty's concentration seemed to be affected by the long stoppage and a Fleetwood pass up the middle left Broadbent free and he beat Acton to make it 1-1 (31 mins).

From the restart Alty went to the other end and Lugsden's shot forced a good save at the cost of a corner to Alty. Following this Hussin played a fine ball through to Smyth but he shot over the bar from left of goal (32 mins). After this, Lugsden fed Thornley whose cross from the right forced the keeper to tip the ball over the bar for a corner (39 mins) and another corner followed a minute or two later. Alty were still on top but Fleetwood went close when Broadbent's diving header from Way's cross went wide (42 mins). The ball then came up to Lugsden, 20 yards or so out, right-centre and he lashed an excellent shot which hit the inside of the keeper's left post before rebounding across the goal behind his right post to make it 2-1 (43 mins). Aly went close again soon after this when Smyth headed narrowly wide (45 mins). In added time Lugsden forced a save as Alty dominated till the half-time whistle.

Soon after the restart Hussin uncharacteristically, but understandably given his long lay off, lost out in a physical challenge to Butler and the ball was worked forward to Rawcliffe whose effort beat Acton but was cleared off the line by Chalmers. But Alty seemed to have made the game safe after 51 minutes when, from Norton's cross, Lugsden scored from six yards to complete his second successive hat-trick for the Reserves (50 mins). But Fleetwood were soon back in the game when a Rose clearance came to a Fleetwood man who fed Singleton and his first time effort from left centre looped over Acton into the net, the goalkeeper appearing to have judged the ball to be clearing the bar (54 mins). With the score at 3-2, Rawcliffe's shot hit Acton before the end to end play continued as Smyth superbly sidestepped a defender but then shot wide.

Thornley soon got in a fine shot from the wide right which the keeper beat out before Alty made a double change as McFadden and Norris came on for Lugsden and Hussin. For Norris it was his first appearance since being injured in a pre-season friendly and undergoing an operation (60 mins). Stephen Rose now assumed the captaincy. Soon, however, Fleetwood were back on level terms with a bizarre goal. Acton came out and kicked clear his effort, getting a fair distance but finding Davis, five yards inside his own half. From 60 yards, therefore, the Fleetwood number seven fired the ball straight back, the ball crossing the line before Acton could get back to his goal (64 mins).

After this Thornley was substituted by Hendley and Watkinson replaced Singleton for the visitors (65 mins). Soon Hendley committed a poor challenge on an opponent and was lucky to escape with no more than a verbal caution (68 mins) before McFadden cut in well but saw his shot blocked. Alty continued to press and won three corners in succession, from the second of which Rose's header was just plucked out from under the bar (73 mins).

Another Alty corner followed when Hendley's shot was blocked. Some slack passing from Alty then undid their attempts to get the winner as the game entered the final ten minutes. Hendley had a shot which was saved (86 mins) before Fleetwood won a corner. Alty's last chance was a sliced shot from Chalmers in the last minute; a disappointing end to an evening which had promised much when Alty led 3-1.

The most positive notes tonight were, of course, Kieran Lugsden's well taken hat-trick, the successful rehabilitations of Eddie Hussin and Richard Norris and the promising performance of the two-footed Keith Wedge at right back, whilst the other trialist Mark Smyth, too, had his moments up front.