Chorley 2, Altrincham 0

Two first half goals settled this run-of-the-mill encounter in Chorley's favour and took the Magpies' to the 50-points' mark in the National League North.
Jack Sampson.Jack Sampson.
Jack Sampson.

The win over bottom side Altrincham at Victory Park cemented their position inthird place in the table and cut leaders Fylde’s advantage to six points as a result of the Coasters’ unexpected defeat at lowly Curzon Ashton.

The highlight for manager Matt Jansen and the home fans was an eye-catching debut by Jack Sampson, signed on Thursday on loan from Macclesfield Town.

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Not only did Sampson open his account with a fine headed goal after just 12 minutes but he also showed both strength and skill on the ball, holding it up well to bring colleagues into play.

After a brief opening flurry from the visitors, Chorley went ahead from an Adam Blakeman corner, Sampson rising above the defence to flick a neat header into the roof of the net. Next Dale Whitham tried his luck with a speculative 30-yard volley which rattled the post.

Soon afterwards great play by Sampson close to the by-line resulted in an inviting pull-back to Will Beesley but with a clear sight of goal, the full back inexplicably hesitated to shoot first-time and the chance was lost.

It mattered little as Chorley quickly recycled the half-clearance and a long diagonal ball in from the right was met by Jake Cottrell with a flying header which gave Deasy no chance on 26 minutes.

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After the break, the Magpies were slow into their stride, allowing Altrincham to come more and more into the game. But for all their extra possession, the Robins could not open up a Chorley defence playing with its customary resolve.

CHORLEY : Branagan, Challoner, Beesley (Roscoe,87), Leather, Charnock, Jordan (Teague,23), Blakeman, Whitham, Carver (McDaid,60), Sampson, Cottrell. Unused subs. O’Keefe, Azam.