Hockey: Rochdale Ladies 2 - 5 Buxton Ladies

In their first home match of the new season Rochdale hosted Buxton at Oulder Hill. Despite intermittent downpours Rochdale were hoping to turn around their fortunes after last week.

Rochdale started with plenty of energy and determination. Bouncing the ball between Hodcroft and Pickering down the right wing to get around their opponents. Buxton were able to rout them before they got into the D, but it proved that Rochdale could earn themselves opportunities.

First goal went to Buxton, who were able to create an overload in the D and continually kept moving around to make it hard for Rochdale to mark them out. It was a tactic that they stuck with, and despite Rochdale adapting to close them down - especially Owen and Collinson on the left - it did serve Buxton well throughout the match to pull a few goals ahead.

No matter the scoreline, Rochdale weren't going to go down without a fight. A free hit from McDonald found Knowles, who drove the ball down the pitch before Buxton had time to regroup and handed it off to Burrell. A defender tried to stop Burrell but she got her stick in at just the right time to bounce the ball over any obstacles and into the goal.

Parton proved her mettle on the left wing by determinedly closing down any Buxton payer who attempted to make a run down her patch of pitch, and able to hand off the ball to Collinson or Hodcroft when she won the tackle, allowing Rochdale to make pushes into Buxton's territory, even if it wasn't always successful.

A Buxton short corner was well defended by Rochdale, with Collinson running out to close down the shot and Owen channelling whilst Hoyle and Moon covered the posts. Unfortunately it wasn't enough and the ball landed in the net after hitting Moon's hand, a valiant effort rewarded with injury.

A free hit from Owen found Hodcroft in the midfield, who turned and drove the ball sideways to pass it up the line to Knowles. She ran into the D for a shot on goal, only to be blocked by the defence. In Buxton's attempt to clear it sideways, Black leapt to intercept it, twisting back out of the way of a defender who wanted to relieve her of the ball.

A second tackle saw her lose the ball, but she dug right back in to reclaim it but was unable to pass it off for Rochdale to keep possession to have another shot on goal.

The second half saw a better coordinated Rochdale, more confident in their roles on the pitch and their own abilities. They still conceded goals, but now they made Buxton work far, far harder for it - especially as Hoyle and Owen formed an effective channel and wall - and that let them break into Buxton's defensive line more often. Even when making unplanned substitutions they adapted and communicated well.

Yates was tearing up the left wing, sticking to the player she was marking and still having the energy to run into space as an option for her teammates. This allowed a free hit from a long corner on the right to travel from McDonald via Collinson to Yates on the left to open up a chance for Rochdale in the D. Unfortunately Buxton were able to block the attempt. A Rochdale short corner injection reached Collinson - after a dummy receiver - who passed it wide where Pickering and Knowles were running in. Rochdale were unable to land a goal, but they won an instant second short corner. This time Hodcroft took the shot from the top of the D. Buxton's keeper saved it, but Rochdale were ready for the rebound, digging in to reclaim the ball before McDonald was able to secure it over the line.

Richardson provided some welcome relief as a forward sub, intercepting multiple passes and tackling to keep Buxton on the defensive. One such tackle was passed back to McDonald who passed it off to Hodcroft. She weaved her way around the opposition towards the D and took a shot. Buxton's keeper saved it and Yates sprinted for the rebound, turning and hitting it towards her teammates at the top of the D, but Buxton were able to intercept and clear it.

The final score was 2-5, with Rochdale's goal scorers Burrell and McDonald. Player of the match was Arabella Yates.

Captain Collinson said: "Not the result we wanted but each week we are narrowing the score line. Well done to the ladies who scored and to all of the ladies putting in 110% - as they do each game.”

Rochdale's team for this week:
Keeper; Sam Partington.
Defence; Dionne Collinson, Claire Hoyle, Gill Owen & Hannah Palmer.
Midfield; Gemma Hodcroft, Paula McDonald, Roisin Pickering & Arabella Yates.
Forwards; Katie Burrell & Becky Knowles.
Substitutes: Lily Black, Rachael Richardson & Becki Moon