Harrogate Town 4 Altrincham FC 0: Sulphurites pass 'mental' test against 10 men
Simon Weaver was thrilled to see his Harrogate Town players pass a significant “mental” test as they put 10-man Altrincham to the sword at Wetherby Road.
Second-half goals from Will McGowan, Morgan Williams, Michael Craig and Rohan Vaughan earned the Sulphurites a 4-0 National League victory on Saturday afternoon after their visitors had lost Reuben Lopata-White to a 13th-minute red card.
The last time that they came up against a team who had been reduced in numbers by the referee, they somehow ended up suffering what Weaver described as an “embarrassing” 3-0 defeat at nine-man Carlisle United.
And, although it did take some time for Town to make their numerical advantage count, their manager was pleased to see his team “put to bed” last month’s chastening experience up in Cumbria.
“You get a leg up with a man being sent off, and we made the extra player count.
"I think that’s one of the tests that has been passed today. It’s put it to bed, the Carlisle situation, where a man gets sent off, two in fact that time, where we got distracted by the whole controversy of the occasion.
"Today, it was calmer, and we kept passing the ball and probing, trying to wear them out. Eventually, the gaps did open up for us to penetrate and hurt them.
"It was natural to feel a little bit of apprehension because we were here again, against a team who’d had a man sent off. We had to get over that hurdle and because the first goal didn’t come easily, it was a real test a mental one, more than anything.
"But the lads did work hard, and it’s never easy beating a team with 10 men when they sit deep and there is less space to play in behind. But, to our credit everyone kept their composure and the chances eventually came our way, which we dispatched very well.”
Altrincham were reduced to 10 men early on after Lopata-White threw himself into a challenge with Ellis Taylor, which the Town man was lucky to walk away from seemingly unscathed.
The hosts struggled to break their opponents down despite seeing plenty of the ball for the remainder of the first half, but eventually made the breakthrough on 52 minutes when McGowan swept home Taylor’s low cross from the left.
Harrogate were then indebted to goalkeeper Luke Hutchinson, who produced a fine finger-tip save in the 62nd minute to deny Lucas Weaver to keep his side in front.
The significance of that moment was underlined less than 60 seconds later as Town doubled their advantage through Williams, who fired an excellent right-footed strike into the far corner of the net from 18 yards out.
Craig then put the result beyond any doubt on 84 minutes when he let Sam Dreyer’s long pass drop over his shoulder before cracking a sweet half-volley in off the underside of the cross-bar.
A gloss was then added to the score-line deep in stoppage time as substitute Vaughan reacted quickest inside the box following a corner to steer home a clinical first-time finish.
Saturday’s victory keeps Town second in the National League standings, three points ahead of Southend United, and now 10 behind leaders Boreham Wood, who dropped points away at Yeovil.