Christie powers astute Inverleith to fifth indoor title while Clydesdale cause an upset

Inverleith’s indoor experience and astuteness triumphed in the end over the unorthodox approach of Bromac Kelburne in the final of the first division championships in Perth. The Edinburgh side ran out 5-3 winners to take their fifth title and book their place in Europe.

The Paisley side’s decision to continue with defender Josh Cairns instead of a regular keeper to create an additional outfield player, which had so often brought dividends during the season, this time came unstuck against Inverleith’s power play.

But there were crucial contributions in the contest. First among them was Patrick Christie’s four goals for Inverleith, but also Stephen Dick’s astonishing high-stick save at a Kelburne penalty corner, while Cairns missed from the spot when the score was 0-0.

The women’s final provided the upset of the season as underdogs Milne Craig Clydesdale Western beat champions Dundee Wanderers 4-2 to take the crown. The score was only 1-1 at the break but Western then raced into a 4-1 lead with goals from Susie Gilman (2) and Bronwyn Shields before Emily Dark got a late consolation for Wanderers.

In other matches, Edinburgh University missed out on third place after going down 5-3 to Grove, but Grange EL will play in the top flight next season following a 4-1 win over Wildcats.

In Malaga, Scotland’s men went down 3-0 to Spain in their final match at the five nations tournament and finished fourth ahead of the United States, part of their buildup for the Commonwealth Games in the Gold Coast.