Berkhamsted 3rds met Harpenden at Tring with the visitors pushing for promotion. Berkhamsted got off to a good start when, from their first short corner, Steve Thie’s shot was stopped by the keeper but Brian de Mattos followed up to flick the rebound into the roof of the net.

Things got better for Berkhamsted following a long corner when Simon Barron’s cross led to Jim Watson’s shot being half stopped by the keeper and Brian de Mattos was again on hand to put the loose ball into the net. Harpenden did not seem to be disturbed by this setback and their mixture of youthful and experienced players continued to play attractive hockey and held the territorial advantage. This led to a number of short corners which Berkhamsted proved to be poor at defending quickly leading to 2 Harpenden goals to level the match. Shortly before half time, Harpenden stepped up the pressure further and again scored from a short corner and then scored again from open play. Berkhamsted failed to improve in the second half and the defence was under pressure for most of the time leading to the concession of more short corners. Although Terry Wintle made two excellent saves, on both occasions the ball fell to a Harpenden forward who scored from the rebound. Harpenden scored two further goals to wrap up proceedings for a deserved victory even if the eventual scoreline was a little harsh on the hosts.

Result

Berkhamsted 2 Harpenden 8

Scorers: Brian de Mattos 2