Grammarians let go of chance to get first win

Tentative start between Eagles HC and Grammarians HC. The former had already notched their first win in the five-match series that will decide the winners of the Men’s First Division in Gibraltar. A 5–2 win had given them a boost as they came into this past Sunday’s match.
It was, however, a slow and nervy start, with both teams testing each other and building from the back.
It took some time for the opportunities to come.
Eagles had the first strike at goal, diverted into the roof of the net on the first touch. The first real opportunity saw them take the lead and ignite the fuse that would spark the match.
The fast pace, combined with no lack of physicality, made for a tense first quarter. This was not helped by people outside the perimeter of the hockey stands commenting towards the umpire.
Grammarians came close from a short corner in the second quarter, pushing Eagles back into their half and forcing a couple of early short corners. Going end to end, Grammarians forced another short corner on the break and this time secured the equaliser.
Eagles struck back almost immediately. A beautifully delivered ball by Bossano found Hernandez running into the middle, giving him space to turn the ball around the keeper while on the run.
Having taken the lead, Eagles started the third quarter slowly. Looking to slow the pace and avoid giving Grammarians immediate possession, they knew the latter would press quickly in search of another equaliser.
Closing down space well, Eagles tried to contain Grammarians, but a body block gave away a short corner. Although it was bravely blocked, Eagles soon conceded another short corner. Driven towards goal, a final touch by Balban saw the ball bounce beyond the keeper’s reach for the equaliser. Eagles had failed to contain the early momentum that Grammarians had been searching for.
A quick break from Eagles after defending deep saw Hernandez take on players and force a short corner as he attempted to play the ball across the D.
The Grammarians keeper did well to get a glove to an attempt by Lopez, which eventually came off the player and resulted in possession returning to Grammarians.
Tensions were again not helped by the presence of a former player just outside the permanent fence on the football side, constantly commenting from behind the goal and questioning every umpire decision. Some players jumped on the bandwagon, while the umpire tried to ignore the comments, not being able to do much about them.The match, however, did not see the bitter rivalry and talkback to the umpire that had characterised previous encounters between the two sides. A more sensible sporting approach was taken by the majority, with players focusing on the game. The tension was mostly the result of a tightly contested match with little between the two teams.
Eagles conceded a short corner at a crucial moment as Grammarians piled on the pressure. With the last stroke of the third quarter, Grammarians looked to squeeze the ball between the keeper and the post. Even with Dion’s intervention to try to clear it, the umpire judged the ball had crossed the line, giving Grammarians the lead for the first time as the teams went into the short break between quarters.
Although Eagles argued over whether the ball had crossed the line, the decision had already been made and Grammarians led 3–2.
Early mistakes in passing in defence did not aid Eagles’ cause as they fended off early Grammarians pressure. Eagles’ attempts to run at the Grammarians defence were initially met with solid defending.
Eagles eventually tested the defence, having a shot blocked, but were just as quickly back defending. Grammarians came away the better in a scramble in front of goal, extending their lead to 4–2.
Having won the first of the five matches, Eagles now faced the First Division tie level as they tried to claw back from a two-goal deficit.
Eagles gained a short corner, but it was bravely blocked, leaving the player nursing a painful bruise and conceding another short corner. The second short corner saw the keeper dive well to get a glove to the ball and make the save, while a third short corner was blocked, albeit illegally.
It took four short corners before Eagles finally managed to squeeze the ball in to reduce the gap to 4–3.
A five-minute yellow card sanction did not aid Grammarians as they tried to protect their lead. A naïve slide block with the body, followed by claims it had hit the chest rather than the belly, was ignored by the umpire and sanctioned.
Grammarians did well to absorb the pressure and maintain their defensive lines as Eagles searched for the equaliser.
They were, however, unable to stop Lopez running into the D and taking on players before the ball was squeezed in from the goalmouth to level the match at 4–4.
Grammarians searched for the winner and saw Balban force a terrific save that denied them the lead.
Eagles were then penalised with a yellow card, bringing the numbers level on the field for the final minute.
The match ended level at 4–4.
Eagles still lead the five-match series after winning the first encounter.