Hockey: City beat Students in a well-contested friendly

Bangor City Men’s 4
Bangor University 2
Friendly match

Bangor City Men’s hockey team overcame a stern test to run out 4-2 winners over Bangor University in a friendly match on Saturday.

With the pandemic having prevented City and the other North Wales teams from starting their North West Hockey League Division Two campaign, a friendly against the students was arranged at the Brailsford Centre pitch.

In a fast-paced and competitive match divided into four quarters, Bangor began well and took the lead after 12 minutes with a brilliant narrow-angled finish from Will Hall.

The second quarter saw the students up the tempo and they levelled the scores on 20 minutes with a low finish into the bottom corner.

However, City responded well and their fluid attacking led to a series of short corners.

After an Ash Hardaker effort was initially well saved, a foul by an Uni defender on the goal line led to a penalty stroke, which Hardaker duly converted to put the Citizens ahead once more.

The University attack remained a big threat, with keeper Keith Proudlove making some good saves, while right-back Andrzej Griffiths made one heroic goal line block to prevent a certain goal.

Bangor weathered the spell of pressure though and managed to open up a two-goal lead on the stroke of half time with a fine finish from Harri Evans.

The third quarter was an end-to-end affair, with both sides creating chances.

Evans, Flynn Holt and Tats Greenhalgh all went close but were denied by the University keeper, as the quarter finished goalless.

The game became more stretched in the final quarter but City struck a telling blow on the 60 minute mark, when Tom Hughes swept Evans’ cross beneath the University’s keeper to make it four goals to one.

The academics pulled one back five minutes later from a short corner, and although they kept pushing until the final whistle, the City back-line held firm to register a morale boosting win.