EuroHockey Junior Championship (under-21) II: Scotland 5, Italy 1 (in St Petersburg, Russia)
Scotland bounced back yesterday from an opening defeat to record an emphatic victory and boost confidence ahead of their final Pool A game against hosts Russia.
Coach Graham Moodie saw his under-21 quad, who lost 3-0 to Poland on Sunday, go 1-0 down from a penalty corner from Luca Valentino after five minutes.
But his bravehearts claimed five unanswered goals, three of them in seven, first-half minutes, to record a 5-1 win over Italy in St Petersburg.
Moodie, a former Olympian, had to wait eight minutes for his young lions to level through Robert Harwood.
Four minutes after that they went ahead with Kyle Gladwin, a late inclusion in the squad after an injury to Edinburgh-born Hamish Imrie, slotted home.
Luke Cranney, who teaches hockey at Loretto School near Edinburgh, made it 3-1 three minutes after that to take the stuffing out of the Italian side.
Two goals in two, second-half minutes secured the win, Harwood’s second coming in 48 minutes and Dundonian Cameron Golden slotting the final goal of the game after 50 minutes.
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