Colts vs Carnegie

Colts vs Alpha Data Carnegie M4s

Saturday 20th of Feb 2016

This would be our third and final meeting with Carnegie this season. Our first two games had been away to Carnegie, with some high scoring matches, the first 6-4 and second 5-2, all 6 points going to the Colts. The last game should have been a bit closer score line, if the Carnegie keeper hadn’t let in two goals he should have saved on another day.

We had started to find that opposition were upping their game recently, the curse for beating everyone else in the league and sitting top of the division. We have a big target on our backs.

Carnegie would have a similar team sheet to the last one, with one exception. This player had come onto the field for the second half of our first matchup and scored three of the four goals for his team with drag-flicks into the corner of the net from three penalty corners. He turned up fashionably late again, just after push back, and must have missed the kit email, so would be playing in umpires yellow rather than the white of the rest of his team.

Away we go.

The game started with a frantic pace. Carnegie working hard and stretching out their legs after the car journey from Dunfermline. It was Carnegie who would turn that energy into the first goal of the game, playing the ball down the center of the park and slotting the ball past the onrushing Gibb. 1-0.

The early goal would wake the Colts from their day dreaming funk that they had started the game in. Our midfield began to get organised and started to control the game. The opposition were utilizing their yellow man, playing the majority of their passes through his stick. Waugh and Wood took to man marking him at all times, which neutralized his threat. The teams seemed evenly matched now, with both sides attacking well, but with no reward.

Half time and the score remained 1-0.

We needed an inspirational half time talk. Waugh would focus on pressing the opposition and start to be more positive in our play. We had already put 11 goals past this team so far this season, there was no way they would leave Tipperlinn with a clean sheet today.

We opened up the second half, pilling on the pressure, exploiting both flanks as well as the middle. A well-won penalty corner gave Fraser Heigh an opportunity to drag the ball into the corner, which he did. 1-1.

The next goal of the game saw the boys in Maroon take the lead. Breaking though the middle the Colts used pace and precision passing, resulting in Roddy Craig striking the ball from the left of the D, into the bottom right corner. 2-1.

Craig would start to cause the opposition some major problems, running at players and beating them more often than not. He found his bum on the ground a number of times, but kept getting up and moving forward. As a reward for his play he would score our third goal assisted by Heigh. 3-1.

The umpires would need to call the captains in, as some of the tackling was becoming a bit too solid.

Carnegie started to press more often with the yellow man dropping a little deeper, trying to find some space. He would not find the break through that he was looking for, though he did have a couple of PC’s come close, but nothing the solid defence couldn’t cope with.

The game would end 3-1 to the good. A much improved second half performance, with all positions in the team producing some great hockey.

A well deserved ‘Man of the Match” goes to Roddy Craig. Not just for his two goals but the way he kept on playing even when the opposition were giving him a physical time.

See some pictures from the game in the “Colts vs Carnegie” photo album. Thanks to Carly and Jodie for being the photographers for the day.