Alfreton Town 3 FC Halifax Town 0: Halifax runs drags on as Speight hits double

Town were second best for most of the match and found the hosts’ front pairing of John Akinde and Jake Speight too hot to handle in blustery conditions.

Akinde set up a brace for Speight before grabbing the third as Alfreton ran out comfortable winners to overtake the Shaymen in the Skrill Premier table.

Aspin said: “It was a really poor performance, I’m very disappointed.

“We knew what to expect from Alfreton, we knew we were in for a battle.

“But we didn’t compete well enough in defensive areas and have away some poor goals.”

Town actually started the game quite brightly, with Lee Gregory firing over from inside the box, but Alfreton soon took command when Akinde nodded down a long ball into Speight’s path and the former Bradford striker finished past Matt Glennon via Simon Ainge’s deflection.

Town built up a head of steam after that, with Lois Maynard going close and Ainge forcing a fine save from Ross Atkins with a vicious shot from a corner.

But Speight doubled his tally before the break when the same combination saw Akinde meet a corner at the far post and his partner nod home from close range.

The result was put beyond doubt a few minutes after the restart when Akinde grabbed a deserved goal with a tap-in from five yards out moments after Speight had been denied his hat-trick by a good save from Glennon at his near post.

Alfreton: Atkins, Wood, Westwood, Law, Shaw, Bradley, Speight, Fenton, McGrath, J Akinde, Rowe-Turner. Unused substitutes: Franklin, Wylde, Meadows, McFadzean, S Akinde.

Halifax: Glennon, Toulson, Ainge, Roberts, Lowe, Smith (Worthington 50), Pearson, Maynard, McManus (Holsgrove 57)}, Gardner (Wilson 79), Gregory. Unused substitutes: Senior, McReady.

Referee: P Bankes (Merseyside).

Man of the match: Lois Maynard.