9th November 2009
Weakened Whitchurch lose 1-4
Three goals conceded in the last ten minutes consigned battling Whitchurch to a 1-4 defeat at Stourport in their latest EHL Conference West fixture.
Whitchurch, weakened by the absence of four players on International duty, worked hard to contain the lively Stourport forwards in the first period. Goalkeeper Chris Gierak made some good saves, a tight-knit defence played well to frustrate the home forwards and Mark Whatling and Martyn White got through a lot of work in midfield. Against the general pattern of play Whitchurch took the lead two minutes before the break, Rhys Gowman firing home following a penalty corner. Whitchurch held the lead until midway through the second half, David Westhead pulling the home side level with a reverse stick shot in open play. Whatling almost restored Whitchurch's lead from a penalty corner shortly afterwards and it seemed Whitchurch had done enough for a draw but in the last ten minutes of the match Andrew Langlands struck twice in three minutes for the home side and Phil Lashford added a late fourth goal as Whitchurch pushed forward. It was the second defeat of the season for Whitchurch but they remain in 2nd place in the table, six points behind leaders team Bath Buccaneers and five points clear of third-placed University of Birmingham.
