3s End Season on a high

Watsonians 3s 3- Kinross 1

On a glorious April afternoon, the Men's 3s headed up to Kinross for their final match of the 2014/15 season. It had already been a successful campaign with the 3s safe in the knowledge that no matter what the result on the final day, they would finish 5th, safely in the top half of East Division 1. Therefore the pressure was off and the mood in the warm up was jovial and light-hearted.

However, the opposition were in the midst of a relegation dog-fight so if the men in maroon were to secure a win to round off the season and avoid their 3rd loss in a row they would have to fight for it - this would be no stroll in the sunshine.

The game started at a high tempo, with Watsonians dominating the ball early and finding a dangerous outlet in Calum Watkins down the right flank which would be a theme throughout the game. However, once the youthful Kinross side had got their bearings and settled into the match it was they who truly threatened first with a couple of probing efforts. Their pressure paid off with a couple of shorts corners resulting eventually in an excellent reverse stick finish from a Kinross midfielder only for the goal to be ruled out for crossing at the top of the D. However, less than 30 seconds after this reprieve Kinross won the ball back again and played some quick passes into the Watson's D for their forward to slot the ball home and make it 1-0 (again).

This spurred Watsonians on though and only a couple of minutes later they got the break that their early pressure deserved. From a free hit outside the D, the ball was laid back to Rich Gray who pinged the ball flat into the danger area. An excellent deflection from Ian Duncan put the ball into the path of Harrison Gilmore who's rapid instincts and quick turn in front of the keeper allowed him to slot the ball home to make it 1-1.

Back on level terms, it wasn't long before Watson's were in the Kinross D again, with Conor Small and Calum Watkins (two schoolboys who were playing their last matches for Watsonians) linking up well down the right hand side - as they did for the whole match - allowing Calum Watkins to drive to the byline and fire the ball across the goalmouth. This gave the 3s top scorer this season Sandy Hendry a glorious opportunity to finish from about 3 inches out however this proved too much for him. Far too easy a finish for Sandy "Flair Goals Only" Hendry. He would much rather hit the ball against the Kinross defender's foot and score his goal from the penalty spot - his first ever P flick in senior men's hockey - to give Watsonians a 2-1 lead.

Then just before half time, the constant pressure on the Kinross D finally drew a short corner opportunity and Calum Watkins scored to make it 3-1 with his first ever successful conversion of a drag flick! So into half-time and Watson's had a 2 goal lead.

In the second half, Kinross came out flying, trying desperately to get back in the game and claim a valuable result to help secure their safety. However, the Watsonians central midfield pairing of Duncan Bell and Stuart Tilston gave them very little space to operate in and when the ball did break through, the defence stood firm with Tony Allan in particular halting any forward progress from the opposition in robust and decisive fashion. Former Watsonian and now Kinross player Simon "roamer" Williams lived up to his name as he crept further and further forward - making darting runs all over the park and causing confusion several times in the Watsonians defence before being smothered in a blanket of maroon shirts. This was very much the story of the second half and the entire Watson's team played with a huge amount of energy and relentless pressure to stifle out the game and keep the final result at 3-1.

A very mature second half performance to secure a win and ensure the season for Watsonians 3s ended on a high! Roll on next season!