Scotland U21 men are clinical to beat Ireland in Belfast

James Nairn Sco

(Photo: Duncan Gray)

Scotland U21 Men won their first match of a two-game test series against Ireland U21 men 3-2 in Belfast. The players fought hard and although it wasn’t the prettiest win, it’s a positive result as the squad prepares for U21 EuroHockey Championship II in St Petersburg.

Scotland went 1-0 up in the second quarter through a Rob Harwood goal. Murray Collins sent a crash ball into the Ireland D and Harwood won a 50/50 with the defender to put the ball into the net to give his side the lead.

After half time Ireland came out flying and piled pressure onto the Scots. Scotland battled to compete but struggled to keep hold of the ball. The Irish were awarded two penalty corners and took advantage of both of them to take a 2-1 lead.

Into the final quarter and Scotland took the game by the scruff of the neck and equalised through James Nairn. The goal came from a swift attack down the left, which led to a good run across the baseline and a cutback for Nairn to finish and level the scores.

Two minutes later and Scotland took the lead for the second time in the match. From a penalty corner routine Aidan McQuade flicked towards goal and brought out an excellent save from Ireland’s goalkeeper. Hamish Imrie was on hand to tap the ball home and give Scotland a 3-2 lead with seven minutes remaining. The Scots were able to see the game out and claim a great win away from home with the European Championships in St Petersburg on the horizon.

Graham Moodie said, “It wasn’t a perfect performance, there were lots of mistakes as it was the first time the team had played a proper match, but overall it was a pleasing performance to come away with a win against a good Ireland side. It’s a good start.

“There were some really good performances throughout the team – Douglas Gourlay made some good saves, Murray Collins played well at the back was a really good calming influence on the team, and we took our chances well in front of goal. There’s lots of positives and we’ll be looking to improve in the game tomorrow.”

 

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