U12s Stockport v Heaton Mersey

Stockport v Heaton Mersey U12 21/09/2019

A beautiful late summer morning shrouded in glorious sunshine was the perfect start to the highly anticipated new season at Stockport. The excitement of the first game could be felt through the large crowd that had gathered to cheer on the boys. Stockport had a squad of 15 for this fixture which contained four debutants. Mersey had a smaller squad of 10. Game on!

Q1

Henry won the first face-off and from that point we enjoyed some good initial possession. Mersey finally got going but our defence was sound with some good blocking by Ryan. The quarter really got going when Mersey hit the bar followed by Henry hitting the bar at the other end. The crowd response was impressive as we enjoyed end to end action. A fine shot from Tom was followed by the first goal by Dan. A great save by Josh at the other end, using his shins, kept Mersey at bay. The quality of Josh’s keeping was a theme that ran throughout the entire game. Another shot by Dan over the bar was followed by more robust Stockport defence. Mersey hit the bar and the post but the quarter finished 1-0. A fine and dominant start by Stockport.

Q2

Another strong start to the quarter and some more fine keeping led to Mersey starting to get into the game. Following a time out, Mersey’s number 15 scored their first goal. However, Ethan responded quickly to put Stockport back in the driving seat to make it 2-1. After another period of quality defensive work, Mersey managed to score followed by another goal from Dan to make it 3-2. Henry fired over the bar from the face-off to end the quarter. Some great end to end action but a more evenly matched quarter.

Q3

This quarter really saw Mersey take more control. A quick goal, again from Mersey’s number 15, squared the scores at 3-3. Some good work between Junior and Tom was followed by some excellent defensive work from Thurston, Ryan and Archie. Mersey struck back and their number 15 hit the post. This was followed by two Mersey goals to make the score 3-5. Henry hit the post towards the end of the quarter which finished with Mersey in the ascendency.

Q4

Starting quickly, Henry got a goal back from the face-off however Mersey responded with a quick goal to make it 4-6. A good clearance from Josh found Dan, who converted the chance to make it 5-6. The crowd was well up for this end to end action with the Stockport coaches using their knowledge to change tactics and rotate the players to try and outfox Mersey who wouldn’t give up. Another surge led to Freddie levelling the score at 6-6. Mersey followed with two further goals to take the score to 6-8. Despite time running out, Stockport didn’t give up and Dan hit back after hitting the post a few moments earlier. Score 7-8! A great goal from Henry made the final score 8-8 with Mersey hitting the post towards the end. In his post-match interview Henners described his last goal as ‘a bangin’ goal’.

The match today, was a fantastic start to the season with players from all sides putting plenty of effort in. As the crowd dissipated towards the hot dogs, the sun shone brightly which was apt as this was a very fine game to watch. Final score 8-8. Well done lads!