Mens 1XI in 10-goal thriller

Barton recovered some the previous week's defeat to Rugby by earning a hard-fought point in a 10-goal thriller against Stone.

Jacob Buxton was unavailable due to being away on representative duties at the Futures Cup whilst Jamie Foster was unavailable due to work commitments, so James Ridley and Jamie Sheriff came into the squad.

With Stone being another side that had come down from Midlands Premier Division Barton knew they would be in for another tough afternoon. Some re-shuffling in the Barton defence saw some players in unfamiliar positions and this affected Barton's defensive structure and organisation and resulted in them going 3-0 down inside the first 10 minutes. Stone looked to hit Barton on the break and time and time again in the opening minutes they managed to isolate the Barton defenders and either win penalty corners or get a shot off in open play. Stone managed to convert 2 of the penalty corners and also slotted home from close range on the break to give them a much deserved 3-0 lead and giving Barton a mountain to climb. Barton's task could have been even more difficult had it not been for some superb saves made by Mike Parr returning in the Barton goal. Parr spared Barton's blushes on 3 separate occasions and this then allowed Barton to begin to get a foothold back in the game.

Barton made some tactical adjustments and this saw them shorten their game up and press Stone higher up the pitch and they were soon causing the visitors problems. Barton eventually pulled a goal back 10 minutes before the interval with Ben Elson remaining calmest to pounce on a bouncing ball and squeeze a finish past the keeper.

This gave a half-time scoreline of 3-1 to Stone and Barton had much to ponder at the interval as they looked for a way back into the game. Coach Nigel Taylor emphasised the need to play at a higher tempo and concentrate harder when out of possession and reassured his players that they were very much still in the game.

Barton clearly took the message on board and started the 2nd half the far better of the 2 sides. They pressed their visitors high up the pitch and started to cause them to turn over possession with increasing frequency. This saw them create more and more chances and eventually Barton pulled a goal back through Ash Parr after he latched onto a Craig Tilke through ball. Barton then suffered another set-back as a slick Stone attack saw them round keeper Parr and restore their 2 goal cushion. Barton didn't let this get them down and they soon reduced the deficit to 1-goal again as they broke forward and were awarded a penalty stroke for the ball hitting a Stone defender on the line. Barton Skipper Adam Foster stepped up and duly converted the penalty stroke to take the score to 4-3 to Stone. Foster then doubled his tally 5 minutes later to draw Barton level, applying the finishing touch after being cleverly played in by Ashley Parr. Barton could sniff the chance of victory now and with 10 minutes to go took the lead for the first time in the match. A slick penalty corner routine saw Jacob Foster apply the finishing touch to give Barton a 5-4 lead.

Stone were not done yet and pressed hard for a way back into the game. This saw Barton twice go down to ten-men as they looked to break down Stone attacks and the visitors man advantage eventually paid off as they drew the scores level at 5-5 with 5 minutes remaining. Both teams searched for a winner in a frantic final 5 minutes. Tilke had Barton's best chance but he was denied by 2 fine saves from the visiting keeper and Barton had their keeper Parr to thank for keeping a penalty corner at bay after the final whistle had gone.

The game eventually drew to a close with the scores at 5-5 and a hard-fought yet deserved point for both teams. Next Saturday sees Barton travel to Birmingham University to face Edgbaston. 1.30pm push back.