Daish sees red as Fleet crash

10:14am Monday 6th October 2008

Altrincham 2-0 Ebbsfleet United

THE last game in which the Fleet failed to score away at Lewes was also one of their poorest performances of the season.

Somehow it was outdone by Saturday's clash with Altrincham where the visitors simply failed to turn up.

The in-form home side were quicker, more eager, cleverer and better composed on the ball than an out-of-sorts Ebbsfleet who, to any neutral observer, would surely not have been considered play-off material.

It was a second outing for the new green strip and lining up to show it off were Dean Pooley, making his first start of the season in place of the injured Sacha Opinel, and Peter Hawkins who got the nod ahead of James Smith because of Paul McCarthy's suspension.

Jamie Hand wore the skipper's armband for the first time and while his encouraging roar at the kick-off promised a barnstorming performance, his teammates delivered anything but.

Fleet nemesis Lee Elam went close on 15 minutes, forcing Lance Cronin into a smart save with a shot from the edge of the box, but the home side went one better on 27 minutes.

Darius Charles was harshly adjudged to have fouled Chris Senior and Colin Little swept home the resulting free-kick.

Altrincham's twin strike force of Little and Senior have always delivered and the pair were causing plenty of anxiety among the makeshift Fleet back four who were constantly hard-pressed, with precious little easing of the pressure from their colleagues further up the pitch.

On 40 minutes, however, the Fleet had a golden chance to restore parity.

Stacy Long started a great move, weaving inside Shaun Densmore and Chris Lane before delivering a pass to Michael Gash.

But as his shot bobbled, Stuart Coburn was able to save.

Having survived this little scare, Alty killed off the game on the stroke of half-time.

Mark McGregor launched a long through ball which Senior raced onto, outpaced and rounded Hawkins and let fly with a diagonal shot wide of Cronin and into the back of the net.

Any thoughts Liam Daish might spur the Fleet to greater heights in the second half were dealt a blow when the Fleet boss was despatched to the stands after an altercation in the tunnel at half-time.

A toothless display resulted in a non-event of a second half, which allowed Altrincham to coast to victory.

Indeed, the home side could perhaps have added to their tally had Dale Johnson and Robbie Lawton shots been better directed.

Ebbsfleet weren't without their chances as they enjoyed better possession, particularly on 50 minutes when Long beat two defenders and played in Hand whose shot was just wide of the post.

Ricky Shakes and Luke Moore also combined on 66 minutes, but Moore's shot deflected off Neil Barrett as the Alty defence for once looked vulnerable.

Long, having one of his more influential games of late, also shot just wide on 81 minutes before making way for Kezie Ibe.

The visitors looked as weary as their supporters by the end of the game, with both groups clearly longing for home as they contemplated their first defeat to Altrincham since 1981.

But with another game coming up for the Fleet in just over 48 hours, and a Sunday training session ahead of them, Liam Daish must hope that his squad's restorative powers can prompt them to greater heights come this evening.

One thing's for sure, they certainly can't reach any lower.

Ebbsfleet United: Cronin, Ricketts, Charles, Pooley, Hawkins (Stone 90), Barrett, Hand, Long (Ibe 81), Slatter (Shakes 57), Moore, Gash. Subs not used: Mott, Smith. Att: 967.

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