League

Huyton
Spectators: 5000 (Terracing: 4000, Seating: 1000, VIP seats: 0) The mood of the audience was pleasant when Doug Plant made the kick off which started today's match. In the 4th match minute, Alton was awarded a freekick, the ball was picked up by Kris Fowler to maneuver through the defense. In the 6th minute Martyn Hickson shot on, it seemed, an open goal, but Lennie Webster saw the ball coming and threw himself on it before it passed the goal line. With a little luck, Alton's Marty Borrowdale got control of the ball when Pete Corcoran tried to sneak it across the goal line. 10 minutes into the match, Martyn Hickson had an open shot that he just couldn't miss and scored to the right of Lennie Webster. Huyton United's manager could be seen yelling to the referee that Martyn Hickson was offside, but the referee ignored the protest. 0-1. After a rather tough play, Huyton United's Sonny Dickens got a free kick in the 13th minute. After having played for 17 minutes, Doug Plant managed to get in a good position for a shot on goal. Alton's supporters crossed their fingers, but Doug Plant was, after a quick turn that froze the defenders, out of balance and shot the ball just to the right of the goal. After 18 played minutes Huyton United got a freekick which was hit by Mark Strickland. Martyn Hickson sent away a hard shot on goal in the 23rd minute, but the ball hit the crossbar and went out. A very good chance for a goal. 26 minutes into the game, Glen Hirst was given a yellow card after he appeared to trip an opposing player. Alton's manager was livid on the sidelines, but the referee was unmoved and gave Huyton United the free kick. A collision led to Huyton United getting a freekick after 27 minutes play. Toby Keane hit a great ball. The crowd rose to their feet as Zak Croxford kicked a wonderful shot that went in to the left of a diving Marty Borrowdale. That made the score 1-1 in the 32 minute of play. Marty Borrowdale showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Zak Croxford, who was totally free with the ball in the 37th minute. Marty Borrowdale stood for a superb save when he managed to get hold of Zak Croxford's shot from short distance in the 38th minute. In the 42nd minute, Martyn Hickson got an opportunity to score, but he didn't get a solid hit on the ball and ended up kicking it wide of the goal. An unexpectedly hard shot by Doug Plant in the 44th minute of play forced Huyton United's goalkeeper Lennie Webster to throw himself to the left, to be able to save the ball. After the first half the score was level. The break gave the players a chance to catch their breath, whilst the managers went over the tactics with them again.

Both teams looked relatively alert before the second half when the referee blew his whistle to tell Zak Croxford to make the kick off. Pete Corcoran received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 52nd minute. Marty Borrowdale tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. If Glen Hirst had kept his shot down it would have been a goal in the 54th minute. The ball went over the crossbar and out instead. Zak Croxford sent away a hard shot on goal in the 56th minute, but the ball went just over the crossbar and out. A very good chance. Doug Plant received a nice pass in the box and took a hard shot in the 61st minute. Lennie Webster tensed up and prepared to dive, but the shot went over the goal with him having to interfere. Marty Borrowdale showed his good apprehension of the play when he made a fantastic save on a shot from Zak Croxford, who was totally free with the ball in the 64th minute. Lennie Webster made an important save on a dangerous shot by Martyn Hickson in the 69th minute. In the 76th minute, Zak Croxford left the goalkeeper for dead before tapping the ball into the right side of the net. The Huyton United fans were clearly happy with the effort and the scoreboard reflected the new score: 2-1. Lennie Webster acted impressively in front of the goal and made a superb save when he, in the 89th minute, took the ball on the long shot from Glyn Doona. Glen Hirst was shown his second yellow card after 94 minutes, following a rather ugly tackle on opponent. That was the end of his participation in the match. After 95 played minutes Alton got a freekick which was hit by Glen Hirst. The crowd rose to their feet and cheered when the referee blew the final whistle. Huyton United had won after a very even match.