Melton HC Firsts stay winless after Staffs defeat
Midlands Division One
NORTH STAFFS 6
MELTON HC FIRST XI 3
MELTON took the long trip to Stoke on Saturday on the back of a promising cup result, but once again came away empty-handed.
The visitors again found themselves a goal down within two minutes, but this time the goal sprung Melton into action and they responded with two quickfire goals of their own.
Danny Kendall unselfishly slipped the ball to Herickx when one-on-one with the keeper and he coolly passed into an empty net. A minute later Melton were ahead when Rich Randall fired a ball into the D and it hit the dumbfounded keeper and rolled across the line.
Melton were enjoying plenty of possession and were playing some of their best hockey of the season.
But in a flash Melton were hit on the counter-attack and keeper Nick Eden was adjudged to have brought down the Staffs forward illegally. The result was a penalty stroke which they duly converted.
Another counter-attack moments later put Staffs 3-2 up after another deflection at the back post. Again Melton rallied and a quick break down the left from Foode and an uncharacteristic reverse-stick cross found Andy Sibun poaching at the back post to again draw the visitors level.
At half-time there was everything to play for, but a different Melton team seemed to come out for the second half. The short game which had worked well in the first half was gone as Melton decided to try and hit through the opposition.
Staffs went ahead 10 minutes into the second half from a short corner rebound after Eden had saved well.
Melton were pushed further and further back, and another short corner brought another goal from a rebound despite another Eden save.
The visitors went close from a short corner, but Sibun’s shot was cleared off the line by a covering defender, and Staffs scored a sixth five minutes from time to leave Melton winless and bottom of the table.
Melton: N. Eden, C. Eden, Judge, Foode, Randall, Ross, Snow, Herickx, Sibun, Brooks, Kendall, Smith, Hewitt.
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Weather for Melton
Monday 20 May 2013
Today
Cloudy
Temperature: 10 C to 18 C
Wind Speed: 15 mph
Wind direction: North
Tomorrow
Cloudy
Temperature: 7 C to 14 C
Wind Speed: 17 mph
Wind direction: North
