Eagles walk away with comfortable first win in Eurohockey Challenge II

Eagles 6-1 Florian Young Stars

Eagles opened their Eurohockey campaign with a comfortable victory. Their first match of the Eurohockey Challenge II pitted them against Florian’s Young Stars in the final match of day one of the tournament. Although the match was scheduled for five, it still drew decent interest, with half the stands filled mainly by local Eagles fans. Eagles asserted their presence early on, controlling possession and cutting down space as they tried to advance into their opponents' half.

However, it was their opponents who posed the first real threat to Eagles' D after six minutes of play, though they struggled to repeat it throughout the first half. Eagles were initially halted just past the halfway line by a packed defensive formation. Despite having already played three matches, and despite heavy watering, the pitch, which is due to be replaced this summer, remained fast and dry.

Eagles were denied a goal with nine minutes left in the first quarter after the umpire had blown early for a penalty corner, not allowing the advantage. A second short corner saw the ball go just wide as Eagles began to penetrate the final 25 yards. Just a minute later, the visiting keeper deflected a shot to the near post as Eagles maintained pressure.

With six minutes left, a long driven pass by Gareth Henwood into the path of Julian Lopez allowed the latter to round defenders and send a great cross for Davies to smash past the keeper. Lopez’s continued search for open space finally paid off after guiding defenders to search for his movement upfront.

Although Eagles maintained high pressure, they risked being exposed at the back, with their opponents' frontline proving faster than Eagles' aging defenders, leaving gaps that sometimes raised concerns of a comeback from Florian’s Young Stars. However, Eagles' strong presence on the field prevented their opponents from finding any fluidity. The first quarter ended with Eagles leading by a solitary goal.

Eagles started the second quarter by pushing their opponents into the final quarter, resulting in early pressure and a short corner. The final shot was blocked, though it had already been disallowed for lifting. Julian Lopez took on a more central defensive role, tightening the midfield and providing added distribution, which earned Eagles another short corner after Guiling was tripped in a quick break through the middle. This led to their second goal with eleven minutes left in the quarter.

The visitors struggled to find any fluidity in possession, with Eagles moving bodies back in support when needed to defend and soon disposing them. A well-played advantage saw Eagles come close to scoring, resulting in a green card for a Florian’s Young Star player, providing a numerical advantage for the hosts for a short time.

With five minutes left before halftime, Eagles saw a short corner play narrowly miss the post as they threatened to score the third. Eagles' pressure paid off with just over a minute left before halftime when Davies set up Rodriguez to score the third. Florian pressed in the dying seconds before halftime and earned a short corner, which saw the ball go wide with little threat.

Florian had the first offensive play of the second half, earning a short corner which was met with intervention from Eagles' keeper Borge. Eagles surprised Florian in response with a quick break that saw Dobinson receive in the middle following a run down the right flank and score the fourth within seconds of Borge's save. The third quarter still had eleven minutes left to play.

A minute later, Eagles should have had their fifth but saw the ball narrowly miss getting diverted by three sticks as it crossed the goal. With the sun beating down and Florian players facing low visibility, the 4-0 scoreline weighed heavily on them as Eagles maintained high offensive pressure. Florian attackers had little support as the team held back, slow to chase forward, allowing Eagles to continue mounting pressure and earning another short corner. Lopez drove the ball towards goal, but good keeping denied him from scoring the fifth with five minutes left in the quarter.

Eagles kept their opponents on their toes with constant rotation of players across the field, with Julian Lopez transitioning from defending to a more central role, while Guiling stepped into defence. This movement created space, exposing Florian to some great ball distribution. Robinson was unlucky not to score another goal in the final minutes of the third quarter as he met a ball slicing through the defence.

The third quarter ended with Eagles leading 4-0, with Floriana denied a goal by the final whistle, in what was a rare attack. With the match essentially secured, Eagles started the final quarter at a slower pace, making their opponents chase and wait in defence.

Eagles maintained their presence on the pitch dominating possession with their opponents with backs to goal shielding from further damage.

Eagles were to walk away with a 6-1 victory after a phenomenal strike from Davies from what had looked as a failed short corner play five minutes before the final whistle.
Florian scoring with two minutes left from a rare short corner.
Eagles responding with a sixth goal with thirty seconds left on the clock. Daniel Cornelio scoring the final goal.