GOREY HOCKEY
Railway Union 5th 0, Gorey 2: After a three-week break, Gorey came up against a very strong Railway Union in a fast-paced away game.
In the first quarter Gorey struggled to keep up to the pace of Railway Union whose players exploded into tackles. Gorey’s defence was put under severe pressure as Railway Union dominated possession inside the Gorey half.
Despite this the back four - Vicky Hughes, Laura Griffin, Bridget Kenny and Ruth Evans - soaked up the pressure and didn’t allow any significant shots on debutante goalkeeper Abigail Nuzum.
Muireann Deegan got the best chance for either team with her trademark reverse stick shot that narrowly went wide.
In the second quarter Gorey started to get to grips with the game, with Ailbhe Booth getting on the ball more in the centre of midfield.
Gorey started to use the wings more, with Robyn Swords and Aislinn Buttle linking up well on the left. Gorey won a few long corners which gave them a couple of half chances on goal.
The most dangerous moment for Gorey came when Railway Union got a short corner. They cleverly slipped it to the waiting player on the left post, but Abigail had the post covered and the shot slipped wide.
The second-half kicked off with Gorey getting push back. The third quarter produced more chances for Gorey as the three forwards - Aislinn Buttle, Sarah Merrigan and Muireann Deegan - had much better link-up play.
Midway through the quarter, Muireann Deegan had a surging run into the Railway Union ‘D’, and managed to win a short corner.
Ailbhe Booth took a direct shot which was deflected out by the ‘keeper and, thank heavens for the awaiting Odile Evans who calmly swept the ball into the bottom right corner of the goal.
Gorey finished the quarter stronger and created more chances but were unable to convert.
In the final quarter, Gorey played more defensively and soaked up the pressure from Railway Union to protect the lead. Aislinn Buttle in particular covered a lot of ground, closing down the Railway Union defence as they tried to play the ball out around the Gorey press.
Railway Union were searching for that equalising goal and pressing forward hard. The Gorey defence had to deal with two short corners.
Heather O’Sullivan switched out to left wing and provided fresh legs to help defend against Railway Union’s strong right wing.
This allowed Bridget Kenny to start pressing through the middle on the counter-attack and cutting out balls coming into the centre.
In the 15th minute of the 17-minute quarter, Gorey closed out the game with a beautiful counter-attacking move, as Sarah Merrigan swept the ball out to Muireann Deegan on the right midfield.
She ran it to the circle, and got a shot off at a tight angle which rebounded off the post and the ‘keeper, leaving Sarah Merrigan to score the second goal with a simple tap-in.
This ensured the win for Gorey in a tough but enjoyable game of hockey.
Team: Abigail Nuzum, Vicky Hughes, Laura Griffin, Bridget Kenny, Ruth Evans, Robyn Swords, Ailbhe Booth, Heather O’Sullivan, Odile Evans, Aislinn Buttle, Sarah Merrigan, Muireann Deegan.