roadhockey.net

Sliding to a win

Scooby and Kid used their superior speed and balance to overcome slippery conditions and occasionally lazy goaltending, leading their team to a 20-17 win in Sunday's game.

The fleet-footed forwards slipped, slid and sloshed their way around flat-footed opponents, frozen in their tracks by the perilous rain-slicked concrete, to work the give-and-go time and again. Their ability to maintain their balance and keep control of the evil orange plastic ball defied defenders and caught out a beleaguered Frosty, helpless to cover every corner of his goal crease.

"Definitely when we were coming off the cycle, we had a lot of speed," said a soggy Scooby after Sunday's game, the third this young season to be played in a driving downpour. "Kid was able to get a lot of shots off coming out of the corner. We had a couple of nice tip ins just by going hard to the net."

As it turned out, they needed every one of them. While his forwards slid into corners with assurance, Gump seemed to be suffering a crisis of confidence sliding across his own crease to defend against opposing forwards trying to execute wrap-around plays from behind the net. Five times he was beaten by the play, which is, more often than not, a desperate attempt to salvage some sort of scoring attempt when charging wingers can't escape their checks.

"He's terrible defending the wrap-around," said Cowboy Bill, the only player on his team not to score just that way.

"It was just lazy goaltending," said Gump.

And it almost cost his team. After forging an early two-goal lead, they hit the skids in the third period, falling behind by two, 13-11. But their lull was short-lived.

As their nemesis, Lak Attack, took a much-needed breather on the sidelines, the young speedsters, Scooby and Kid, took advantage by scoring a run of goals.

"Whenever he was off the court, we knew we had to exploit their players," said Scooby.

"A couple of bounces went against us late in the game," said Cowboy Bill. "That turned the momentum just a little bit to their favor and pushed them over the top."

Posted by jaysuburb at October 21, 2007 03:23 PM