Horfield, Home – 1sts
16-1 Chris (5), Rob (5), Josh (2), Donna (1), James (1), Joey (1), Sian (1), Amy, Angharad, Kat
Some impressive performances against Bec and Cardiff City in recent games had possibly obscured the fact that Dragons had gone 4 games without a win, and if they realistic ambitions towards challenging for the league, then they needed to win against Horfield. The Bristol side had lost several key players from the team that finished second in the EKL last year, but they still had an experienced side. For the Dragons, Joey and Angharad made their first starts for the first team in place of the absent Remco and Pam.
Early on, the Dragons struggled badly in attack, with both ends struggling to find fluency through missed passes, and bad decision making, with a large number of shots being taken without a collect. Fortunately, there were no such problems in defence, where Horfield were barely able to put up a shot, and this gave a basis for the attacks to find their feet, with Chris and Rob taking care of the scoring, initially with 3 long shots, then 2 runners for a half-time score of 5-0.
Amy on in place of Angharad was the only change in personnel made at half-time, but a change in tactics proved crucial as the Dragons began to draw Horfield out to exploit the space behind them. First Chris’s intelligent pass from the side found Josh in acres of space for a running in shot, before 2 superb long shots from Rob extended the lead to 8. After a series of shots had been successfully collected, Chris put a loose ball away, before Horfield finally got on the score sheet from the penalty spot. Big gaps were now evident in the Horfield defence, and the goals were now coming rapidly. Rob got his 5th goal, before nfinally allowing someone else at his end to score, Sian scoring a runner. Chris also took his tally to 5 from the sideline, before Josh scored from short range. Joey and Donna both got on the scoresheet with shots around the basket, before James finished the scoring in his first attack since replacing Josh.
A final score of 16-1, was a fair reflection of the superb defence that the Dragons showed throughout, and some very good attacking in the second half. Joey, Amy and Angharad all bridged the gap from the second division admirably, particularly in winning the ball, while Chris and man of the match Rob dominated the scoring, thanks to some selfless support work from the girls. Horfield never gave up, and showed their customary excellent sportsmanship, but ultimately were never able to move or pass quickly enough to find a way through the Dragons defence.
Thanks to Susan for reffing.
