LINE-UP

ALTRINCHAM FC YOUTH (All red): 1. Lewis BISHOP, 2. Michael HOWE, 3. Tom BARCLAY (capt), 4. Alex MURPHY, 5. Kieran RAYNES, 6. Marcus BAXBY, 7. Danny BROWNE, 8. Michael SIMCOCK, 9. Tom BAILEY, 10. Kyle JOHNSON, 11. Anthony DAVIES. Subs: 12. Reza ZAREH-OURANG, 14. Jason MELLING-FONG, 15.Rico COLULO, 16. Rick CRAWFORD, 17. Steven CRANE.

REPORT

Right: Altrincham Youth's Marcus Baxby (centre, in red, facing camera) in midfield action against Prescot Cables, last Sunday, as Danny Browne (foreground) looks over his shoulder and is held in an arm-lock.

Alex Murphy came back into the side at centre-back so Michael Howe moved to right-back and Tom Barclay to left-back. Up front, Kyle Johnson started. Rick Crawford and Rico Colulo, who started the previous game, moved to the bench. Wearing their all red Altrincham & District FA kit, Altrincham kicked off towards the Stockport Road end. But it was the visitors who settled the more quickly, earning an early corner. However, it was then a fine ball forward from Johnson which set Altrincham's Bailey running at goal but his shot was saved by the keeper. Alty's own keeper, Bishop, then had to be alert to make a good block with his feet from Cables' number nine (4 mins). After the visitors' number four had briefly left the pitch for treatment to a facial injury, he returned to level up the sides once more. Alty manager George Heslop told his midfield that they were allowing their opponents too much space and his team responded by winning two corners in succession. Altrincham had now begun to settle and almost went ahead in bizarre fashion when Howe's well-hit cross from deep on the right was diverted towards his own goal by Prescot's lunging number two. This forced the Prescot Cables' keeper to a good save, at the cost of a corner and an injury to his hand, which was soon resolved by treatment. The corner came to nothing (21 mins).

The visitors spurned a chance to go ahead a minute later when a foul by Howe yielded a freekick. From the kick, 25 yards out on the left by the Cables no.8, the tall no.9 rose well at the back post but headed narrowly wide. Five more or less successive throws on the right enabled Prescot to maintain some pressure as the visitors showed some of the threat which had enabled them to overcome Salford City in the previous round (25 mins). The Alty midfield then allowed the skilful visitors' number ten to jink through the centre but he shot wide (27 mins). Next, an excellent, firm tackle in centre-field by Marcus Baxby prompted the first goal of the match. The ball moved forward from Baxby, via Simcock, to Bailey who kept his head to drive the ball past the keeper and put Altrincham one up, on the half-hour mark. Soon afterwards, another Bailey shot was blocked at the cost of a corner to Altrincham. From this corner, by Davies, Raynes met the ball well with a downward header which was turned into the net by Browne to make it 2-0 after 33 minutes.

More good work from Prescot's number ten prompted a shot by his number 6 which was deflected out for a corner. This came to nothing and soon afterwards, after he had held back Davies, the visitors' number two was booked by the referee, who was having a good game (40 mins). Alty went close again in the first minute of added time when the keeper saved well from Bailey and then kept out Johnson's follow-up.

After a slow start by Altrincham to the second half, they appeared to have sealed the game up after 51 minutes when Tom Bailey scored his second goal. This came when a ball up the middle deflected off a defender to the striker and he made no mistake from 20 yards. Soon afterwards, the visitors brought on their no.12 for no.7 (55 mins). Following a long throw, Prescot won a corner on the left. From this corner, the ball was allowed to bounce in the goalmouth and was forced home by a Prescot player (no.4?) to make it 3-1 (57 mins). Prescot now had their tails up and went at Altrincahmn but the Alty back four kept them at bay. After 63 minutes Alty constructed a neat move which ended with Simcock's shot over the bar before Cables made another change as no.15 came on for no.9. Prescot thenwon another corner, at which point they brought on an unnumbered substitute for their no.3. Once again Alty were caught out by a corner-kick as the ball came out to a Prescot player who had time to lob it over Bishop into the far corner of the net from 15 yards out. "We were asleep", commented George Heslop to his team (78 mins).

At 3-2 it was beginning to look a bit ominous for Altrincham and a change was made with Melling-Fong replacing Browne in midfield (80 mins). Alty went close a couple of minutes later when Bailey's well-taken freekick from the left was headed over by Howe. But then good work on the right from the two substitutes saw Crawford feed Melling-Fong, whose well-judged ball forward set Bailey and a couple of team mates free of the offside trap. Bailey went on to convert the chance and cplpete his hat-trick (83 mins). Before play resumed the visitors' no.5 was booked, presumably for dissent.

Altrincham got to the final whistle without any further serious threat to their lead and so advanced into the final of the Neil Thomason Trophy for the second successive season. Their opponents will be the winners of a match between the Trophy holders Morecambe and either Marine or Bootle.