Another tough win for men's team as East Anglia face long journey home
Goals from Nathan Villiers, captain Dimitri Chambers and Marcus Howe made it seven wins for the men's team as they give themselves a fighting chance to snatch promotion from Nottingham Trent with a 3-1 win against third place East Anglia.
It was a top all-round performance which gives captain Chambers a lot of confidence going into their cup semi-final at Lincoln.
Despite it being the lowest score this season, Chambers was pleased with the performance. "Players seem to be working more together, keeping the ball in their sticks more and passing it round more as well."
The early stages of the game saw the hosts have the majority of the possession, but almost every shot seemed to not challenge the UEA keeper. That did not stop Staffs continuing that same pressure going into the second quarter where they took the lead with a neat finish by Villiers to make it thirteen goals for the season.
The lead was quickly doubled by Chambers who continues to show why he is the clubs top goalscorer. But just before the interval the visitors got a goal after a mix-up in defence that made UEA halve the deficit.
It was more of the same in the second half as Staffs' pressure meant little for UEA to do make it a tied game. Once again the pressure ended with the hosts third goal of the game and probably the best of the day. It began with a fast-break by the Staffs attackers and an individual run by Chambers ended with a pass to Howe who managed to draw out his defender and finished the pass with a slick quick-stick shot into the top right corner.
This win means that Staffs have to travel to league leaders Nottingham Trent to end their league season. It is seen to be a promotion decider, but with Trent's triple figure goal difference hard to challenge, it looks like the encounter may just be more practice for Varsity. "I know the season is coming to a close now. With just only one league game left is a bit of a disappointment as we are having the best success ever in our clubs history and I'm very pleased to be part of such a great team as well."
Speaking of Varsity, the big day is just 25 days away now, the excitement in the team is almost in top gear. "The vibe is amazing within the team. Everyone is up for it and with the deal of getting me to drink after the game when we win, it seems to put every one in a fighting mood and more for Varsity."