TIMPERLEY 1 – 4 KESWICK WEST CUMBRIA

FLETCHER
BARNES x 2
PYKE

This week Wests made the trip South for their second consecutive away
fixture against a Timperley side sitting pretty in midtable.
The hosts have had a mixed start to the season with only 1 defeat under
their belts, but have tallied up more draws than wanted leaving them
somewhat treading water at the moment and would have been looking at this
fixture as a possible means to kick-start their season and get a run of form going.
They were however facing a Wests team who have kick-started their
season from the first game and their run of form is currently unblemished collecting maximum points from the first six games. Playing well and confident, KWC are currently the dark horse of the league to cause an upset.
West continued to field their usual line –up but did welcome back Dan
Pyke and Jack Chippendale for his first game of the season while Chris Mattear was absent.
The game began with Timperley looking the more threatening and moved the ball around pitch neatly looking comfortable in possession while Wests sat back and adjusted to their opposition. Timperley did force a couple of short corner but Morgan was out quickly to break down any initial attack while Harrid dealt with anything after that.
Wests started to find their feet with Chippendale and Pyke working well
in midfield, the later unfortunate not to connect with a shot after a good
midfield break. Swanston found plenty of space down the left and played 2 throughballs to Proctor and Cook which were just a fraction too hard to latch onto however the third was pin-point to Seth Flether who’s touch opened himself up for a reverse stick strike which shot straight into the goal for a deserved lead.
Wests continued with their attacking play and almost had too much space
at times, particularly down the flanks where Morgan and Cook at times seemed at leisure.
The second goal came swiftly after the opener. The duo of Chippendale
and Pyke worked the ball into the D and fizzed a ball across goal, Rob
Cook made a cheeky connection forcing the keeper into a save but Rikki Barnes was onhand for an exceptional tap in.
Wests continued to push hard throughout the half and may have become a tad overzealous as they became stretched and began to leave themselves open at the back, however rode out their luck due to an excellent
defensive partnership of Fennell and Wilson.
The second half brought a goal instantly, but not in Wests favour.
Timperley came out flying and hit KWC with a flurry of attacks eventually
resulting in a short corner which was worked well and nicely flicked into
the net to half the scoreline and give the home side more than a chance of
getting back into the game.
It seemed today though, Wests best form of defence was attack particularly from Mark Proctor who seemed to have a hand in every attack.
From the restart they continued to push forward with an attacking viewpoint and pinned Timperley back into their own half for the majority of the game although the one goal lead was precarious.
However the away side gave themselves some breathing space on the hour with a beautifully crafted team goal. Wilson cleared the ball from defence
to Cook who deflected into the path of Swanston on the wing driving into
the corner before rolling out and offloading to Morgan just outside the D to pick out Cook who distributed neatly to Pyke in front of the keeper to slot home.
Timperley needed something quick and did begin to mount a challenge
going into the last 10 minutes but focused the majority of their effort
down the right flank where Elliot Dessert swept up anything remotely dangerous.
Wests wrapped up the tie with a goal in the dying seconds. Timperley
obviously pushing for a lifeline were dispossessed and the ball broke
allowing Chippendale to feed Rikki Barnes a delightful through-ball and
send the forward baring down on goal. Barnes had time on his side to pick his place and opted for the roof of the net to round off a dominant display of hockey.
Wests continue their fine start to the campaign but will be tested in
the coming weeks facing off against the other 4 teams occupying the top 5

slots in what could be described as a make or break month.