WHAT loomed as a mismatch between third-placed Hale Hockey Club and second from bottom Melville City developed into an exciting 1-1 draw in atrocious conditions at Duracraft Stadium on Saturday night.
Melville entered the match needing a good result to help it begin a climb out of the relegation zone and Hale was looking to lock in a double chance in the finals, so both teams had a lot to play for.
Melville created several early opportunities and scored first through a penalty corner goal to Matthew Willis.
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READ NOWThe home side held its lead until half-time when the heavens opened, leading to a 15 minute delay until the start of the second half.
Hale clearly used the extended break to re-group and scored almost immediately upon resumption.
Hale continued to impose themselves on the contest and it took a long period of desperate defending to stop them from extending their lead.
An entertaining last ten minutes saw Justin McDougall miss a golden opportunity from close range for Melville and create several chances of their own before an entertaining game was concluded at 1-1.
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