True to form Fidra opened the scoring after 10 minutes–while we were down to 10 men following a bit of a temper tantrum from Rusty. When he came back he was incredibly unlucky not to score from two stunning strikes that ricocheted off the keeper's pads before being cleared.

We conceded a second goal before the break and it was looking pretty bad as we returned for the second half to attack into the wind and up the hill.

But attack we did.

Monty and Whitey put in an incredible shift up front, covering loads of ground and making great runs to give the midfield the chance to stretch the opposition and Dunbar stretch his legs going down the wing. The pressure resulted in a penalty flick which McNally tucked into the corner to bring us within touching distance. Despite the best efforts of Duncan Graham and Louis Galloway, who were immense in the centre of defense, the margin was restored to two within a few minutes. 3-1.

So back we came. And it was no real surprise when Monty (comfortably our highest scorer this season) turned in a well worked goal. However yet again the margin was extended to two. There is no denying the attacking threat Fidra offer but it is disappointing that recently we have been unable to hold out for longer periods after scoring.

A reshuffle of the midfield pushed Galloway into a more attacking role which he used to good advantage when performing his now customary 'Bambi' routine (falling over on the by-line while still managing to pass the ball to one of our players). The resultant scramble saw the ball cross the line thanks to Mike White's efforts and we were set for a final 10 minutes of end-to-end hockey.

Fidra were clearly rattled by this unexpected turn of events but unfortunately we were unable to get another goal and the draw our efforts definitely deserved.

Conclusion? It's a long time since I've been so incredibly frustrated by losing to a team that would have expected to beat us easily. A great team effort.

Grange Hockey Club

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