After postponed fixtures on December 17, the Isle of Man representative hockey teams got back into action in round two of the England Hockey Association championships at the weekend.

The men’s A tier two team and women’s B, which plays in tier three, both travelled to Leeds Adel on Saturday.

The latter side was up against Leeds Adel B and the first half was end-to-end with numerous chances for both sides being saved by the respective goalkeeper and defenders saving off the line.

It remained goalless at half-time with the game on a knife edge. Making impressive debuts, Claire Mason and Lucie Sutterby made some deadly runs and interceptions before going on to Talent Academy sessions the following day.

In the closing stages the Manx side had the majority of the possession with hard work from all the players, but Leeds had a break five minutes from the end that resulted in a short corner. The girls set up well for the original shot but it took a slight defection and ended up in the back of the net for Adel to go one in front.

Battling back, the Manx girls won a few short corners, coming very close through Emily Kelly and Emily Middleton.

With time running out and Adel defending in numbers the IoM couldn’t quite get the equaliser to send it to flicks, but they did a fantastic job overall in their first outing together.

The men were up next against Leeds Adel firsts, who currently sit third in the Yorkshire and North East Men’s Premier Division.

The Manxman were aware it would be a tough match and after the month’s break they would have to be on top form.

They began well, keeping possession and the pressure reaped rewards when Jonny Callow made a back-post run and knocked the ball into the back of the net in the seventh minute.

The islanders were doing a lot of things right but were still trying to force passes at times. They regained composure and with a fantastic run from Elliott Reid down the right-hand-side he found Callum Robb at the back post to slot home the second on the 20th minute.

Before the break, Adel began working their way back into the game and gaps were starting to appear. With a breakdown in play Adel were able to take advantage and scurry the ball into the goal for 2-1 at half-time.

With a solid team talk from captain Jamie Brown and Neil Crowe, the Manxmen knew what they needed to sharpen up on and how to see the game out if it came to it.

Isle of Man had a few good chances go astray in the D and the Adel keeper did a great job keeping them at bay.

A few cards and breakdowns for both teams in the second half meant they had to keep their composure.

A great take from Tom Lothian in the defensive half found Luca Parlato who made a clear-cut run down the right to see a few options in front of him, but picking the correct ball found Reid in the 32nd minute of the second half to put it away and take a 3-1 lead into the final minutes of the game.

The team dug deep and held onto the ball, finding the corners and keeping possession.

They will now face Brooklands thirds before February 24, joining the women’s A side in round three who will face Lymm and Alderley Edge seconds.

l Thanks again to Isle of Man Steam Packet Company for the continued help with travel.

Anyone who would like the opportunity of sponsoring home games or the Isle of Man National teams should please get in touch with Debbie Shimmin via email - [email protected]