Alsager Town v AFC Liverpool, 16th February 2013


The third round of the League Cup saw us drawn away at Alsager Town. Now into our second season of playing at North West Counties Premier Division level, our record against the Bullets was generally good considering we had won the two league games played at the Wood Park Stadium.
We took the lead on 6 minutes, after a lovely worked move down the left led to Liam Loughlin firing into the roof of the net. After that, the game was scrappy at times. Our goalkeeper Sean Lake was rarely tested.
The match experience was at times often about the banter battle between the AFC Rattlers and the Alsager Ultras on the terraces. The Ultras' chants always seemed to me to be in good spirit. Indeed, a few of our senior supporters were more than happy to stand close to them throughout the first half. What was especially pleasing was their "Justice for the 96" chant.
This match also embraced the presence of a groundhopper from Nottingham, who I spoke to briefly at the end of the game. Having been to a match in Alton, Hampshire the previous night, he told me that he did not want too long a drive that day. I reckon he still would have had a four hour round trip!
Our dominance was completed by a late Steve Jones penalty which cemented the victory.  The penalty came about following a good move which involved a back heel from Stevie Williams and a Bucko assist, which led to Stevie W being tripped. 
After the other Stevie put daylight between us and the Bullets with the penalty, we did have a couple of opportunities to win more emphatically.  One of these opportunities saw a player running in from the right (possibly Daniel Hand or Danny Donut), spurn the chance of playing in one of three players who could have had a run in on the keeper. Still, it was job done.

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