It may have been another loss to more illustrious opposition but Bangor can probably take more from their 3-1 defeat to Cookstown on Saturday that the Tyrone men.

It was comfortably the Seasiders best display of the season and if they had shown this much dedication and intelligent hockey all season they would not still be looking over their shoulders at the bottom of the table.

But despite some extremely hard work Cookstown snatched all the points with a couple of late goals and Bangor have yet to take any points at home this season. If they want to put all relegation worries to bed this weekend then that will need to change this weekend.

Mossley are the visitors. They're having a similarly up and down year and don't have a good record in Bangor. If Bangor apply themselves as they did against Cookstown they will have a great chance of winning the game and virtually assuring Premier League hockey for another season.

Back to last week and given the two sides' respective seasons no one would have believed Bangor had a hope. But from the very first whistle they battle hard, held their discipline and shape and went a long way to showing they can still mix it with the big teams.

Cookstown looked shell shocked to be going into half-time at 0-0 despite dominating possession and territory. They forced a couple of penalty corners but found John Tormey in good form and a determined rearguard in front of him. In fact, from one such penalty corner Bangor actually fashioned one of their few chances when three quick passes gave Gareth Morton a difficult chance at a deflected shot.

But the highlight of the half from a Bangor point of view was a fabulous last ditch clearance from Mark Lappin tracking back towards his own goal. It stopped a certain goal and gave him the confidence to go on and put in his best performance since being moved into the back four. He also managed an almost identical clearance in the second half when Cookstown looked certain to score.

While the first half ended all square Bangor got off to a poor start in the second and fell behind almost immediately to a Gareth Cuddy goal. Previously this has seen Bangor crumble and concede goals in bunches but not this time. They rallied, disrupted Cookstown's play more and grabbed the next goal for themselves.

Bangor sprung from halfway through Michael Manogue and when he reached the Cookstown circle he drew the goalkeeper and tried to pass to Dave McClune - the only man who could keep pace with him. But a defender intervened and accidentally pushed the ball into his own goal. There's not officially own goals in hockey but this was as close as it comes to one. However, Manogue deserved his goal for his hard work and making the break to set-up McClune.

Now with a foothold in the game Bangor battled even harder and they weren't even distracted by going down to 10 men. Chris Campbell once again was sent to the sin bin but this time he has every right to feel aggrieved for what was a minor offence. It seems his reputation for getting stuck in is earning him as many cards as his play.

Bangor saw off the 10 minutes without Campbell and were just looking like earning their first point at home this season when Cookstown struck the killer blow. A clever penalty corner switch and Ian Hutchison flicked home the goal that restored them to the top of the table.

And they scored again with a minute left. Bangor had to open up and chase a second equaliser and Cookstown exploited the gaps and tired legs with Ivan Steen firing home on the half-volley. Bangor would argue they deserved something from the game but it wasn't to be.

Still, it was their best performance of the season and something to build upon as the fight to secure Premier League status continues. Starting with the pursuit of three points against Mossley this Saturday

 

 

Written by Simon Hunter