Sutton make their last long trip up north of 2024 this afternoon with a trip to Greater Manchester in the Vanarama National League, and will be looking to secure the double over opponents Altrincham.
The Opposition
The U’s make the trip to an Altrincham team who sit just one place below them, and will be keen to increase the gap on their opponents on the weekend.
Led by manager Phil Parkinson, Altrincham have enjoyed an impressive streak since the former Nantwich Town boss took over in 2017, with the Robins finding themselves in the fifth tier after winning two promotions in Parkinson’s first three seasons.
Having spent their entire history in non-league, Alty had previously bounced around the divisions before Parkinson took over, and they have subsequently managed to establish themselves in the National League having remained in the fifth tier ever since. The club would go on to transition into full time professional status in 2022 for the first time in their history, which would signal the start of a promising rise up the division that would end in a play-off campaign last season, losing to eventual winners Bromley in the play-off semi-final.
Keen to maintain their momentum though, Alty will have been keen to avoid the impact of losing star man Chris Conn-Clarke last summer and brought promising forward Kahrel Reddin in on a free transfer from Stoke City. He would be joined by a handful of National League experienced players who were added to their ranks in the summer, with Tom Crawford, Tyler Golden and Joe Nuttall arriving from Salford City, FC Halifax Town and Oldham Athletic respectively.
The Robins have subsequently kept up their form, and having lost just one of their ten home games this season, currently sit just a point outside the play-off places going into Saturday’s clash.
Recent Form
Wealdstone 3-3 Altrincham
Altrincham 0-0 Macclesfield Town
Altrincham 4-1 Stoke City
Altrincham 3-0 York City
Altrincham 2-1 Aldershot Town
Altrincham 0-4 Manchester United Academy
The Manager
Phil Parkinson
Phil Parkinson has held the role of Altrincham manager since 2017, being appointed on the eve of the last game of the 2016/17 season in which Altrincham had been relegated to the Northern Premier League.
The former player was a junior at Crewe Alexandra and Reading, before spending a year at Port Vale, and later making 200 appearances for Nantwich Town as a player, where he captained the team that won the FA Vase in 2006. He would continue his form with Nantwich into his managerial career as well, leading the Dabbers to promotion from the North West Counties League and UniBond League First Division. He had been in charge at the Swansway Stadium since February 2015, and in that time transformed them from a relegation-threatended club to promotion contenders, as well as guiding Nantwich to the FA Trophy semi-final in 2016.
After departing for Altrincham a year later, Parkinson would enjoy promotion from the Northern Premier League as champions in his first season and reached the National League North play-offs in the 2018/19, before finally winning promotion to the National League via a successful play-off run in 2020. Following another exciting season in 2023/23, which included a run to the semi-final of the FA Trophy, a respectable National League campaign, and a Cheshire Senior Cup final appearance, Parkinson and his assistant Neil Sorvel extended their deals with the club until the end of the 2024/25 season.
One to Watch
Regan Linney
Altrincham significantly increased their goal threat in February 2023 after signing free-scoring striker Regan Linney from FC United of Manchester for an undisclosed fee.
Alty bosses had been monitoring the 26-year old centre forward’s unstoppable form on a regular basis and are delighted to have secured the signature of a player who has been consistently lethal in his four seasons at Broadhurst Park.
Preston-born, he began his career down the road at Bamber Bridge, where, after being fast-tracked through the Academy ranks, he broke into the first team at 17 years old.
He joined FC United at the beginning of July 2019 and immediately hit the ground running as a bustling centre-forward with a flair for taking defenders on and an unerring eye for goal.
Linney has gone on to step up as Alty’s main man this season, and has notched 18 goal contributions in 20 games.
Last Time We Met
Four goals in 14 minutes late in the first half eased Sutton to a victory that saw them score five in the first home league game of the season for the second year running.
For half an hour there was little between the sides and it was Altrincham, last season’s beaten play-off semi finalists, who looked marginally the likelier to break through. Then a mistake from Altrincham defender Jake Cooper, who would endure a nightmare quarter of an hour, was seized on by Josh Coley and from there Sutton didn’t look back, opening up a four goal gap by half time thanks to further strikes from Jayden Harris, Will Davies and Siju Odelusi.
The U’s would then preserve a clean sheet during the second half, before the performance rounded off by a superb Ashley Nadesan header six minutes from time.
Relive the victory here.
Head-to-Head
Sutton United 2-2 Altrincham (09/01/2021)
Altrincham 0-4 Sutton United (17/04/2021)
Sutton United 5-0 Altrincham (17/08/2024)
Played for Both
Ali Smith
Alistair Smith enjoyed a two-year stint at the VBS Community Stadium, which had preceded a season at Altrincham during the 2020/21 campaign.
The Mansfield Town academy product had spent time on loan at a number of clubs, including Loughborough Dynamo, Frickley Athletic and Kettering Town, before joining Altrincham on a temporary deal in November 2020. This would be the last of his loan spells away from Field Mill, with Smith making 11 appearances before signing on a permanent deal in January 2021. He would make a further 30 appearances as a permanent Alty player before returning to the Football League the following summer, becoming one of Sutton’s first signings as a League Two club.
The midfielder would appear 68 times for the U’s and won the Ralph Carr Young Player of the Season award at the end of the 2022/23 campaign, having helped the club achieve a third successive season in the fourth tier after an 11th place finish. This would signal the end of his time in South London, with Smith’s form catching the eye of teams in League One, and he would join Lincoln City ahead of the 2023/24 season following the expiry of his Sutton contract. He has since followed that move up with loan spells at Colchester United and AFC Wimbledon, where he is currently plying his trade.
