BURTON’S plight at the foot of the Midlands Premier Division deepened following an 8-3 defeat at Rugby & East Warwickshire, though the hosts were flattered by the margin of victory.
After a heavy overnight frost, Burton made their way to Rugby only to be greeted by a half-frozen pitch at the original venue.
However, Rugby have a plethora of pitches to choose from and, after a quick phone call, the teams darted across town to play at an alternative venue.
Despite the disjointed organisation, both sides got on with it and the game started at a frantic pace.
Burton fell behind to a goal from a penalty corner within the first minute.
A weak flick went under goalkeeper Martin Jarvis and the Burton stopper knew he should have done better.
The opening 10 minutes saw an onslaught on the Burton goal and only some astonishing misses and a stop on the line by Phil Holmes ensured they were not three down inside five minutes.
Rugby pose a great threat going forward and their decision to flood the midfield to stop Burton passing seemed to be working, but the visitors masterminded their own downfall with some slack marking and were 2-0 down as a flowing move was finished from close range.
Burton responded and a quick move saw them win their first penalty corner, and Mark Northcott dragged it home low.
The ding-dong battle continued and Rugby scored again as their right side was doing all the damage.
Undeterred, Burton won another penalty corner and despite the move breaking down, Paul Cleaver found a pocket of space and finished well from close range.
As good as Burton were in the attacking third, they were woeful at the other end and left Jarvis exposed as Rugby went into half-time with a 4-2 lead.
Harsh words rang out at the break and Burton needed to address their structure and find their passing game.
It worked as the start of the second half saw a vast improvement and Burton got back in to the game at 4-3 when Jamie Cooper took on drag-flicking duties and powered home a chance.
Rugby were wobbling and Burton were winning the midfield contest for the first time but, as in recent weeks, some crucial decisions went against them and they were punished.
Rugby won a penalty corner when it seemed the ball was lifted into the D by one of their forwards and they converted.
Minutes later, James Buttler seemed to be impeded in the D by a push, but the umpire’s view was blocked.
As he stumbled, he kicked the ball, and from the resultant penalty corner, Rugby extended their lead to 5-3.
Burton chased and went more attacking, still believing they could get a point from the game.
However, in their attempts to press on, defensive gaps were cleverly exposed by Rugby’s experienced forward line.
The 8-3 scoreline was somewhat flattering of Rugby, but Burton never gave up hope of gaining something from the game.
The title is almost decided, with Khalsa 14 points clear, but the battle at the bottom is still very tight.
Burton director of hockey Tony Stringer said: “Our cause was not helped today with Warwick beating West Bridgford and Coventry thrashing Northampton, but we still have 30 points to play for.
“The games against the teams around us are key, but our strongest performances have been against the teams at the top.
“We need to keep believing, train hard and hope for a little bit of luck on a Saturday.
“This league kicks you when you are down. We have to pick ourselves up, but all the lads know they are good enough and we look forward to West Bridgford coming to Shobnall on Saturday.” The match will push back at 1pm, with all support welcome.
