Yeovil Town fell to their first defeat in three matches as a late goal from Lewis Baines gave Altrincham all three points at Moss Lane.
Mark Cooper stuck with the same starting eleven that beat AFC Fylde a week earlier, but things quickly unravelled after a couple of early injuries disrupted the flow.
Yeovil started brightly, creating early chances through the long throws of Charlie Cooper. Twice the ball was flicked on into dangerous areas, but both times Altrincham goalkeeper Caleb Ansen was alert to gather.
The first setback came when Alex Whittle took a stray elbow to the head, picking up a nasty cut in the process. As he received treatment, the Glovers were briefly down to ten men, and Altrincham nearly capitalised as Elliot Osborne fired over from distance.
Whittle was eventually replaced by Ryan McLean, while Charlie Cooper also came off with a knock, making way for Harry Kite.
The hosts took advantage just moments later. Regan Linney burst into the box from the left and forced a good save from Aidan Stone. The danger wasn’t cleared though, and Tom Crawford recycled the ball, floating it to the back post where Tylor Golden arrived to finish and give Altrincham the lead.
But Yeovil responded well. Finn Cousin-Dawson, now on long throw duty, launched the ball into the box. It was only partially cleared to Josh Sims, who lifted it back into the danger area. Ciaran McGuckin flicked it on, and Frankie Terry was in the right place to poke it past Ansen to level the score.
Before the break, Yeovil had a golden chance to take the lead. Otis Khan whipped in a free-kick which found McGuckin, whose glancing header was destined for the far corner until Ansen got across well to tip it behind.
Altrincham had one more go themselves before the whistle, with Linney again proving a handful, but his shot didn’t trouble Stone.
Josh Sims was replaced by Jake Wannell at half-time as the Glovers made their third change of the day.
Early in the second half, Khan had another opportunity inside the box after a defensive mix-up, but his shot was straight at the keeper. Soon after, Greenslade came on for McGuckin and immediately got involved, pressing high and forcing mistakes. After one interception, he fed Dom Bernard, who sent in a teasing cross that just missed everyone in the middle.
But Altrincham began to regain control, and Linney once again led the charge. He forced a big save from Stone with a close-range effort and then dragged another shot wide after getting in behind down the left.
Yeovil made their final change as Marcel Lavinier replaced Khan, but the momentum stayed with the home side. Cousin-Dawson, Lavinier and Bernard all picked up yellow cards in a tense final ten minutes as Yeovil tried to hang on.
The pressure told with two minutes of normal time remaining. A corner from the left dropped kindly to Lewis Baines, who fired a low shot through the crowd and into the bottom corner to make it 2–1.
Altrincham nearly added a third in stoppage time when substitute Alex Newby struck the post, but it didn’t matter in the end.
The final whistle confirmed Yeovil’s first away defeat since 8 March. They’ll be looking to bounce back when Oldham Athletic visit Huish Park next Saturday.
