Matt Davey was quick to praise the spirited team display which saw St Albans Hockey Club’s Men’s Firsts claim a 5-3 win over Letchworth on Saturday.

The Tangerines were the better side for much of the game and made their dominance tell to go in leading 3-1 at half-time.

They built on that advantage after the interval and captain Davey was happy with the manner of St Albans’ performance.

He said: “Letchworth rallied in the second half and put up a valiant fight, but we played a confident and composed last five minutes to retake the lead and put it out of the home side’s reach.”

A lively opening from the Saints saw them put their opponents on the back foot in the early exchanges and take the lead when Pete Cornell deflected Ian Scanlon’s shot beyond the Letchworth keeper.

The hosts were soon level though, but the Tangerines made sure they were well in charge of the game at half-time when Dave Williams scored from close range and Tariq Marcano made it 3-1.

However, Letchworth were in no mood to accept their fate and hit back twice without a reply to level the scores in the second half.

St Albans reacted in perfect fashion to the setback as they once again got on the front foot and reasserted themselves on the match.

Tom Hudson won a short corner after being fouled and Marcano saw his initial effort from the set-piece saved before Dillet Gilkes turned in the rebound.

The game remained in the balance until its very last throes as Letchworth pushed hard for an equaliser.

It was the Tangerines who had the final say on the game though, when a sweeping break ended with Cornell fizzing in a low cross which a Letchworth defender could only divert into his own net.