Clydesdale Western 1s will play Dundee Wanderers 1s in the Women’s Indoor Grand Play-Off Final for a third year in a row after beating Watsonians 1s in the Semi Final last Sunday at Dundee International Sports Centre.
Having already qualified as Pool B winners for the Semi Final stage of the Championship round with a crossover game to spare, the L1s 3-2 loss to Grove Menzieshill 1s – with a goal each from Kayleigh Justice and Julie Lonergan – was effectively meaningless going into their clash with Watsonians.
A first half double in the Semi Final contest from Margery Justice and a single goal from Head Coach Wendy Justice gave ‘Dale Western an unassailable lead going into the break. The Edinburgh side responded with a goal not long into the second half, but two goals from Laura Paul and a second of the day for Lonergan ended any hopes of a Watsons’ comeback.
The L1s win means they will face Dundee Wanderers in the Women’s Indoor Grand Play-Off Final as part of Scottish Hockey’s GALA Day, to be held at Bell’s Sports Centre, Perth on Sunday (9th February), 1.30pm pushback. The two sides meeting in the Final is a familiar scenario, having played each other the previous two seasons. In 2018, Clydesdale Western won the indoor crown with a superb 4-2 win over Wanderers. But the Taysiders gained revenge the following season with an even bigger margin of victory – sealing a 7-2 win in 2019.
Clydesdale Men’s 1s lived to fight another day in Men’s Indoor National Division One after they avoided relegation last Saturday at Dundee International Sports Centre – but will need one more win at GALA Day to guarantee indoor hockey in the top division for next season.
Hopes of a top two finish were over before ‘Dale got on the court following Western Wildcats 1s 3-3 draw with Inverleith 1s. And their next hopes of avoiding a Relegation Play-Off scenario ended after a 6-3 loss to Grange 1s in the last crossover matches.
This meant Clydesdale would have to win their next two games, and a loss at any point means the M1s go down a division next season. Neil Mitchell’s side did win their first Relegation Play-Off match, beating Dunfermline Carnegie 9-7. Six goals from Struan Walker, two from Andrew Allan and one from Ben Galloway were enough to keep the Titwood boys alive – for another weekend at least.
Clydesdale will play their second Relegation Play-Off match on Sunday (9th February) as part of Scottish Hockey’s GALA Day, with a 12.30pm pushback against Watsonians 1s – who finished 2nd in the final placings of Division Two. A win will keep the M1s up, whereas a loss will send them down for next season.
Clydesdale Men’s 2s recorded a 3rd place finish in Men’s Indoor Regional Division One following two wins in their final games of the 2019-20 Indoor season.
The M2s followed up a narrow 5-4 win against Erskine Stewart’s Melville 1s with a thumping 12-0 scoreline in their favour against Falkirk & Linlithgow 2s.
It was another weekend of West District woes, with only one win out of seven games that took place over the weekend for Clydesdale & Clydesdale Western.
The L4s were the sole winners on Saturday, beating Hillhead 3s 3-1 in Women’s West District Division Two thanks to goals from Maria Mone, Wendy Justice and Shona McConnell. Marg Taylor’s side remain 2nd in the league table. Taylor’s team did succumb to a 4-2 loss in the Women’s West District Cup Quarter Final against Glasgow Accies 1s however – Zoe Monaghan and Ann Menzies were the L4s scorers.
The M3s suffered a very heavy defeat to Uddingston 3s in Men’s West District Division One. A goal each from Rory Harris and Colin Gambles were mere consolations in an 8-2 loss at home to the South Lanarkshire side. Despite the loss, Craig Bradley’s team are still 7th in the table.
The M4s 5-0 loss to Kelburne 4s see’s them drop to the bottom of Men’s West District Division Two, whilst the M5s lost 3-1 to Uddingston 5s in Men’s West District Division Three South. John Henderson was the M5s goalscorer, who stay 6th.
Lauren Black added her fifth goal of the season for the L5s, but lost 3-1 against Ferguslie 1s in Women’s West District Division Two. Alex Campbell got a couple of goals for the L6s in their 3-2 defeat against GHK 4s in Women’s West District Division Three. Both sides remain a place about the relegation zones in their respective league tables.
Photo credit: Julie Lonergan
