Hockey - Cannock can't wait to see an end to season

Mar 27 2008 By Nick Pullen

FORMER kingpins Cannock will be glad to see the back of this season.

With just two games remaining in the Slazenger England Hockey League, Cannock are resigned to fighting it out with East Grinstead to see who finishes runner-up to reigning champions Reading.

Cannock could easily have to settle for third spot as East Grinstead hold a one-point advantage.

A miserable season was compounded when Cannock crashed out at the first hurdle of the European Hockey League over the Easter weekend after losing to Reading.

Having qualified for the final 16, Cannock travelled all the way to the Egara Club in Barcelona - only to discover they'd been drawn to face their English arch rivals.

Coach David Mayer said: "You could probably have heard the groan all the way back in Cannock when the draw was made.

"As a result, we lost 2-1 in a game which, I have to admit, wasn't much of a spectacle. Reading scored from two penalty corners, while we got one. "Both teams knew too much about each other, which led to them cancelling each other out.

"It was a real shame we travelled so far for European competition, only to get drawn against a team from back home. It meant we had to hang around in Barcelona for two-and-a-half days without playing.

"It didn't help that our short-corner specialist, Simon Ramsden, was unavailable owing to work commitments.

"He's a real threat in that situation, but he's just changed his job as an accountant and couldn't get the time off.

"In contrast Reading had their expert, Great Britain international Richard Mantell, and that probably proved the difference.''

It leaves Cannock looking for a point from their final two games, against Surbiton this weekend and then Loughborough Students, to make sure of competing in Europe again next season.

Mayer admits they should already have made sure of qualifying, but they lost their last league game to Bowdon 4-3.

From being 2-0 down, Cannock recovered to go 3-2 ahead, but still managed to lose in the last couple of minutes.

Mayer admitted: "In the first half, we were bloody awful, but we managed to turn it around. What made it more disappointing was the fact we failed to close the game out. It certainly wasn't our finest hour.

"The irony is that we've played well since Christmas, but paid the price for a poor start to the season and then given ourselves too much to do.''