Match Report

BACKGROUND AND TEAM NEWS

This Nationwide Conference league match kicked off at 3pm on Easter Monday, a sunny afternoon. Shaun Goodwin was made captain against his former team, whilst the injured Simeon Hodson returned as substitute. Morrell was missing, presumed injured, and Chambers was predictably relegated to the bench. Landon and Ellison played together as strikers for the first time this season, with Hawes at right back and Russell reverting to midfield, on the right. Timons moved to midfield, leaving Talbot and Maddox as the centre-backs.

A crowd of 1066 watched the game, with a strong contingent from Doncaster at the Chequers end. A small number of police were in attendance but there was no hint of trouble off the pitch.

TEAMS

ALTRINCHAM (Red and white striped shirts, black shorts): 1. Lance Key; 2. Steve Hawes, 3. Danny Adams, 4. Mark Maddox, 5. Gary Talbot, 6. Chris Timons, 7. Jason Gallagher, 8. Shaun Goodwin, 9. Richard Landon, 10. Keith Russell, 11. Kevin Ellison

Subs: 12. Leroy Chambers, 13. Ian Senior, 14. Simeon Hodson, 15. Andy Lovelock, 16. Paul Hart.

DONCASTER ROVERS (All blue): 1. Andy Warrington, 2. Simon Shaw, 3. Scott Maxfield, 4. Mark Atkins, 5. Dean Walling (capt), 6. Lee Warren, 7. Jason Minnett, 8. David Penney, 9. Neil Campbell, 10. Dino Maamria, 11. Kevin McIntyre.

Subs: 12. Glen Kirkwood, 13. Mark Barnard, 14. Andy Watson, 15. Mattie Caudwell, 16. Williams.

SUMMARY

This was another disastrous result for Altrincham whose five remaining matches are all, against top-ten sides.

THE MATCH

Altrincham kicked off towards the Golf Road end and soon won a corner (2 mins). A series of three throw-ins saw Doncaster gain ground down their right, but their progress ended in an off-side decision. Goodwin gave away the first of what was to be a succession of free-kicks to the visitors on the edge of the home penalty area (7 mins) but a pre-rehearsed move was botched by the Yorkshiremen. Both sides were committing errors and it was easy to see why they were at the wrong end of the table. Ellison was injured (11 mins) but no foul or stoppage ensued. Landon then fouled Walling to give away another kick on the edge of the home box.

Atkins's excellent free-kick was headed narrowly wide of Key's left post by an incoming Doncaster player. Russell fortuitously won a corner for Altrincham (16 mins) after over-elaborating. Hawes's corner-kick found its way to Landon, whose excellent hooked shot seemed to hit a Doncaster hand, but was cleared. Doncaster began to look dangerous and Key had to rush from his goal to kick clear (17 mins). Altrincham gave away another foul on the very edge of their own box and Key did well to palm away the freekick, with a fellow defender then clearing for a corner to Doncaster. Penney's corner kick was hooked wide by one of his colleagues (19 mins). Perhaps Altrincham's best chance of the half came when Landon, despite being fouled, fired in a great shot which Warrington tipped into the air, from where Walling cleared to safety.

After 23 minutes Maddox was fairly booked, having got the wrong side of the muscular Campbell. The ball was touched sideways at the free-kick, which was yet again near the edge of the home penalty area, and the resulting shot went narrowly wide and high of the goal. Doncaster were now on top and the impressive Maamria underlined this when he ghosted past two defenders on the bye-line only to see his shot fumbled away for a corner by Key (28 mins). Adams cleared the corner only for the ball to be pumped back in and for Key to clutch it from the air. Maddox was then unlucky to see the ball rebound off him to Maamria and the Altrincham defender then fouled Maamria from behind. With the visiting fans calling for what would have been a justifiable second-booking, the referee chose to award the free-kick but did not brandish the red card. Moments later, in a far less clear-cut incident, Maddox brought down Campbell and was promptly sent off. Penney blasted the resulting free-kick both high and wide.

Ellison shot, under pressure, from 35 yards but the ball was well over the bar. Altrincham now were forced into moving Timons into the back four, leaving the midfield with only three players. Maamria then won the ball and his cross was headed in, unchallenged, by Campbell who had lost Talbot near the penalty spot. Key remained flat-footed as the ball entered the net. Doncaster could have added to their lead, with Key doing well to tip over a long shot from Scott Maxfield (38 mins) and moments later a 30-yarder from Atkins hit the bar, with the Key beaten, and went out for a goal-kick.

After some good work by Ellison, Adams's cross was disappointing and was easily taken by Warrington. But Doncaster almost doubled their lead again when Minnett's header hit the base of the post, although a defender was on the line to clear had it not done so. By now Altrincham could easily have been three down. Altrincham's last chance of the half was a free-kick which Russell wasted. Shaw's cross almost put McIntyre through just before the interval, which came as a relief to the home side.

Right: Maddox is sent off

Hodson replaced Goodwin at half-time and Hawes moved to central midfield. The home side improved markedly in the second half and put together some good though non-penetrative moves. Adams was fouled as he cut inside from the left, just outside the Doncaster box. Landon's kick was firm but straight at Warrington. Russell and Penney got a talking-to after a minor fracas (49 mins) before Maamria chased and caught a ball which the home defence had left to go out of play. Maamria's cross was headed upwards by Timons but Key then caught the ball under pressure. Maamria then rattled the upright with a firm shot to Key's left and a follow-up shot was fortunately diverted by a Doncaster player, over the bar. Landon was showing the occasional nice touch up front and Adams was his usual excellent self down the left. From a corner won by Adams, the keeper clutched the ball as Talbot prepared to head it (54 mins). A cross-cum shot by Ellison only founded the keeper's hands (55 mins) as did a long-range shot at the other end from Maamria (58 mins).

Then, a through ball was diverted on by a Doncaster defender and Ellison reached the ball just before Warrington. He hooked it over the keeper who clattered into him. The ball ran to a defender who cleared, whilst Warrington escaped any censure at all for a clear foul. Key then had to race out of his box and was lucky when Maamria's shot hit him and was cleared (62 mins). Russell, Gallagher and Adams were all working hard and Adams's 30 yard shot was tipped away over the bar for a corner by Warrington (64 mins). From a Hawes freekick on the right, the Doncaster defence failed to clear, and Ellison nipped in to head the ball over the keeper for the equaliser (71 mins). Doncaster then substituted Penney by Watson as Altrincham pressed. But all the good work was undone on 74 minutes when neither Timons nor Key went for high ball and Campbell, to the left of goal, was left free to head it across goal, to the right, for Warren to score, unmarked, from close range.

Chambers then came on for the injured Ellison (76 mins) before Adams played the ball to Hawes, whose excellent shot was held well by the keeper (78 mins). Altrincham could not conjure up a second equalizer as Doncaster brought on Williams for Maamria and simultaneously, Lovelock replaced the injured Gallagher (85 mins). A cumbersome challenge in the air by Landon brought a harsh booking for the centre-forward (86 mins). Altrincham's last chance went when Chambers's good turn bought him a good position in the box but his cross was overhit. Kirkwood then came on for Campbell (89 mins) as Doncaster successfully played out time.

Although this was an improvement on the Hayes match, particularly in the second half, Altrincham cannot complain at the result as their woeful first-half performance could have seen them three goals behind. The defeat dropped them down to eighteenth and gave them their worst six-match sequence of the season- just three points. They have now dropped from tenth to eighteenth since their victory over Sutton on 4th March. Not even the trouncing of Northwich, 2-6, by Kettering could bring a smile to the Altrincham fans' faces as they contemplated an away fixture at Scarborough in 48 hours time. The defeat of Forest Green was good news but Woking and Welling's continued revival pose a real threat to both the Cheshire sides in the Conference. Danny Adams was, yet again, named Man of the Match for the home side, though Maamria was the best candidate for the match as whole.