Hockey sides' tough test
Published 25 Nov 2011 13:30
LOMOND played against St Aloysius' College on Saturday with nearly every hockey player involved.
The first XI travelled to Stepps and faced a strong squad of players. The home team took the lead in the first half from a well-taken open play goal with Lomond's defence not marking closely enough in the circle.
In the second half, Lomond piled on the pressure and, from a penalty corner, Caleigh Bradbury passed the ball onto Rachel Mansley who slotted the ball into the goal for the equaliser.
Both teams created more scoring opportunities, but St Aloysius managed to move the ball past
the Lomond GK.
At 2-1, Lomond started to tire and lost another goal from a well-struck penalty corner. For the last five minutes of the match, Lomond attacked the game trying to close the gap, but St Aloysius' denied all attempts deserving their victory. Morven Thompson and Katrina Wylie worked tirelessly throughout.
The second XI, on blaes, took some time to settle to the softer more unpredictable surface. The first half was fairly even with Megan Hastings playing an effective game from
midfield. Kirsty Cordner scored an attacking goal when she took on the goalkeeper and slotted the ball into the net. In the second half, St Aloysius increased the pressure in an attempt to equalise.
Emalie Halifax played extremely well as sweeper and Robyn Bannerman was also brilliant in defence and managed to absorb the pressure.
St Aloysius did find the target at the very end of the match, but too late to be included - the 20 minutes having just expired. Lomond won 1-0.
The third XI match was fairly even in the first half and Lomond's midfield worked hard to build up play to the forwards.
Anna Currie, Alice Hornsby and Amanda Hagen were all able to pick up the ball in the attacking area, but were unable to keep possession in the circle.
St Aloysius defended well and scored from a well-executed attacking move from their strikers. Gaby Stockton made numerous saves in the second half and it was Morna King who was able to clear the ball from midfield to build up the attack.
Lomond's defence worked effectively throughout with Louise McCollum, Kirsty Rogers, Hannah Johnson and Alexandra Barclay making crucial tackles. Unfortunately, St Aloysius' managed to score a second goal before the end of the match.
Morna King was voted player of the match.
The third year team, under-strength as two major players were involved in a district netball tournament, defended well but St Aloysius proved their domination on the pitch.
Lucy Metcalf made countless saves in goals and Katherine McPhie and Heather Cullen stood out throughout the match. The whole team worked extremely hard to defend the match with Iona Hamilton controlling the defence.
Unfortunately, Lomond lost 3-0.
The second year teams were at East End Park and the opposition seemed to have stepped up a gear since the last encounter.
St Aloysius had most of the attack and through good passing and movement, easily found their players.
Lomond was slow to the ball and began to panic when it was difficult to find players. St Aloysius scored on numerous occasions from goal-mouth scrambles and although Katrina Cameron, Annie Muggoch and Lucy Dunn worked so hard, they were overwhelmed by numbers.
Commendably, Jodie Smith constantly pushed up with the attack and still managed to get back to defend when required.
The 4-0 scoreline did not reflect the game. Lomond had created goal scoring opportunities but were unsuccessful.
The second year B team were up against a superior team but did put their heart and soul into the match. The players relentlessly defended the goal.
Sarah Rijsdijk (in goals) played an excellent game and although the players tried to move into spaces, St Aloysius managed to mark the girls very effectively.
The first year A team travelled to Stepps to play in a seven-a-side encounter across the pitch.
Both teams drew all their matches with Rowan Clark and Zoe Burden giving Lomond the necessary goals in the 1-1 draws.
The matches were a little too short, but Morven Rowan was presented with a tie from the visiting school for her contribution to both matches. The B team lost 1-0 in an exciting encounter at Lomond School astro-turf. Kara Bruce played exceptionally well for the first years and although the team had their chances, they were unable to score.
The Transitus teams were a mixture of T1 and T2 players this week. St Aloysius proved too strong, but the girls continued to work hard throughout the match. Wallis Jamieson, Cara Cawley and Molly Keating all stood out in these matches and despite losing created opportunities for their teams.
Lomond did not score any goals but an excellent effort from all.
This article appeared in Helensburgh Advertiser 24 Nov 11
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