Mixed Fortunes for Our Men’s Masters
Scotland have four mens sides in the European Masters tournament being held this week at Lisnagarvey, Belfast.
Mixed fortunes for the teams has been the story of the first two days in Belfast and there have been several cases of “what might have been” as Scotland dominated opponents but then failed to put the game beyond reach.
The O40s dominated parts of their opening game against England and could have led at half-time but a better performance from the English in the second half saw them turn the tables and emerge 2-0 winners.
The O45s had a similar tale against Ireland, on top for large parts of the game but ending the wrong side of a 2-1 scoreline. Things got a bit tougher for them in their second game against Germany, last year’s runners up at the Canterbury World Cup. The Germans were simply a class above the Scots and an them off the park with a 9-0 win. It could have double that but for the heroics of Alistair McLean between the posts.
The O50s ran their Irish hosts ragged for much of the game but only a late equaliser from Mike Watts salvaged a point. Despite considerable heroics from the team in their game against England, they ended up losing 3-2 in a game spoiled by poor umpiring with a number of big decisions going against the unlucky Scots.
The O55s played out a 0-0 friendly against USA O50s to get them in the swing of things but they rather came unstuck against England, leaking three goals in the first half of their game to leave them something of a challenge to which they responded well, but ended up 4-1 down. A better performance against hosts Ireland, however, saw them run out 4-1 winners with some clinical finishing backed up by a solid back and midfield four.
Games continue over the next three days with the winners of each section only likely to emerge Saturday, although England look strongly placed in all sections.
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