Hockey: Rochdale Ladies 1 - 1 Timperley Ladies 5ths

Photo: Rachel Jackson

Becky Knowles (left) was named player of the match

To start the season Rochdale were hosting Timperley 5ths on a surprisingly sunny and warm Saturday (21 September). Missing several regular players, Rochdale planned to have fun with their opening match, especially when they had three debuts in Midani, Lyssejko and Stapleton and a return from hiatus for Bedford.

Timperley were a fast team, but Rochdale rose to the challenge, with Parton hassling alongside Pickering in the centre of the pitch, and Midani making her mark on the left wing, working well with Leech and finding the space to open up paths into the D. Burrell very nearly secured Rochdale's first goal of the season with a crack shot at the top left corner, only to be denied by a good save from the Timperley keeper. However, Timperley managed to pull ahead first, with a goal that just barely crossed the line before Partington was able to clear it with her stick.

Half time saw a few changes. With Midani needing to leave and Moon arriving to join the defence, Knowles was pushed into the midfield allowing Pickering to move back to the right wing. Black was moved back to left wing and Lyssejko into forward and Stapleton brought on to join her.

It worked and Rochdale charged into the second half even stronger than the first, revitalised by fresh legs they were determined to pull back. Lyssejko hassled for every intercept from a Timperley free hit and Stapleton drew out their defenders to open up room for Black and Parton to take advantage of to either pass a ball into or run into to generate as many chances on goal as possible.

That perseverance paid off. Knowles acquired the ball in Timperley's half of the pitch and ran through the space and into the D, as the defence tried to close her down she did a quick roll-out and took her shot and the ball hit the backboard with a satisfying thump.

They threw everything they had at trying to get another goal, with lots of great passing and teamwork to frequently get into Timperley's defence and hold there as long as they could. With the robust combination of Bedford, Hoyle and Moon backing up Partington in the D, that allowed Leech the freedom to push high to take long corners to give Rochdale a better advantage knowing full well that their own defence was strong. Unfortunately, even with their last ditch attempts, they were unable to find another goal and the match ended with a draw.

Final score was 1-1, with Becky Knowles as Rochdale's only goal scorer.

Player of the match was Becky Knowles.

Captain Sam Partington said: "Great start to the season and really good play by all the team. Well done to the players on their debuts and we look forward to the next game."

Rochdale's team:
Keeper; Sam Partington.
Defence; Claire Hoyle, Kieran Leech, Becky Knowles & Hannah Palmer.
Midfield; Fee Lyssejko, Lois Midani, Daisy Parton, Roisin Pickering.
Forwards; Lily Black & Katie Burrell.
Substitutes: Alex Bedford, Becki Moon & Fiona Stapleton.