Richmond Survive Cup Test to Reach Next Round

Richmond Lacrosse Club | Flags Cup Round One | Buckhurst Hill

Richmond travelled to Buckhurst Hill for the opening round of the Flags Cup, facing a three-way match day against Buckhurst Hill and Purley Raptors, knowing only one side would progress to the next round.

After a dominant opening win and a tense second game, Richmond ultimately did enough to advance, although the final outcome would only be confirmed after the last match of the day.

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Richmond 9 – 1 Buckhurst Hill

Richmond started the day strongly and quickly set the tone for the contest.

James “Moose” Morrison opened the scoring with a pair of quickfire goals, both expertly taken bounce shots from around eight yards that left the Buckhurst Hill goalkeeper with little chance.

With the early lead established, Richmond began to dominate possession. Conor Hafner and Shayne Prior were superb at the face-off X, battling hard for ground balls and ensuring Richmond enjoyed long spells on the ball. Alongside them, Alex Dopson played an important role in the midfield, helping Richmond string together sustained spells of possession and keeping the tempo under control.

The pressure soon told. Trevor Bobowick added Richmond’s third with a lovely quick-stick finish on the crease, cutting through the defence to meet a feed from Craig Phildius behind the goal and burying the ball in the top corner.

Craig then marked his first goal for the club in the first half, finishing confidently after a fast break created by Alan Keeley breaking from the defensive end and drawing the final defender before slipping the pass.

Richmond continued to share the scoring around. Sergiu Teslovan added a brace of his own, both coming from strong alley dodges from up top before finishing neatly into the bottom corner.

Early in the second half, Morrison turned provider, slipping a perfectly weighted cross-crease feed to Rob Arnott, who finished smartly from close range.

Moose then completed his hat-trick in less orthodox fashion, a chaotic goal-line scramble that ended with Morrison poking the ball over the line snooker-cue style for Richmond’s final touch.

At the other end, Richmond produced a disciplined defensive performance, restricting Buckhurst Hill to just a single goal. Mike Kline, returning from injury for his first game in several months, put in a strong shift in the defensive unit alongside Stephen Brown, Stuart Page, Adam Gatley and Alan Keeley, who kept Buckhurst Hill’s attack largely quiet.

There was also a positive debut for Jack Tabor, whose energetic midfield performance added valuable legs as he covered ground up and down the field.

A commanding 9–1 win gave Richmond a strong start to the day and a valuable goal difference cushion heading into the second match.

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Richmond 3 – 3 Purley Raptors

The second match proved a far tighter affair.

Purley Raptors arrived with a strong squad and started quickly, racing into an early 2–0 lead and putting Richmond under immediate pressure. A defeat would have meant an early cup exit.

Richmond needed a response, and Moose Morrison provided it, settling nerves with a vital goal to bring Richmond back into the game.

The equaliser came in dramatic fashion. With Purley enjoying a man-up opportunity, they scrambled to prevent an over and back situation after a loose pass. Rob Arnott pounced on the loose ball and drove upfield, drawing the final defender before feeding Owen Keeley, who calmly slotted home to level the score at 2–2.

Richmond then edged ahead just before halftime. Cutting in from the right wing, Owen drove through two sliding defenders to get a shot away. The keeper made the initial save, but Owen reacted quickest to the rebound, battling through traffic to finish and give Richmond a 3–2 halftime lead.

The second half became a true rearguard effort.

Purley came out firing and Richmond were forced to defend deep, including several man-down situations. Alan Keeley was immense at the back, organising the defence and keeping the unit disciplined under sustained pressure.

Alongside him, Richmond's longpole unit and D middies dug in as Richmond absorbed wave after wave of attack, while Barry Macleod-Cullinane produced a couple of enormous saves to keep Richmond ahead.

Eventually the pressure told. With two minutes remaining, a Purley attacker drove from behind goal, turned inside after drawing the slide and finished low past Barry to level the game at 3–3.

Richmond, tiring but determined, dug deep for one final push. With the clock ticking down they managed to secure the last offensive possession of the game. Rob Arnott drove hard down the alley before rolling back and spotting Moose Morrison free around twelve yards from goal. Moose let rip with a trademark screamer, but the shot whistled agonisingly past the pipe, and with that the final whistle sounded.

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Qualification Drama

With the three-team format, Richmond’s fate was not yet sealed. Purley Raptors would still need to beat Buckhurst Hill by more than an eight-goal swing to overturn Richmond’s advantage.

In the final game of the day, Purley ran out 6–1 winners, but it wasn’t enough.

The result meant Richmond progress to the next round of the Flags Cup, which will take place in two weeks’ time.

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Goal Scorers

Richmond vs Buckhurst Hill

• James Morrison (3)

• Sergiu Teslovan (2)

• Trevor Bobowick (1)

• Rob Arnott (1)

• Craig Phildius (1)

• Shayne Prior (1)

Richmond vs Purley Raptors

• James Morrison (1)

• Owen Keeley (2)

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Richmond Squad

Barry McLeod-Cullinane; Stuart Page, Stephen Brown, Alan Keeley, Mike Kline, Adam Gatley; Conor Hafner, Shayne Prior, Alex Dopson, Jack Tabor, Sergiu Teslovan, Trevor Bobowick, Rob Arnott; Craig Phildius, Owen Keeley, James "Moose" Morrison.