Halifax 2nds sealed their progress through to the semi finals with an 11-1 demolition of Goodricke 2nds.
James 1sts topped the group and continued their 100% record as they enjoyed a by against Vanbrugh, who failed to field a full side. James will be one of the teams to beat in the knockout stages. Meanwhile Langwith 1sts cruised to a comfortable 9-1 victory over Derwent 2nds to go out of the cup on a high.
Halifax put in one of their most impressive performances to date, firing in eleven to prove their credentials as potential cup winners. They had two goals denied early on; an unfortunate James McNeill lifted the ball over a defender’s stick each time, an offence in college hockey.
Goodricke had their own chances in the first half; Tom Merriman was a veritable vision for Goodricke, stopping many of Halifax’s assaults on goal. Goodricke squandered chances simply by not being as quick as the Halifax team. Nick Finill and James McNeill were on loose balls like lightning, whilst Graeme Osborn scored an admirable seven goals, even though he could have had more if he had not managed to hit the post on four occasions.
Goodricke scraped back one goal through a determined attack, which culminated in a perfect sweep from Ben Crawley. They couldn’t match this feat a second time, and the match closed with the score 11-1 to Halifax.
Langwith put in a top notch performance against Derwent 2nds, dominating throughout in a game marred by a serious knee injury to Chris Hopkins.
Charlie Williams scored twice in the early stages to hand the men in yellow the initiative. Derwent attained a foothold in the match as Callum Douglas tapped in, following good work from Rachel Brook.
However the two-goal cushion was restored when Langwith captain Doug Jayatilaka added a third seconds later as Derwent’s defence crumbled, before Henrietta Temple added a fourth before the break.
Langwith’s dominance continued after the break as they added three more before the match was interrupted by injury. Chris Hopkins collapsed to the ground in agony as his knee jarred. A medic was sent for and Hopkins was stretchered off, causing a lengthy delay.
After the game restarted, Jayalitaka bagged two more goals to take his tally to five for the match, and his team’s to nine, to finish the tournament in style.
Vanbrugh’s inability to field a team ended their hopes of progressing. Now the final four have been decided, we move into the knockout stages with bated breath.