ALTRINCHAM & DISTRICT FA YOUTH (Red shirts, black shorts and red socks ): 1. Ashley TIMMS, 2. Adam DOUTHWAITE, 3. Josh COLLINS, 4. Kelvin LUGSDEN, 5. Steven HOWARTH, 6. Stuart COOK, 7. Paul LEWIS, 8. Lewis CHALMERS (capt.), 9. Andy THORPE, 10. Kieran LUGSDEN, 11. Adam BALL. Subs: 12. Matthew BARTON, 14. James GREENHALGH, 15. James MONAGHAN, 18. Tom READ (gk).

Before kick-off Altrincham were no longer in a position to qualify for the finals of the District Cup but The Wirral were still in with a chance of progressing. Altrincham were without left-back Matt Tooth, captain Alex Frost, midfielder Stevie Taylor and striker Steve Lunt, who had played 90 minutes yesterday for the first team at Worksop. In the resultant changes, Adam Douthwaite reverted to right-back after his game in midfield last week.

On a gloomy afternoon, Altrincham won an early free-kick on the right but The Wirral had the first opening.However, their player missed his good close-range shooting opportunity (3 mins). Kieran Lugsden soon replied with a wide shot at the other end.

Thorpe and Cook then combined well for Kieran Lugsden to find Josh Collins on the left but Josh's shot went across goal (7 mins). The sides were well matched and following an Alty clearance, the Wirral number fired a shot only narrowly over the Alty bar. Ball then had a shot blocked after good work from Lewis and Kieran Lugsden (15 mins). Next, Chalmers got in a firm shot which was parried by the Wirral keeper (18 mins) but play was end to end at this stage. Thorpe got in the next good Alty effort, his 20 yarder being well saved (23 mins).

Kelvin Lugsden was organising the back four well and soon his centre-back colleague Howarth had to head firmly clear. A Douthwaite cross then prompted the visitors keeper to drop the ball as Kieran Lugsden challenged him but the Alty striker was penalised for his efforts.

A good piece of skill by Chalmers ended with a Kieran Lugsden shot which the keeper saved comfortably (31 mins). Timms now fielded a deflected shot from the Wirral no.7 before a long throw-in from Chalmers set up Ball for a shot which he lashed over the bar (35 mins). Then, a ball into the box from Collins was flicked on by Kieran Lugsden for Lewis to win his side a corner on the left. Alty had a scare when a headed clearance came to a Wirral player on the edge of the box and his shot came back of the junction of crossbar and upright with Timms beaten (40 mins).

Alty immediately went to the other end, via a superb ball forward from Douthwaite on the right. The ball dropped behind the Wirral defence where Thorpe latched on to it and kept his head well to lob the ball into the net from the right of the goalmouth (41 mins). Almost immediately Lewis had a fine, low shot well saved (42 mins). After a Wirral defensive error, Thorpe got in a good cross for Kieran Lugsden, whose header just cleared the bar (45 mins).

The referee somehow found three minutes of added time which witnessed a fine clearing tackle from Howarth and some good defending, too, from Kelvin Lugsden. Wirral won a very late corner but their no.6 headed the flag-kick over the bar.

Five minutes into the second half the Wirral no.3 broke through the middle and completed his forty yard advance with a shot which forced a fine save from Timms and won a Wirral corner on the right (50 mins). At the other end, a good cross from Cook saw Kieran Lugsden volley just over the bar (51 mins). Then the visitors' no.11 hit an effort over the bar (56 mins) before they replaced their no.7 by no.12 (57 mins).

Almost immediately Timms made a brilliant double save. He firstly beat out a low free-kick at the base of his right upright and then reacted well to keep out a point-blank follow-up (58 mins). However, Altrincham soon began to re-assert themselves but a Chalmers shot over the bar was their best effort at this stage. Rain now started to fall as Wirral made another swap, with no.14 replacing no.10 (68 mins). Alty soon won a corner from a Chalmers free-kick but the keeper punched Douthwaite's corner-kick clear. After 70 minutes Alty made a change, with Cook being replaced, on the right, by Greenhalgh.

Wirral then won a corner before a Collins feed saw Keiran Lugsden's shot rebound to Ball whose own shot went wide (75 mins). The sides then traded attacks as the rain got heavier and Wirral won another corner following which Howarth got in a good tackle.

A foul on Greenhalgh on the right yielded a free-kick and from Douthwaite's kick Thorpe flicked the ball on. The Wirral keeper seemed favourite to gather the ball but he and a defender somehow allowed the alert Kieran Lugsden to nip in and poke the ball home from close range just to the right of goal (81 mins).

Wirral brought on no.15 for no. 2 (83 mins) and then Alty removed the injured Chalmers and brought on Monaghan (84 mins). A shot from Greenhalgh was then cleared with his feet by the keeper (85 mins). As Wirral continued to press, Altrincham wrapped the game up when Thorpe and Monaghan got the ball forward and Kieran Lugsden again got a ball by the byline which the defence should have stopped. Kieran passed the ball from the right, across the face of goal, where the unmarked Adam Ball converted a tap-in to make it 3-0 in the last minute of normal time.

Though defeats in the first two group-stage matches of the District Cup meant that Altrincham could not progress further in the competition, their performance today confirmed the good form being shown by the team in recent weeks.