Hayes & Yeading United lost for the sixth time in nine home games as bottom side Altrincham came to London and deservedly returned to the North-West with all three points courtesy of a late Shaun Densmore penalty.

Manager Garry Haylock started with the same XI that sneaked a win at Poole the previous week while Charlie Wassmer and new keeper Niki-Lee Bulmer replaced Elliott Buchanan and Adam Green on the bench.

The visitors started the game well on a pitch that appeared to have heavy rain at one end but not the other come kick off. With 11 minutes on the clock a cross from the left by Michael Twiss saw Wes Baynes rise highest but his slight touch only sent the ball across the box with no in-coming team-mate available to find the final touch. Less than a minute later Baynes free-kick from the right side of the United area picked out an unmarked Matt Somner at the far post, his downward header being blocked by Bradley Pritchard's chest on the line before he hacked the ball to safety.

United finally found some forward creativity around the 20 minute mark when first Andy Yiadom fired a volley that Robbie Williams did well to deflect away for a corner and then minutes later what was probably to be United's best move of the game saw Jake Hyde swing a perfect ball from halfway over the head of the last defender into Yiadom's run, he crossed low to Michael Malcolm on the edge of the area and his first time effort was inches wide of the upright.

United were struggling to defend Baynes' dead balls and ten minutes from the break he was just off target from 20 yards and then just before the break he again picked out Somner at the far post, this time his header looped up and just over Lee Harrison's goal landing on the roof of the net. In between times a neat exchange at the other end between Jamie Hand and Pritchard created an opening for Hyde whose driven shot was well saved by Coburn and when the ball squirmed from his grip Andy Milne was on hand to clear.

First chance of the half fell again to the visitors as Somner yet again got his head to a Baynes dead-ball, this time a corner, the ball looping over Harrison only for Lewis Ferrell to head it off the line before skipper Peter Holmes finished the clearance.

With twenty minutes remaining Harrison had to be at his sharpest when a Clee cross from the left was part headed away but only to Ryan Brown who hit a volley that the United stopper managed to push around the post. A couple of United chances came quickly after this as first Holmes volleyed over and then a minute later Hyde nicked the ball from Marc Joseph in the Altrincham area before making space and firing low across goal but wide of the far post.

The killer blow came in the 81st minute and was of United's own making. Clee not for the first time ran at the home defence on the left and as he entered the box Adam Bygrave hung out a trailing leg and needlessly brought down the winger giving referee Kinseley little choice but to award a spot kick. Densmore stepped up and despite a good effort by Harrison the kick was perfectly in the corner and the visitors took the lead.

Three minutes later Bygrave got his head to a Holmes free-kick at the other end and Coburn touched his looping effort over the bar (pictured left) but that was really it for United as Altrincham kept the ball in their forward half to see out time as United were consigned to another home defeat against a low ranked side.

Report by Kevin Watts.


Photos by Ray Peploe.


United Man of the Match: Lee Brown.


Highlights courtesy of FC Video here.