BUCS men’s hockey: York 3rds 3-2 Leeds Met 4ths

York’s men’s 3rds ended their BUCS season with a win on the JLD yesterday, as a late Rob Smith goal secured a narrow 3-2 victory over bottom side Leeds Met 4ths in terrible conditions. A snowstorm made the contest virtually unplayable for large periods of the second half, but despite York being far from their best they just managed to scrape past relatively weak opposition.

York dominated the early proceedings, enjoying vast swaths of possession and territory, and carving out early opportunities. However in front of goal the side proved profligate, Max Fox missing an early chance and Nick Mitchell hitting the post from a narrow angle. Fifteen minutes in though they did take the lead, as Tom Merriman fired home from the edge of the circle.

The visitors had rarely troubled York’s backline, and it was York who continued the pressure. Captain Declan Hall had a drag flick tipped over the bar, and Dave Washington shot tamely straight at the keeper from ten yards out from another short corner.

The White Rise were then punished for their profligacy, as against the run of play Leeds Met equalised, with their first real chance of the game. Poor defending allowed their forward to surge forward thirty yards, and from the right hand side of the circle he rifled his shot home past Simon Varley.

The goal gave the visitors a confidence boost, but before half-time York were back ahead, Chris Daniel drilling in a powerful shot low into the bottom right hand corner, after a short corner had only been half cleared. York deservedly led 2-1 at the interval, but in reality the game should have been over as a contest by then.

If York had any thoughts of cruising to victory in the second half, then they were quickly undone, as Leeds Met secured a vital equaliser to throw the game into the balance, the ball creeping under Varley from close range despite his best efforts. As the snow and hail began to descend across the JLD, conditions quickly worsened, and York’s standard of play dropped, as they tended to hold onto the ball for too long or wastefully gave away possession.

Despite this the home side looked far the more likely to score the fifth goal, as they continued to cause danger through the mazy runs of Charlie Tyler and the surging drives of Tom Merriman. A beautiful Tyler effort was only denied by the inside of the post, before sprawling saved prevented Washington and Smith from getting their names on the scoresheet.

As conditions became near on unplayable, with the lines covered in snow, the game seemed to be edging towards a draw, but with seven minutes left on the clock, Smith popped up from a short corner to drill the rebound home from eight yards and end York’s BUCS campaign on a high. The win was York’s third of the season and means that they finish sixth out of the nine teams in the league, comfortably clear of relegation.