Newmarket take title
- TWTWTW
Newmarket won the
Premier Holidays Division 8 North West on Saturday, their second
successive title after taking Division 9 last season. On top of the
excellent news of progress on the long anticipated artificial pitch
in the Town, and with a thriving youth section, the club can look
forward with rather more hope than a couple of years ago. Indeed,
the Ladies team are also performing well at present, to make the
full house.
Once again, as so often
this season, a quick start suggested that Newmarket would settle. On
this occasion, it was not to be. With the post hit by Gibson and
Magnusson in the opening few minutes, and with short corners from
Wilson and Cummins going astray, Newmarket spent fully 20 minutes
camped in the Boston D, with nothing to show. A combination of the
occasion and some unusually lax finishing was to blame. Boston also
played their part, with some dogged defending.
However, it could not
last for Boston, and the goal came from a short corner. Gibson
pushed the ball out to Wilson, and when the shot came in wide of the
near post, gibson turned it goalward. The opening goal was denied by
the illegal use of his body by a Boston defender, and Wilson put
away the resulting penalty stroke.
An understandably
tetchy half-time "discussion" saw some straight talking from the
Newmarket team, and they started the second period determined to
show some more of the style that has won them the league title.
Within 30 seconds, Blades forced a superb save from the Boston 'keepe.
Two minutes later, Starling forced a second goal, and Newmarket
relaxed. However, they could still not press home their advantage,
and after several substitutions to make use of the squad on offer,
Blades eventually powered in the third after a short corner routine
had broken down.
Newmarket won 3-0, and
yet the team seemed almost deflated, despite knowing that the title
was theirs, in light of the unusually scrappy display. Cummins was,
as usual, on top of the game, and Newmarket 'keeper Steve Freed
could only watch as the pressure on Boston eventually led to that
all important win.
The celebrations in the
evening were somewhat more impressive than the performance in the
match! There now only remains a trip to play Cambridge South II on
Saturday and the league campaign for 1998/9 will be over.
With some luck and
assistance from the National Lottery, Newmarket hope to be building
hockey in the area on the back of an excellent artificial surface in
the town for the 2000/2001 season!
