Eagles to face Grammarians in Eurohockey Challenge II promotion play-off after draw against Swansea

After starting their Pool A campaign with a 5-2 defeat at the hands of Pomorzanin Torun, Eagles came into their third match boosted by a convincing 8-0 victory over Swedish side Valhalla.

Sitting second in the pool table, they faced Welsh side Swansea in their final group match, level on points, with only goal difference separating the two sides.

Eagles found themselves behind after a penalty corner converted by Jake Joyce in the ninth minute.

Both sides were to see players receive green cards, with Eagles receiving the first in the fifteenth minute when Julian Hernandez was sent off temporarily. Swansea saw their first green card in the 24th minute, with Sammy Kasto booked.

The two teams arrived at half-time with Swansea leading by a solitary goal.

The stakes were high, with both sides looking for a win that would secure them a place in the crossovers. Although hosts Pomorzanin had yet to play Valhalla, with a five-point gap at the top, Eagles and Swansea were effectively playing for the runner-up spot in the group, which would see them face Grammarians in the crossover matches.

The third quarter started with Dion Durante receiving a five-minute yellow card sanction just a minute after the restart, adding pressure on Eagles, who needed to make a comeback to secure their place in the crossovers.

It was Craig Bossano-Anes who struck again in the competition for Eagles. A penalty stroke was converted by the number seven in the 36th minute to bring the match level. Eagles now held the slim advantage in the battle to secure an all-Gibraltar crossover play-off. This was Craig’s third goal of the EuroHockey campaign for Eagles, having scored twice the previous day against Valhalla.

With forty minutes played, Eagles won a penalty corner which they failed to convert. It was their third of the match compared to Swansea’s solitary first-quarter penalty corner, which had produced the opening goal.

Eagles entered the final quarter level with Swansea, knowing that while protecting the draw would be enough, it was too narrow a margin to risk qualification.

Swansea placed Eagles under pressure, forcing four penalty corners in the final quarter. Eagles held out and, with a goal difference of five — three better than Swansea’s — secured second place in the Pool A table.

Swansea, who had lost 9-2 against hosts Pomorzanin, paid the price for the previous day’s heavy defeat after Eagles had cancelled out their goal difference advantage created by their victory over Valhalla.

Eagles’ second-place finish in Pool A secures a place for a Gibraltar club in promotion to Challenge I, with Grammarians and Eagles set to face each other in the crossovers. This guarantees Gibraltar promotion.