SEMLA League: Welwyn Warriors 2’s 12 – 3 Milton Keynes

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MK started the game on the back foot today with lots of players unavailable. A skeletal 10-man team travelled down to the Uni of Herts sports centre to do battle. It was a beautiful afternoon for lacrosse. Bright sunshine and warm late winter temperatures made for perfect lax conditions.

Ben Nightingale padded up in goal. He’d been ill all week so was not up for running. Paul Nichols joined Rob Gooch and Aaron Day in the D line. Ben Amos had another competitive battle at face-off. Corey Jamieson and Matt Sawyer led by example in the midfield. Both scored (along with Ben right at the end of the game) and controlled the game tempo when we had the ball. Up front in attack the inexperienced trio of Brett Satchell, Kyle Mackie and Laurence Nichols Cook found it tough with the Welwyn D pressuring the ball. Brett did score, but it was called back due to an inadvertent referee’s whistle. The ref did apologise but once the whistle has blown, the play is dead.

Although Welwyn jumped to an early lead and the result was never in doubt, MK battled hard and made Welwyn work for their goals, especially in the second half. Our work-rate and attitude was excellent all game. For the vast majority of lacrosse clubs, most players started playing at University. Milton Keynes is vastly different. From the squad on display yesterday, only player/coach Rob Gooch [Loughborough] and Matt Sawyer [Oxford Brooks] played lax at Uni. Laurence is still at college-age and the other seven all started lacrosse after Uni with the Milton Keynes club.

Paul got the man-of-the-match vote for a great effort in defence but all 10 players left the field happy, albeit in defeat. Brett won the other award for forgetting his playing kit!

Three more league games remain; Buckhurst Hill and two games vs London University. We go back to Welwyn on March 16th for the Minor Flags (cup) Quarter Final. Provided we can field a stronger MK squad we’ll give them a much closer game.

Game Stats
12:3 (4:0, 8:1, 9:2, 12:3)
MK Man-to-the-Match: Paul Nichols
MK D-of-the-Day: Brett Satchell

MK Scorers
#29 Matt Sawyer
#69 Corey Jamieson
#5 Ben Amos