ALTRINCHAM'S players took their pre-season goal tally to 20 with another emphatic win but still incurred the wrath of manager Phil Parkinson on Tuesday night.

Free-scoring Alty followed up Saturday's impressive 4-2 humbling of National League North Bradford Park Avenue with a 4-0 scoreline at Winsford, all the goals coming in the first half.

But Parkinson, who earlier announced Jake Moult as Alty skipper in place of Shaun Densmore, was distinctly unimpressed.

"It's not easy being a player under me because I ask them not only to win but to play a certain way," he said.

"We ticked one of the boxes, but there were too many who did not perform the way I want them to.

"Too many, particularly at 4-0 up, probably took their foot off the gas and took it a bit too light-heartedly, but I won't accept that. I won't allow standards to drop one jot.

"I just felt we didn't retain possession the way we should have done, and that is a big part of our game.

"That was our worst performance so far for me, and they've had a little bit of a rocket up the backside.

"It may sound a bit harsh after we've won 4-0, but you have to put it in perspective.

"We've got players who should be playing at Conference North level, in my opinion, and they haven't hit the levels they showed in previous games.

"That's not acceptable, and some of them have made my decisions quite easy for Saturday at Trafford because the line-up there will be pretty much what I'd go into the season with."

Explaining the decision to appoint long-serving midfielder Moult as skipper, Parkinson added: "I just think he is a true leader, someone who is Altrincham to the core.

"I do like a central player to be my captain as much as possible.

"I know Dens has been captain here a long, long time, but it's just a little thing I've got about the captaincy. I know I can rely on Dens, if called upon."