Hockey: Tunbridge Wells Men beat Canterbury to reach final at last

HAVING lost at this stage of the competition to the same side in each of the last three seasons, Wells finally booked themselves a Kent Cup Final place after a comfortable win over Canterbury 2nds at Kent College.

But they were given an early scare after they gave away possession in a dangerous position to hand the visitors early lead in the opening minutes.

Wells had taken 10 points from their final three league games of the season but were not on top form as they tried to force the play too often.

But there were flashes of quality and a fine through ball from Cam Green picked out Ant Dalrymple on the baseline, who beat one defender before firing in from a tight angle.

The visitors’ goalkeeper did well to repel a couple of well struck penalty corners, before Nate Webster in the Wells goal himself had to make a smart stop to keep the scores level.

A further neat move through the lines set up Ben Allberry to tap in at the far post, giving Wells a 2-1 lead going into half-time.

The second half yielded a much better performance from the hosts, with increased commitment and composure.

A move that started in defence saw a neat interchange between Green and Allberry, the latter exquisitely lobbing the tall goalkeeper for a fine finish.

Allberry scored his hat-trick after a perfectly weighted ball from Poulain found Matt Wilson on the right wing, and his pace and fierce cross picked out the Wells’ player-coach at the back post.

So Wells set up a final showdown with local rivals Marden Russetts in May and a chance to secure a trophy which the club last won more than 20 years ago.

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