Wanderers’ promotion hopes hang in the balance

Dundee Wanderers’ hopes of reaching the promotion pool stage of the EuroHockey Indoor Club Champions Trophy hang in the balance after day one at the Dundee International Sports Centre.

Despite an emphatic 8-1 win over Ards HC, a 4-1 defeat at the hands of English champions Bowdon means Wanderers will need to beat Royal Pinguoin HC by four goals or more in tomorrow’s final pool match.

A win or draw in the Ards-Bowdon match would also help the home cause.

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(Wanderers’ Vikki Bunce scored five goals on day one of the competition. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

A first half deluge, including six goals without reply, gave Wanderers an excellent start in their first match against Ards HC.

The Taysiders were four up inside eight minutes, Vikki Bunce, Charlotte Watson, Amanda Maxwell and Emily Dark registering on the scoresheet.

Bunce notched her second of the contest in the 15th minute, before Rachel Osborne’s field goal on the stroke of the half-time hooter put Wanderers in a strong position at the interval.

In the 24th minute, Bunce completed her hat-trick with a well-taken first time shot right in front of goal.

Tamara McLeod opened Ards’ goalscoring account for the competition four minutes later, only for Bunce to rub further salt in Irish wounds with her fourth goal, and the final goal of the match, sixty seconds after the re-start to round off an excellent team display at 8-1.

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(Becky Ward, left, battles for the ball against Ards. Photo Credit: Duncan Gray)

Wanderers began the second Pool A contest where they left off earlier in the day with Bunce opening the scoring in the third minute with a penalty corner strike.

However, a penalty corner reply from England and Great Britain international Sally Walton levelled up the scores in the eighth minute.

The English side stole a march on the Dundonians shortly before half-time when Lisa Garbutt’s field goal put Bowdon in front going into half-time.

Walton ensured further suffering for the home support in the 26th minute, converting a penalty stroke to increase her side’s lead to 3-1.

As Wanderers pressed to get back into the match somehow, all hopes were extinguished on full-time when Garbutt’s second field goal put a gloss on the result for the visitors, leaving Wanderers to ponder overnight on a must-win game tomorrow.

Full information about the event can be found on the EuroHockey Dundee 2016 website.

Day 2 Livestream: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4IrWcbXMfss

You can also connect on the event’s Facebook page.

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