Commonwealth Games: Wimbledon hockey player scores in England’s 6-0 win over Ghana

BY MAX HALL

Wimbledon Hockey Club’s David Condon got in on the act as England opened their Commonwealth Games campaign with a 6-0 win over debutants Ghana.

The host nation were already five goals to the good 10 minutes from time when Rhys Smith pulled the ball back from the left and space opened up for the Wimbledon star to rifle home past the impressive Duisberg Offei, in the Ghanaian goal.

“At half-time we were talking about how they were defending like dogs and basically crowding the D,” Condon told the South London Press.

“We had the ball on the baseline and I looked around and everyone was there in front of goal so I just kind of pulled off and found myself on the shoulder of the D with acres of space. I received it, saw everyone rushing out and thought ‘no time, just push it as hard as you can at the goal’ and everyone just seemed to move out the way and it just floated in. I’ll take that. I never turn a goal down!”

Wimbledon team-mates Liam Ansell and Jack Waller also enjoyed plenty of pitch time as England predictably spent a lot of time camped in their opponents’ half after Nicholas Bandurak had broken the deadlock during the first quarter.

Visiting keeper Offei pulled off some impressive, spectacular stops before Phil Roper broke his resistance by rifling an unstoppable effort into the top right corner in the 26th minute.

Bandurak claimed his second, and England’s third, with just 5.9 seconds remaining in the first half, finding the same corner from a well-worked set-piece.

Will Calnan made it four with six minutes remaining in the third period. As the third quarter ticked down into its final seconds, Bandurak sealed his hat-trick by firing into the top corner from a set-piece seconds after attempting a carbon copy move as Ghana again scrambled to clear their lines.

There was still time after Condon’s effort for Offei to pull off a breathtaking stop to deny Bandurak a fourth, seven minutes from time. And the cheers that resounded in the stadium when Ghana won a short corner at the other end showed the Birmingham crowd were warming to the underdogs, who were denied by a post.

Wimbledon’s Ansell said the camaraderie between the club’s Team GB players ensured there was some ribbing in the dressing room in the lead-up to the games.

“There’s always a bit of that in the locker room and stuff,” he said. “But luckily for us one of our biggest strengths is not just here as England but as GB. We’re all great friends so it’s just harmless and nice to have those rivalries.

“We’ve got Wales next game,” said Ansell, looking ahead to Sunday. “So that’ll be a feisty encounter. A few of the boys we play with at the club and GB standard, so that should be a spicy encounter.”