Match Report
ALTRINCHAM (0) 0 VAUXHALL MOTORS (1) 1
UniBond Premier League match,
played on Friday, 3rd May, 2002 at 7.45p.m.
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SCORERS:
| 24 mins: Kevin LYNCH (Altrincham 0 Vauxhall Motors 1) |
REFEREE: Mr. G.M. Brittain
ATTENDANCE: 472
TEAMS:
| 3.5.02 | ALTRINCHAM | versus. | VAUXHALL MOTORS |
| 7.45pm | Red and white striped shirts, black shorts and socks | Yellow shirts, pale blue shorts, wellow socks | |
| 1. | Stuart COBURN | 1. | Matty HOGG |
| 2. | Vernum ROWLAND | 2. | Steve ASPINALL |
| 3. | Barry SHUTTLEWORTH | 3. | Kevin THOMPSON |
| 4. | Paul TAYLOR | 4. | Phil BRAZIER (capt.) |
| 5. | Mark SERTORI (capt.) | 5. | Matt HADDRELL |
| 6. | Neil RYAN | 6. | Kevin LYNCH |
| 7. | Kevin HULME | 7. | Carl NESBITT |
| 8. | Ian CRANEY | 8. | Robbie LAWTON |
| 9. | Gareth STRANGE | 9. | Paul HART |
| 10. | Rod THORNLEY | 10. | Nicky YOUNG |
| 11. | Danny MURPHY | 11. | Wayne MCDERMOTT |
| 12. | Lee POLAND | 12. | Neil RIGBY |
| 14. | Mario DANIEL | 14. | Brad CULLEN |
| 15. | Dave SWANICK | 15. | Stuart WRIGHT |
The teams had only met last Tuesday at Rivacre Park when Vauxhall had run out 2-1 winners in an entertaining game. Before this game the Junior Robins' Player of the Year award was made to Rod Thornley who generously took the time to shake all of the Junior Robins by the hand before the game started. This was to be Graham Heathcote's last match as Alty coach prior to the expiry of his contract on 30 June.
SUMMARY
In Graham Heathcote's last game as Alty coach the Robins' second-half performance just failed to retrieve anything from the match. Vauxhall impressed with their quick, passing game and took the lead with a superb strike into the top corner of the net from 22 yards by Kevin Lynch after 24 minutes. Both sides struck the post in the first half, in Alty's case through Daniel. A fine volley from Thornley in the final five minutes of the game seemed to have gained a point for Alty but somehow Vauxhall got it off the line. Gareth Strange was named Man of the Match as fans demonstrated their loyalty to the financially threatened home side with a chorus of "The Red Flag" on the pitch after the final whistle. Altrincham finished ninth in the league.
TEAM NEWS
Alty replaced Swanick, Maddox, Scott and Daniel from the eleven starters at Vauxhall, bringing in Shuttleworth, Taylor, Hulme and Strange instead. Vauxhall also made four changes to their starting line-up; Hilton, Rigby, Cullen and Wright giving way to Hogg, Aspinall, Young and McDermott. The referee, Mr Brittain officiated at Worksop when Altrincham won there in August; that seems a long time ago!
MATCH REPORT
Vauxhall kicked off and immediately won probably the quickest corner to be conceded at Moss Lane this season, off Paul Taylor. This was cleared before the sides passed the next five minutes probing each other's defences without creating any openings. Alty came nearest when a fine turn by Hulme set up Thornley but his attempted chip from 20 yards was not high enough to trouble Hogg, the former Liverpool Youth team keeper (5 mins). Vauxhall now began to pass the ball about slickly as they had done on Tuesday night but Altrincham too were playing it to feet though once or twice, passes across their own goalmouth caused some anxiety to their supporters. However, neither side had yet got in a proper shot as the quarter of an hour mark was passed. Then, as a throw was about to be taken, play stopped for treatment to Paul Taylor in his own half.
The injury jinxed defender was unable to continue and his season ended prematurely after just sixteen minutes. Paul has managed just 11 league starts this season due to injury. His replacement was Mario Daniel, who had been surprisingly excluded after his fine goal on Tuesday. He went up front which meant that Kevin Hulme moved into the back four. Vauxhall continued to pass the ball well and then get men behind the ball quickly if possession was lost. After Craney had obstructed Young 15 yards from goal, the Motormen's free-kick was played short and came to Young who drove a good shot against Coburn's right upright, with the keeper beaten (20 mins). Then Shuttleworth had to make a desperate clearance of the Alty lines. A poor clearance from Coburn soon added to the pressure on Alty before Young got up the left flank. Though Sertori cleared his cross, the ball soon came back to Young who played the ball inside to Lynch who drove it superbly into the very top corner of Coburn's net as the keeper dived to his right to no avail (24 mins). It was Lynch's second goal against Alty this week (24 mins).
The Alty midfield were having a difficult time and passes were going astray at this point but soon Rowland and Thornley combined well, with help from Murphy, for Shuttleworth to get in a cross but this was cleared by the Vauxhall defence for whom Haddrell was having a particularly good game, having reverted to his defensive role after playing further forward on Tuesday night. Graham Heathcote, vocal to the end of his Alty coaching days, told his players that they had not delivered a single decent cross for Danny Murphy in almost half an hour's play. Almost immediately Daniel won the ball and put in a fine, low cross from the right which Haddrell did well to head over his bar from very close range. Ryan's resulting corner from the left was punched by Hogg when he might have caught the ball and it went over to the right of goal.
There, Thornley played it back to the left for Murphy to head cleanly but at Hogg's waiting arms. After another injury stoppage, this time for Thornley, Rowland fed Strange, who was fouled, but Shuttleworth's free-kick was cleared by the defence. After Coburn had been tripped by Young as the keeper dribbled the ball in his own box, Sertori went forward with the ball but eventually Shuttleworth lost possession. The normally impressive on-loan left-back did not appear to be at his best tonight as he soon lost the ball again, following a free-kick for a foul by Aspinall on Daniel. Shuttleworth was then fouled and from Strange's free-kick, from 25 yards out on the left, Murphy won the ball in the air and set up a shot from the outer fringes of the box for Daniel which hit the post (39 mins). Another stoppage was soon needed for Hart to be treated before Altrincham strung together a sustained passing movement which finally broke down. Shuttleworth then made a fine tackle to stop Lynch as he entered the box, conceding a corner, which Coburn caught. Vauxhall soon won another corner after Coburn had had to get down low, to his right, to push another good shot from Lynch around his right upright (44 mins). Half-time came with Vauxhall just about good value for their lead.
| Half-Time: ALTRINCHAM 0 VAUXHALL MOTORS 1 |
Alty replaced a presumably injured Shuttleworth with Dave Swanick at left-back at half-time. Soon, Hogg made a bit of a meal of a weakish shot from Craney (46 mins) before Alty went on to make a strong start to the second half. Craney lifted another shot over the bar before Young's fine turn and shot from 30 yards whistled wide of Coburn's net (48 mins). Strange then made a fine turn and he shot just wide of the post at the other end (53 mins). Altrincham then almost scored when Rowland fed Thornley whose nifty backheel set Daniel in on goal but Hogg was out smartly to smother the young striker's shot almost as it left his boot, six yards from goal (58 mins). Vauxhall then won a corner, followed by a second, but both were cleared. Next, Lawton had a firm shot blocked and Hart put the rebound wide (59 mins).
Strange was showing some good touches on the Alty right as the game settled into an end to end pattern at this stage. Lynch, the former Prescot Cables player, again showed his impressive shooting, hitting a volley at Coburn from inside the centre circle which the Alty keeper riskily chose to let hit his body before he caught it. At the other end, Thornley shot over the bar from 12 yards (63 mins). Thornley soon also got in a telling cross, after beating a defender, but this was cleared and Rowland had to be alert to make a saving tackle at the other end.
The former Alty player Paul Hart then missed a sitter, screwing a shot wide from six feet when a Vauxhall move up the right ended with a low cross across the face of the Alty goal (68 mins). A succession of free-kicks for minor midfield offences then disrupted the flow for a few minutes before Hulme had a shot from 20 yards, over the bar (73 mins). Vauxhall responded when McDermott fed Lynch, who shot narrowly wide (74 mins). The one bad tempered incident of the match occurred when Sertori and Nesbitt went head to head but fortunately common sense prevailed and for the sixth consecutive Alty game there were to be no bookings. With 15 minutes left Vauxhall brought on full-back Neil Rigby for Steve Aspinall, just before a melee in the visitors' penalty area resulted in the ball being cleared. Two minutes later, Wright became the second Vauxhall substitute to appear, as Thompson was removed. After Swanick had fed Thornley, Daniel was caught marginally offside as he put the ball in the net (80 mins).
However, Alty soon won a corner through Murphy, which the keeper punched out to Swanick whose shot won a throw-in. This, in turn, led to a corner, as Sertori now went forward to join Hulme who had already forsaken his defensive duties in search for an equaliser. Murphy then volleyed wide as Alty pressed. They seemed to have got it when a Rowland free-kick, from 35 yards out, came to Thornley to the right of goal. From some 20 yards Rod volleyed the ball very well and it seemed to be arrowing into the far corner when a defender somehow got it clear (86 mins). Vauxhall served notice of their own threat however, when Rowland lost the ball and Lawton fired narrowly wide (87 mins).
Very belatedly, Alty brought on Lee Poland for his 35th substitute appearance of the season but it was far too late for him to have any impact. The man he replaced was Danny Murphy, who is still returning to fitness (88 mins). As on Tuesday, Altrincham had lost narrowly to an impressive Vauxhall side who will almost certainly be a force to be reckoned with again next season, but whether Alty will be one too remains to be seen as they face a summer of financial uncertainty and changes on the coaching front as well as on the playing side. Only two players remain on contract for next season (plus one with an option on his contract), so how many of today's Alty team made their last appearance for the Club tonight remains to be seen as major cuts to the wage bill are imposed over the close season. Although this was the last game of the season for the first team, the Youth and Reserve teams both have games to play at Moss Lane as well as away from home. The Youth side play the NW Youth Alliance Open Cup Final at Moss Lane next Saturday (11th at 2pm) whilst the Reserves' remaining fixtures include a home game the Saturday afterwards (15th at 2pm) against Accrington Stanley.
| Full-Time: ALTRINCHAM 0 VAUXHALL MOTORS 1 |