Result: Loss 10-2
Scorers: T Woollatt, T Fanger,
Saturday November 18th was a character building day for Chelmsford’s premier league men’s side. With the league seeing an unprecedented number of thumping score-lines being delivered from the top half of the table to the bottom 4 sides the clash between 2nd placed City of Peterborough (CoP) and our own 7th placed team after a strong performance against 4th placed Wapping the week before, what unfolded could not have been predicted by many connoisseurs of the East Leagues Top Division.
CoPs got the game got underway and 15 seconds later they had their first goal with a nicely worked move down the Chelmsford left and a tap in from at the back post, somewhat reminiscent of a cup fixture against Surbiton a few years ago and the comparisons did not end there. The team in red dominated the opening possession exchanges, flowing in confidence from their goal they patiently worked the ball to find the gaps for their high forward line.
Eventually a ball fired in from the 25 saw a neatly deflected second goal which forced a change of personnel in the midfield and Ed Farmer-Plummer-Fleet stepped into the “bottom diamond” role to good effect.
A brief period the resistance broke out from the away team as their midfield tightened up and earned a few forays into the home circle. Carpenter making good use of his pace down the right, but, eventually the patient Peterborough play saw them earn a string of penalty corners which their resident flicker decisively ploughed into the top corners over cowering post-men to leave the score 4-0 at half time.
The change of ends provoked a positive reaction from Chelmsford and they took the game to Peterborough from the restart, pressing hard and testing their backline. End-to-end action resulting in an aerial ball up to debutant Alex to link with Woollatt and release the ball through 1v1 only for the keeper to unceremoniously break his stride, leaving the umpire no option but to award a penalty stroke that Woollatt would himself convert cooly, high into the side netting.
Unfortunately, the CoPs sprung back into action and, thanks to some haphazard green defending, re-engaged their flicker who was now going through his full repertoire as he converted 2 more rockets in quick succession down the middle of the goal and into the roof of the net.
The game stretched and aerial balls rained down for a period, much to the displeasure of the umpires, until Peterborough got one into space on a breakaway and located the backboard once again for 7-1 much to the glee of the home fans that had now gathered.
Not to be totally outdone, Captain Fanger rifled his own flick into the side netting as the Green team got another back via a penalty corner of their own.
A now tiring Chelmsford succumbed to a brace of tapped in goals around their back posts as the relentless Peterborough pressure continued and fittingly with a penalty corner on the final whistle the proverbial nail in the games coffin was delivered not by the Peterborough flicker but by a well-executed reverse stick deflection leaving the scoreboard reading 10-2.
Chelmsford will be looking to play some competitive hockey next week at home to Ipswich.