JUSTICE SERVED AS CARTIN & MITCHELL STEAL THE SHOW

Ashford Men's Crusaders 2 BEHC Highwaymen 4

The visiting Highwaymen ultimately came out on top in a high-quality encounter on a pitch that just beat the frost, as it had not thawed sufficiently for the earlier scheduled match to go ahead on a very cold, but gloriously sunny January morning. With such a low sun, however, visibility was often at a premium and passes were occasionally - and by necessity - based on the height and shape of the desired recipient, rather than the often invisible colour of the shirt.  Having lost the corresponding fixture in January 2019, the men in red did not want to repeat this in 2020, but it was a tough assignment against a team that was clearly fielding one or two "reinforcements".

Leading through an early well-taken goal by Tony Mitchell, it appeared that the visitors had doubled the lead when Matt Robinson tucked away a second nine minutes later, only for the home umpire to make the first of many interventions which did nothing to aid either the flow or spirit of an end-to-end encounter between two highly competitive teams trying to play the game the right way. The same striker was desperately unlucky to see a brilliant effort cannon off the goal-frame too, but instead of being two-up, a strange reversal of fortunes saw the hosts take a 2-1 lead courtesy of a penalty flick (after a ball hit a leg on the goal-line), and a swift counter-attack down the right flank. Steve Miller and Ed Smyth defended as if their lives depended on it, and Phil Kinch got into the act after half-time too with a great one-on-one blocking tackle. The defence gallantly stood firm after the five-minute blitz despite incessant home pressure, and parity was eventually restored before the break thanks to Matt Robinson/b]'s luck at long last changing for the better with a smart finish to make it 2-2.

And so it stayed for the best part of half an hour, despite everything the Highwaymen had chucked at them: green cards, bizarre officiating, the kitchen sink, and even the inspirational Smyth leaving the action with his arm in a sling.  Despite a really good all-round team display, it was the combined efforts of Mssrs. Mitchell and man-of-the match, goalkeeper, [b]Phil Cartin that turned the game the visitors' way.  The young away keeper pulled off a succession of great blocks and smart stops, but it was his astute positional play and brilliant marshalling of his defenders that stood out just as brightly in a display that oozed calm, bred confidence and kept his team in it just long enough for the final decisive act.  His best save of all, however, had to be the diving tip round the post using his stick on 52 minutes - terrific stuff.

Cometh the hour, cometh the men, as first Tony Mitchell weaved his magic via a mazy run from half-way that took him all the way into the home D.  A dropped shoulder and a step to the right resulted in a superb shot to cap an impressive all-round performance with five minutes left on the clock.  Still long enough for plenty more chicanery and a goal or two, but in the event it was just the one, and from the visitors.  Ravi Wickramasuriya's tracer bullet of a shot from a short settled the nerves, and the outcome, to cap a fine game where the Highwaymen only led briefly, but decisively, to garner three well-earned points.  And this was certainly not an Ashford line-up that had only won once all season, as they fielded a cracking side for a fixture that the casual onlooker would have gauged as being a division higher than it actually was.

Next up is Burnt Ash away before a long-awaited return to home soil in February.

Team:
Phil Cartin (GK), Tim Walters, Phil Kinch, Steve Miller, Stephen Gilbert, Ravi Wickramasuriya, Ed Smyth, Andy Rose, Tony Mitchell, Sammy Chana, Pat Gainey and Matt Robinson.

Man-of-the-match:
Phil Cartin - a great goalkeeping display from an extremely talented and personable individual who deserves to go far in the game of hockey.

Umpires:
Tony D'Cruz whistled well and impartially and was a star to step into the breach and take on umpiring duties.  As for the home umpire ..... well, all umpires have a tough job, volunteer their services on a Saturday, and deserve our thanks and gratitude, as we would have no competitive games without them.  Nevertheless, my mother once told me that if you cannot find something positive or polite to say about someone, then you should preferably not say anything at all.  So, regrettably, in this instance, I shall follow her advice: I can't, so I won't.