Double header big success for Buccs
After a two week enforced break, Team Bath Buccaneers made an impressive start to their double header weekend with a 5-1 victory over Fareham in by far the most impressive win of the season.
Buccs got off to a flying start, opening the scoring from the first of three penalty corners on four minutes as Harry Skinner fired a low drag-flick into the bottom corner. It was 2-0 on ten minutes when Will Prentice was gifted a free shot from a defensive error and he made no mistake.
Fareham upped their game at the end of the first quarter, earning five penalty corners and retakes. All were successfully defended and blocked with Ollie Wickens in goal making good saves. Skinner scored his second on 32 minutes to give Buccs a comfortable half-time lead after a silky dribble from Prentice earned a penalty corner.
Buccs defended more penalty corners in the second half, with John Jackson taking a shot off the lin, but Fareham were duly rewarded from open play when George Davey waltzed around defenders and scooped over the keeper.
The three-goal cushion was restored three minutes later when Ben Stone fired in a sublime backhand shot, with Scott Rawlings killing the game a minute later with a lob for 5-1.
The following day, Buccs travelled to Havant and gave Paddy Gompel a debut. They started strongly and could have taken an early lead when Jackson threaded a long pass to Stone, but his shot glanced off the sideboards. The only goal of the game came on ten minutes when Skinner skipped and swivelled past defenders before finding Rawlings on the circle to shoot low on the reverse past the keeper.
Buccs held on throughout the game, with Wickens again pulling off some good saves, to make it two wins out of two.
The women were beaten 3-0 by visiting Cheltenham. After narrowly missing early on, Buccs were beaten on the counter attack twice to be 2-0 down at half-time. Buccs hit the post twice in the final quarter, but Cheltenham ran out winners. Next week, Surbiton are the opposition.
In the Verde Recreo League, the A team suffered a 2-0 loss at Cardiff & Met in the Premiership. A hattrick from Daniel Verity earned the B team a 3-1 win over Bristol & West in Conference North before they were beaten 5-2 by Yeovil & Sherborne in the Somerset Cup semi-final, while the C side drew 3-3 with the D team in Central 1. Thomas Loughran and Toby Hill netted for the Cs.
A brace from Marcus Bowman alongside goals from Adam Conlon and John Lowrie earned the E team a 4-2 win over Wootton Bassett A in East Central 1. In another interclub derby, the F side beat the G team 4-2. Steve Clark (2), Pete Hendry and Keith Walters netted for the Fs, with Tom Pike and Henry Purchase on target for the F team.
The ladies’ second side were thrashed 6-0 by Howardian in Premier Division 1 of the West Clubs Women’s League. The thirds beaten Devizes 2-1 in East Division, while the fourths were 3-2 winners overs City of Bath in the inter-city derby in Whitehorse Division One.
A hat-trick for Jessica Weaver and braces for Izzy Moore and Deborah Hughes saw the fifths thrash Frome 3rd 7-1 in Whitehorse Division 2, the sixths were beaten 5-0 by North Wilts 2nd.
■ CITY OF BATH were embroiled in a 13-goal thriller against Marlborough in Conference North, but they were beaten 7-6. The inter-club derby in East Central 1 was also full of goals as the B team edged the C side 6-5.
The ladies’ second side beat local rivals Corsham 3rd 3-1 as they continue their almost unassailable lead at the top of Whitehorse Division Two.