|
OPPOSITION |
Rickmansworth
3 Away Astro L 5-2 Andy Latham; Adam Pigden |
|
After a narrow defeat in their previous fixture, Potters Bar had another tough fixture against a Rickmansworth 3rd XI side who had been relegated from the division above last season. Bar were again missing some of their regulars, but welcomed Spencer Randon for his first game for the club. Andy Bye and Adam Pigden also played their first games of the season. From the push back, Rickmansworth 3's were soon into their stride, passing the ball well in midfield. After conceding a couple of short corners, the Bar midfield got in gear and won a couple of their own. From an Andy Bye injection, Andy Latham smashed the ball into the far corner of the goal in customary style, giving Bar the lead. After this, Bar were in confident mood with Toby Seaman and Owen Hughes linking well down the left wing. One of their moves freed Owen, who passed to Adam Pigden in the D. Under pressure, Adam pushed the ball past the opposing keeper only for it to hit the post. Things took a turn for the worse for Bar when Toby picked up a painful blow to the nose and, with slight bleeding, left the pitch for a few minutes. With no substitutes present, Bar were down to 10 men and Rickmansworth turned on the pressure forcing more short corners. At one of these, Bar left a man free on the post, and he was only too happy to slot the ball home when it came his way. After this setback, Bar found some space on the right and Daniel Adams continued to show much promise in only his second game of hockey. He linked well with Chris Wood and showed no fear in tackling opposition players. As the half wore on, a hit from Bar just outside the opposition's circle evaded everybody and hit the left hand post before rolling agonisingly along the goal line. With Andy Latham bearing down, a Rickmansworth defender was just able to clear before Andy could get the tap in. Unfortunately Rickmansworth won another penalty corner late in the half and passed the ball to the right before shooting under the diving keeper's body. At half time, the match could go either way, with Rickmansworth 2-1 ahead. Fielding 11 players again, Bar started the second half strongly, and from the centre pass, drove towards the Rickmansworth goal down the left wing. But as soon as this attack broke down, Rickmansworth countered and scored their third goal. As Bar pushed hard to get back in the match, the midfield began to tire, and the forward line began to suffer from injuries sustained in the first half. Adam Pigden, battling hard against a competent defence and his lack of match fitness, pulled a goal back, slotting the ball coolly past the keeper. With over 20 minutes to go, Bar were right back in the match. Sadly, Bar were leaving gaps in their midfield as their tiredness grew and they pushed for more goals. Chris Wood was running well with the ball, and Paul Brady was putting in another great all-round performance, but Rickmansworth had little trouble in putting Bar back under pressure when they won the ball - and with 10 minutes to go Rickmansworth scored again, following another short corner. A few minutes from the end, Bar were again faced with a concerted Rickmansworth attack. Alan Field, in valiantly trying to keep the ball out of the Potters Bar goal, played the ball illegally with the back of the stick. The umpire had spotted this and confirmed afterwards that, had Rickmansworth not scored, he would have awarded Rickmansworth a penalty flick. But it was academic as Rickmansworth scored from the top of the D playing advantage. As the final whistle went, Bar were disappointed as they had played well and the score line did not reflect a closely fought match. But Rickmansworth deserved to win and Bar are still looking to find their feet in this division.
|
|
|
|
|