It’s seven heaven as Penarth chalk up win

PENARTH hockey welcomed the second of two Cardiff & Met sides in De Cymru 1 to Stanwell confident of a victory as the visitors turned up with only ten players, but struggled to make the extra man count in the first half, guilty of turning the ball over too quickly and allowing the visitors to maintain a foothold in the game.

Despite the slow start, the hosts found their form to run out impressive 7-1 victors.

During that difficult opening period, goalkeeper Simon Comfort was alert when called upon, and a sloppy first half saw both teams fail to convert chances, with the hosts becoming more frustrated as the period went on.

The interval, however, allowed Penarth to regroup and the team talk focused on playing the sort of hockey which had served them so well this season, passing the ball around and keeping possession.

The Bears’ more structured second half approach paid off quickly, with Richard Baker orchestrating the midfield and creating space which was capitalised on early in the half with James Kidby scoring a screamer to break the deadlock.

It quickly became 2-0 as Chris McCarthy drove into the ‘D’ and spun past several defenders before squeezing the ball in at the near post.

McCarthy grabbed a second soon after, as Baker found him in space at the top of the ‘D,’ and went on to complete a quick-fire hat-trick to make it 4-0, reacting quickest to tap home after Sam Chick’s shot came back off the post.

Despite the game slipping away from them, Cardiff & Met grabbed a consolation goal midway through the half, but there was to be no comeback as the visitors’ exertions in playing a man down began to show and Penarth found more and more space in the final third. Owen Hopkins added a fifth for the home side, sniping at the back post, before man-of-the-match Baker added a sixth from a smartlyworked penalty corner routine. The scoring was rounded off with Hopkins grabbing his second of the game to make it a comfortable 7-1 victory to the Bears and provide a distinct contrast between halves.

The victory, coupled with defeat for second-placed Bridgend, sees Penarth move into the promotion places for the first time this season, but the competition to join likely De Cymru 1 champions Cardiff University in the higher echelons remains fierce and Penarth will look to keep winning to ensure they remain in the top two come the end of the season.