Kettering 3-2 City of Peterborough 5th

Sometimes the result is more important than the performance. So far this year Kettering have played free flowing hockey and scored loads of goals. Against high flying Peterborough 5ths it was time to stand up and be counted.
Kettering scored early with a great Mark Hawkins deflection from a Grant Carlin cross shot. Peterborough were reduced to ten when an ugly tackle saw a green but Kettering balanced it up when Graham Smart went through the back of a forward. Peterborough equalised with a penalty corner to send the teams in level.
Kettering regained the initiative when Carlin rode any number of fouls to set up Hawkins for a far post tap in. The standard of tackling was not up to the respective league positions of the teams and players were making it a difficult game to umpire, Ben Mills saw green for knocking the ball away and young Dom Cusk saw yellow for not retreating from a free hit. Lewis Pywell produced the only decent piece of skill all afternoon when his reverse stick rocket flew into the roof of the net via the keeper's pad. In the resulting melee a Peterborough player was shown a straight red card for lashing out at Mills. Peterborough had time to make it exciting when Paul Donnelly deflected a short corner in but the man advantage meant Kettering could ride out the final few minutes relatively untroubled.
A trip to Wellingborough next week beckons.