Thirds do battle but miss out

Chester VI 3 Runcorn III 1 RUNCORN Hockey Club’s men’s third-team had to field an under-strength side against Chester’s sixth-string on Saturday and despite some real effort this led to a disappointing loss.

With injuries and absences the starting line-up was different from what the thirds would normally expect

However, the team certainly worked hard and were more than a match for Chester in the early exchanges.

The deadlock was broken when Chester forced a penalty corner which they converted.

As the first half progressed, Runcorn took more control and when Riley Cooper lifted the ball beautifully into the circle, Cameron Challoner struck what may already be the goal of the season

A deserved half-time scoreline of 1-1 gave Runcorn plenty to be optimistic about for the second period.

Unfortunately, the team lost some shape and energy levels started to drop, enabling Chester to convert another penalty corner.

When the home side repeated this a few minutes later, the game was slipping away.

To their credit, the Runcorn players pushed forward and were unlucky not to pull at least one goal back but the final score remained 3-1. Robert Mault gave his usual energetic performance and Robbie Roan, the replacement goalkeeper, made a couple of significant saves during the clash.