Wins for Inverleith and Erskine Stewart’s Melville in Play-Off first legs

Inverleith and Erskine Stewart’s Melville FP hold the advantage going into tomorrow’s second legs of the Men’s and Women’s Division 1 Play-Offs.

Two entertaining first legs were played out at the Glasgow National Hockey Centre, and the second legs are sure to be hotly contested tomorrow.

Inverleith v Hillhead

Goals from Richard Jess and Ross Jamieson provided Inverleith with a narrow 2-1 win over Hillhead in the first leg of the Men’s Division 1 Play-Off.

Callum Duke scored from a penalty corner for Hillhead.

It was Inverleith who opened the scoring in the 18th minute from a penalty corner opportunity, Richard Jess’ shot inadvertently turned in off a defender’s stick to give the Purple Robes a 1-0 lead.

However, Hillhead hit back on the stroke of half-time when a very well executed penalty corner led to Scotland international Callum Duke striking the ball low and hard past Inverleith ‘keeper Cameron Pitcairn.

The second half was strewn with a number of near misses and opportunities for both sides but it was the Edinburgh team who found the net eventually, Ross Jamieson’s shot from close range beating the Hillhead rearguard.

The Glasgow outfit had a number of penalty corner opportunities towards full-time but it was Inverleith who retain a narrow advantage going into tomorrow’s second leg.

Erskine Stewart’s Melville FP v Grange EL

A hat-trick from Tutu Osifodunrin in a 5-2 win over Grange EL has put Erskine Stewart’s Melville FP in charge of the Women’s Division 1 play-off after the first leg in Glasgow.

Grange EL took an early lead in the second minute when Laura Protheroe was afforded space inside the circle to finish from close range.

However, their city rivals responded after sixteen minutes when a well-worked penalty corner set-play led to Tutu Osifodunrin neatly deflecting the ball past Grange EL goalkeeper Chantal Guillot to put Erskine Stewart’s Melville FP back on level terms.

Grange EL looked the more threatening side in the first half and had a number of penalty corner opportunities shortly after, but couldn’t conjour up a means to beat opposition goalkeeper Vikki Hansen.

Yet, the match turned on its head in the 28th minute when Guillot was awarded a yellow card for making a rash foul outside the circle, leaving Grange EL without a goalkeeper for the subsequent penalty corner.

Lyndsay Gowans took full advantage of the absent shot-stopper, her penalty corner strike taking a deflection on the way to finding the back of the goal to give Erskine Stewart’s Melville FP a 2-1 lead.

The yellow card was to cost Grange EL further shortly before half-time, Katie Connor keeping her composure to make it 3-1 in the 34th minute.

A wonderful counter-attacking move led to the formers pupils’ fourth goal in the 42nd minute, Osifodunrin finishing off from close range to claim her second goal of the encounter.

Nevertheless, Grange pulled one back in the 59th minute, Beth Dodds’ cross being diverted by a defender past Hansen to reduce the deficit to two goals.

Three minutes from time, Osifodunrin completed her hat-trick after an almighty goal-mouth stramash led to the striker getting the last touch from a couple of yards out to put her side 5-2 to the good.

It could have been a tougher prospect in tomorrow’s second leg for Grange, but two disallowed goals for Erskine Stewart’s Melville FP left their capital foes with a small chance of salvaging the tie when they meet again to determine the winner of the tie.

 

 

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