Harrogate M4’s v CoYHC M8’s

It was always going to be a difficult match away at a very good Harrogate M4’s, at so it proved to be. The M8’s defended resolutely, however 2 goals midway through the first half gave Harrogate a 2-0 lead at half time. More significant were a couple of injuries picked up late in the first half, which meant, with only one sub, we were down to ‘the bare bones’. Garry’s hamstring injury proved to be the end of his day; and was not worth risking further damage on a cold and wet afternoon.
Dougie took a blow to the knee which left an impressive imprint of the hockey ball on his knee. So York started the 2nd half with only 10 players; leaving Neil to plough a lone furrow in attack with the midfield encouraged to push forward in support when possible.
To the captain’s surprise, Dougie heroically re-appeared on the pitch to bring York back up to a full complement, if with reduced mobility.
Harrogate took more chances to stretch their lead to 5-0, but the midfield were beginning to put Harrogate under pressure and, if Andy had taken two good chances, the score would have been much closer and reflected the M8’s concerted efforts in the 2nd half.
M8’s spirit never wavered and won a series of short corners before finally getting the reward they deserved. In the 65th minute, Issac received the ball from a SC, took the ball past a defender and drilled it past the goalkeeper for a well taken goal with a neat finish.
The family spirit of the Club was clearly represented with two father and son pairings playing a decisive part in the game. Tom and his son Issac dominated the midfield and Garry and Oli provided the backbone of the defence.
Man of the match: Isaac for scoring and for his constant battling in midfield