Germans pushed all way by spirited Scots

GrossflottbeCKer from Hamburg showed why the Germans are the masters of indoor hockey with a 6-5 victory over Scotland in a pulsating final of the Richard Docherty Indoor Cup in Edinburgh yesterday. However, Billy McPherson’s charges must take a lot of credit for pushing the Germans right to the wire with a spirited performance before the European Nations Trophy next weekend.

Scotland got off to the best of starts with a goal by Ross McPherson with the first attack of the game. The Germans were taken aback when the Scots doubled their lead from a penalty corner. Allan Law switched the ball to Grange’s Gary Cameron, who promptly swept it home. This setback spurred the Germans into action and Felix Schuess fired in a quick hat-trick in as many minutes to put Grossflottbecker into a 3-2 half-time lead.

The Scots were back on level terms within two minutes of the restart. At a penalty corner, Allan Law switched the ball to Chris Wilson, who scored with ease. The Scots then went 4-3 ahead, a Willie Marshall flick from the spot sending the German goalkeeper the wrong way after Andrew Thornton’s initial effort had been illegally saved on the line by a defender.

The Germans retaliated, Schuess on target again for the equaliser, followed by a further goal by Alan Forsyth, ironically a Scottish internationalist guesting for Grossflottbecker.

Marshall gave the Scots a lifeline with a low shot to make it 5-5, but with three minutes left that man Schuess scored his fifth goal of the game and the winner for the Germans.

The all-Scottish semi-final between Billy McPherson’s national squad and Inverleith was a rather torrid contest, with Scotland running out comfortable 9-3 winners. It took eight minutes before Chris Wilson gave the Scots the lead with a penalty corner that went in off the goalkeeper’s stick. Scotland then scored a flurry of goals in the final minutes of the half. Wilson picked up his hat-trick with two goals from very narrow angles, followed by strikes by Gareth Hall and Allan Law for a five-goal lead at the interval.

The second-half was a slightly more even affair. Gary Cameron made it six, only for Chris Grassick to open Inverleith’s account with a penalty corner shot that went in off the bar. Scotland then raced into a 9-1 lead through a double by Willie Marshall, and Wilson picked up his fourth of the contest. In a late rally, Stephen Dick scored a couple of late set pieces, but by then the result was never in doubt.

In the first semi-final, Grossflottbecker swamped HC RGD from Holland 15-3.

Inverleith recovered their composure to see off HC RGD 9-8 to take the bronze medal. The Edinburgh side raced into a 3-1 lead in the opening five minutes through Derek Salmond, Chris Grassick and Callum Duke. It then took the Scots another ten minutes to add a fourth from Philip Hall for a comfortable half- time lead.

In a thoroughly entertaining second- half, which contained a dozen goals between both sides, the Dutch tried vainly to get back on level terms, but Inverleith managed to hold on to their lead through goals by Ross Jamieson, Chris Duncan, Duke, Grassick, and Dick.

Despite a hat-trick by Josh Cairns, a depleted Grove Menzieshill side finished in sixth place after losing 6-4 to the Welsh side, Celtic Panthers.

On Saturday, Scotland powered their way into the semi-finals with back-to-back wins over Welsh side Celtic Panthers (9-1) and the Dutch all-star side HC RGD (10-8). Chris Wilson was the catalyst against the Welsh with a well taken hat-trick, while Gareth Hall scored four against the Dutch and Wilson again was on target with another two strikes.

Inverleith also made the semi-finals on the back of a 7-5 win over rivals Grove Menzieshill. With the sides locked at 2-2 just before the interval, goals by Chris Grassick and Derek Salmond gave the Edinburgh side a crucial 4-2 advantage.

In the second-half, Inverleith moved into an unassailable 7-3 lead through Grassick again, John Harris and Thomas Cousins, but then took their eyes off the ball and allowed the Taysiders to come back into the contest with late goals by Andrew Suttie, Ben Cromar and veteran Kenny Stibbles.

The Scottish champions almost caused the upset by taking the crack German side, Grossflottbecker, right to the wire, only to finally fall 7-6 in the end. The Edinburgh side were caught on the hop by an early double by the Germans with strikes by Felix Schuess and Marius Muller from a penalty corner, but within a minute Stephen Dick had pulled one back from a set piece switch that went in off a defender’s foot. Grossflottbecker went into a 3-1 lead through Philip Otte, and that remained the score at the interval.

Dick took the second-half by the scruff of the neck, and gave the much-fancied German defence a real runaround with four second-half goals. The Germans took a 5-2 lead early in the second-half, but were then hit by four goals by Dick and another by Grassick as the Scots moved into a 6-5 lead. Unfortunately, Grossflottbecker turned the screw at the end and a double by Ferdi van Oetzen saved the German blushes.