Tolland have made their case as this year’s premiership favourites after ripping Henwood Park to shreds on Saturday night.
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The Wolves were clinical in the first half and impeccable in the second with captain Richard Skidmore and UK import Jack Follows setting the platform for a stunning 6-1 victory from the back line.
It wasn’t the scoreline expected from a clash between second and third but the Hawks struggled to take flight on a chilly evening and Tolland were more than happy to cash in.
Two goals inside the opening 20 minutes handed the Wolves a healthy lead before Henwood Park could even find their rhythm at Rawlings Park.
The Hawks pegged one back in the shadows of halftime but few could predict the second half onslaught that followed.
Wolves quartet Jaiden O’Brien, Nicholas Tsipiras, Matthew Kleine and Domenic Ciampa found the back of the net in quick succession, leaving Henwood Park on the wrong end of a heavy loss.
Tolland captain Richard Skidmore was unsurprisingly pleased with his side’s performance.
We worked hard as a team out there and everyone played really well.
- Tolland captain Richard Skidmore
“It was only 2-1 at halftime and we just kind of pulled it together in the second half,” Skidmore said.
“Our team chat during the break was pretty inspiring and in the end, we got exactly what we needed from the game.”
O’Brien continued his rich vein of form with a brace of goals while Wolves defender Jayden Beattie kept a tight ship at left back during the win.
The result sees Tolland nine points clear of Henwood Park on the competition table and increases pressure on ladder-leaders Lake Albert.
“As long as we keep doing our thing, we’ll stay in touch with Lake Albert and hopefully they drop a couple of points,” Skidmore said.
Henwood Park coach Ryan McKenzie could only shake his head at the five-goal loss.
They were just a lot hungrier than us and they came out really quick in the second half.
- Henwood Park coach Ryan McKenzie
“After they scored their third goal, there was a big momentum shift and I think a lot of heads just dropped,” McKenzie said.
McKenzie said there was a “bit of luck” in Tolland’s second half haul but conceded changes needed to be made before finals.
“You wouldn’t have expected them to score all those goals and there were some absolute crackers in there, but at the end of the day we gave them those opportunities to shoot,” he said.
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