Mens H 11 - 2 Scorpion B

HKFC H's 11 - 2 Scorpion B: Ointment of Turpentine and Lost Keys


So that's 18 goals we've managed to put past Scorpion B in the space of a
month and wouldn't we love to play them every week.

We were way below our best, with a small number of us (including me) looking
and feeling listless in the muggy weather, but we still managed to score
double figures through the sheer pressure and number of forwards we imposed
on the opposition D.  I managed to cement my position as hockey's answer to
Emile Heskey - i.e. the non-scoring centre forward.

As we were getting ready in the changing rooms, David Lloyd made the point
that many top class goals scored in the World Cup currently held in New
Delhi were tip-ins and tap-ins from less than a yard out  Meanwhile, Alan
"Slotter" Powrie was gagging for air, as Mark Kan's 15 minute pre-match
rubdown of his legs with the Club changing room's Ointment of Turpentine was
gradually turning the atmosphere more radioactive and toxic than Chernobyl.
The guy behind the counter had a bemused look on his face when he refilled
the near-empty bottle he had only filled up just minutes before.

Lloydy opened the scoring within minutes after Louman and Guy Higgins carved
the defence open with two precision passes around the D.  

Guy struck sweetly from Brett Goebel's unselfish square pass into the D for
Goal 2.  

For Goal 3, Lloydy collected a scuffed 16 yard hit and waltzed into the D
unchallenged before unleashing the most emphatic and powerful finishes of
the season so far (but not as good as Mike Vrontamitis' belter into the top
corner for the G's that I saw later on). 

Goals 4 and 5 were Paul McGuire's, assisted by Andy Dale both times.  One
was a delightful flick over the advancing goalie that beat both defender and
Brett, who both tried to get a meaningful contact on the ball before it
crossed the line.

Just before half-time, Brett finished off some good work by Robbie Collins
down the right wing to make it six.  The opposition's failure to handle the
blistering speed of both Robbie and Mark was a strong feature of this match.

At the start of the second half we endured 10 - 15 minutes of Scorpion
pressure, which led to them pulling the score back to 6 - 2.  We stopped
messing about and brought David Smyth back on, eager to atone for his own
goal in the first half.  The game changed dramatically, once Smythy took
control again of centre midfield.

Lloydy helped himself to another 2 goals, one from Mark's assist.  Brett
followed Lloydy onto the "I need to buy some Veuve" list, when he turned in
assists from Lloydy and Smythy for his own hat-trick.  This was during a
frenetic final 5 minutes when we experimented with an old-fashioned 2 backs,
3 halves & 5 forwards formation.   Nev Watkins was thoroughly enjoying
himself and causing mayhem playing as an inside right, whilst Q Burrows
kicked his heels on the sidelines wondering (i) why someone else was playing
in his favourite inside right position, (ii) where his front door and locker
keys were and (iii) why his washing machine had broken down.

Sandwiched between Brett's second half brace was Andy's "bat and pad" effort
to deflect in at the far post Smythy's strike from a well-worked short
corner.

We have never scored 12 in a game and we had a perfect opportunity to do so,
when we were awarded a short corner just as the full-time whistle was blown.
All ten outfield players marched forward in anticipation.  Our centreback
stalwarts, Nick "The Hun" Hunsworth and Roger Nissim took their respective
positions at slip right and slip left.  Andy's injection and Lloydy's slip
left pass were perfectly executed, only for Rog to play football, instead of
hockey, at the key moment.  To make things worse, just as the ball rebounded
off his foot and we groaned in unison, Rog rifled in an unstoppable shot
past the keeper.

Never mind, maybe we'll get twelve in one of our games to follow.  Don't bet
against it...


Louman