Men's 3rd XI score convincing win over St Neots

Kettering travelled to St Neots for a late match expecting a tough game and for the first half, so it came to pass. The visitors had lots of possession but their final pass let them down as promising attacking situations came and went. Some uncharacteristic sloppy errors added to the general malaise.
Finally, the breakthrough came after 25 minutes. A penalty corner routine saw the ball switched to Ben Mills and his powerful pass to the back post was deflected home by Mark Hawkins.

After the break, Kettering carried on pressing forward, looking for the vital second goal. The St Neots keeper made a mistake and presented the ball to Hawkins at the top of the circle. However, he redeemed himself when he made a string of saves to keep out shots from Hawkins and Mills.
This was only a temporary respite for the hosts and the second goal came from man-of-the-match Jacob Tattersall. A pass from Hawkins released the youngster as he burst forward from midfield. Tattersall beat a couple of players down the right hand side and made his way into the circle. With Mills and Hawkins waiting for a cut-back, the midfielder spotted a tiny gap and fired a shot into the far corner of the goal.
This proved to be the pivotal moment in the game and Kettering relaxed into their free-flowing style after this. Captain Neil Manley took a quick free-hit and passed into Hawkins. His unselfish cross found Tattersall in space at the back post and he duly completed his brace.

With about seven minutes left on the clock, the St Neots keeper had a rush of blood to his head. The ball came into Harry Tanser at the top of the circle and as the young forward turned with the ball, the keeper slid right through the back of the player.
This provoked a furore as the Kettering players were upset with the dangerous and reckless nature of the challenge. Andy Bull was green carded yet amazingly the goalkeeper escaped punishment. Fortunately, Tanser was not injured in the incident.
Belatedly, a penalty flick was awarded. The goalie was still full of adrenaline and he anticipated where Neil Manley's shot was going, although there was a suspicion that the keeper moved too early.
The visitors were fired up now and they let their hockey skills do the talking. Ben Mills burst forward from midfield, passed a couple of players and then fired a reverse-stick shot into the bottom corner. Andy Bull picked a pass up and charged forward and closed in on goal. The keeper rushed out again but Bully saw him coming and cleverly lifted the ball into the path of Mark Hawkins who made no mistake.
The sixth goal came from Ben Mills, courtesy of another reverse-stick effort. The St Neots keeper had gone walkabout and Mills was able to fire his shot high into the unguarded net. With the last action of the match, there was time for Bull to get a deserved goal. He intercepted a loose pass, sprinted into the circle and hit a powerful shot into the bottom corner.

Next week, Kettering entertain the struggling Wisbech side.