Hockey: Kelburne land first ever win in Europe

A SINGLE goal victory over the Azerbaijan side Baku gave Kelburne their first ever victory in Europe and ensured that the Scots avoided the wooden spoon by finishing seventh in the EuroHockey Club Trophy in Rome.

The Buddies dominated proceedings from the start but lack of punch up front kept the contest alive.

The breakthrough finally came from a penalty corner 15 minutes into the second half, when the ball was transferred left by Catherine McLauchlan to Frances McKeown who fired a low volley past the Azerbaijan keeper.

"What a relief, we finally got a positive result which reflected the girls' contribution to the game. We were much more focussed and totally dominated the contest and would have won the game more easily if we'd taken our many chances," said Gerry Toner, Kelburne's manager.

On Saturday the Paisley outfit were outclassed by the Belgian side ARA La Gantoise and lost 6-0 to finish bottom of their pool.

A quixotic watering system put paid to the top of the table clash between Grove and Milne Craig Western in the Subway national league,

while in the other game, CALA Edinburgh surrendered an early two goal lead and were beaten 5-2 by VWS Dundee Wanderers.