Blaze prove too hot for Metros
Trafford Metros 1 - 5 Coventry Blaze ENL
After losing against Nottingham, the Metros went into this game needing to win against a side of similar standing in the league table. In the event the Blaze proved to be too much of a handful and the Metros suffered a further disappointment.
The game opened with a bright start by Coventry, pushing the Metros back into their own end for periods far too long for comfort. This dominance was reflected in the first period shots on goal: 20 on the Metros' Tom MacDonald and just 8 on Murdy in the Coventry net. Indeed it was to be five and a half minutes into the game before the Metros troubled the goal judge. The 13th minute saw Blaze' Gareth Owen translate their superior possession into the opening goal. The Metros recovered their composure and began their own forays into the opposition zone only to be disappointed when, just before the hooter, a pass was allowed to cross the home zone from the left hand corner to the centre allowing Tom Pease to score in the top right corner.
The second period began encouragingly for the home side as Andy McKinney netted with pin-point accuracy into the top corner from new-boy Nick Alley and Sean Day in the 23rd minute. The Metros were pressing for the equaliser when they allowed a short-handed goal four minutes later and this was compounded with a Blaze power-play marker at just past the half-hour mark. At this point MacDonald was replaced by Dominic Corry for his debut in the Metros net and despite turning the tables in shots (16 to 9) a deflated Metros left the ice for the final break 4 - 1 down.
The third period continued to be a two-way match, but that didn't stop the Blaze making the game safe less than five minutes into the session. The game ran down with the Metros unable to lift themselves and convert some significant possession into scoring efforts. Coventry left the ice as deserved winners of a game in which the Metros had failed to play with the same verve, speed and team spirit that has typified previous matches this season.
A Metros' official said, "We needed to make this game ours to consolidate our position in the table. Once again we didn't start as well as we should and teamwork deserted us for large periods tonight. Too often one guy found himself out on a limb, both in attack and defence, needing an outlet pass and there was no-one near enough to provide support. We failed to convert shots into markers and allowed too much space in our zone - all things that Coventry made us pay for. Coventry played well and with speed. They appeared to keep to their plan and structure and caused us too many problems at both ends of the rink."Metros Man of the Match: Nick Alley
Game Stats:
Final Score: Metros 1 - 5 Blaze ENL
Shots on Goal (shots on Metros first): 40 - 34
Penalty minutes: Metros 16 Blaze 20.
Metros' stats: Andy McKinney 1+0, Nick Alley 0+1, Sean Day 0+1.
Nets: Tom MacDonald (31.41 mins): 25/3: 88.00%; Dominic Corry (28.32 mins): 15/1 93.33%
