Football: Robins seeking a route back to the glory days

NON-LEAGUE NOTEBOOK

THE KNOWLEDGE that Macclesfield Town were playing a Nationwide League fixture against Manchester City last weekend must have been painful for Altrincham supporters, whose team lost at Worksop Town in the Premier Division of the UniBond League on the same afternoon.

It is not so many years since Altrincham, and not Macclesfield, were the top non-League club not just in Cheshire but in the country. Now, though, Macc have made their dreams come true while Alty are in disarray.

Altrincham won the Alliance Premier League (now the Football Conference) in 1980 and 1981. They missed out on election to the Football League by just one vote. In the same era the Robins had two FA Trophy triumphs and regular appearances in at least the third round of the FA Cup.

The 1996-97 season, however, ended in relegation from the Conference. Alty finished in a steady eighth place in the UniBond last term and, with big investment in player recruitment during the summer, there were high hopes for a championship challenge this season.

At present, those hopes look misplaced. Tuesday's 2-1 defeat at Marine has left Altrincham in 20th place in the Premier Division, with just two clubs beneath them. After eight league games they are still seeking their first win. The threat of relegation to the First Division, and embarrassing local derbies against the likes of Trafford and Flixton, looms large.

Already some of the big-name summer signings by the manager, Bernard Taylor, have departed. Brian Kilcline, the centre-half who once won the FA Cup with Coventry and helped Halifax to the Conference title last season, has gone. So, too, has the player-coach Nigel Gleghorn, the former Stoke and Ipswich midfielder.

A recent recruit who is still at the club is the former Manchester City and Wales goalkeeper, Andy Dibble. He has been the recipient of stick from the fans, after letting in some sloppy goals. Another experienced player who has yet to live up to his reputation this term is Keith Russell, the ex-Blackpool striker.

Starting with tomorrow's home game against their fellow strugglers Spennymoor, Taylor and his team need points sooner rather than later. To help him, Alty's secretary, Graham Heathcote, a stalwart player from the 1970s and 80s, has resumed his coaching career.