Mossley 4ths 5-0 Bangor 6ths

The Sixths Minor Cup run was short lived as they crashed out to the holders Mossley Fourths 5-0.

            Bangor travelled to Mossley knowing that what they were facing their own hockey version of The Alamo.  True to that statement, the home side had their first chance straight from push back, but they fired wide of the Bangor goal.  The Sixths decided to sit back and only play with one upfront, and that lone striker was Colin McIlhagga.  With five in midfield the Sixths tried to stop the cup holders’ attack, with Brian McKee and Thomas Crawford playing some brilliant defensive hockey.  Warren Reid at left back, as he has done so often this season, was making probing runs down the left flank and crossing the ball well.  For all of Bangor’s defensive grit, Mossley found the breakthrough about 15 minutes into the first half.  The ball was lost at the top of the circle and their centre forward hit it past Mark Russell in goal.  Though Bangor were not giving up without a fight, and just before half time Craig McDowell passed to Coner Savage who laid the ball off to Colin McIlhagga who then shot agonisingly wide.  Then the home side broke down the other end and a shot was deflected into the Bangor goal by Mark Russell which made it 2-0 to Mossley at half time.

            Bangor came out in the second half knowing that they could score against this team, but before they got a chance to have a shot against the Mossley keeper, Bangor scored another own goal.  The shot this time deflected off the foot of debutant Mark Dunne and past Russell.  Then Mossley had a chance to make it 4-0, but Duncan Morris made a last ditch tackle and cleared the ball away.  Phil Campbell was being a menace on the right hand side, but even his experience could not find a way past the Mossley defence.  Then the fourth goal came.  One of their midfielders broke through the Bangor defence rounded the keeper and slotted the ball into the empty net.  Soon after the Sixths scored their third own goal of the match, with Warren Reid deflecting a short corner into his own goal.

            The match finished 5-0, but the score line did not reflect how well Bangor managed against a team in the league above them.  They didn’t let Mossley play their usual style of hockey, and the score line could have been much worse but for some excellent team work and defending.