Match Report – Saturday 19th September – Gents 1s

Inverleith 0 – Uddingston 3

The Uddingston Mens’ 1s kicked off the 2026/27 season with a comfortable 3-0 win away against Inverleith.

The score line flattered Inverleith who spent much of the match pinned in their own half. They did make the occasional threatening counterattack and, once or twice, entered the Uddy D, but nothing came of their efforts.

The result was a satisfying clean sheet and, compared to the 8-1 thrashing away against Western in the opening game last year, this was a positive and encouraging outcome for the men in blue and yellow.

Barely mentioned in the Scottish Hockey season preview, despite making the playoffs last year, Uddingston may yet surprise a few people, and a few teams, this coming season.

On a blustery day in Edinburgh, with autumnal leaves scattering over the newly re-laid surface and a low sun shining in everyone’s eyes, Uddy went about their task with purpose and confidence.

An excellent and extensive pre-season, which included wins against Watsonians, Hillhead and Kelburne and three quick goals against Western, suggested Uddy have gone up a gear this year and could be real contenders.

The club welcomed some quality new recruits onto the programme over the summer and their presence and contribution were clearly evident in this opening game. Former Inverleith player Andrew Clark put in a typically industrious display in the Uddy midfield, while new signing Aussie Will Searl was a whirlwind of energy and drive, giving impetus to attacks and retreating at speed in defence.

Other newcomers to the squad included two young Irishmen and University of Strathclyde students, defender James Smith and attacker Euan Hutchinson, both of whom made decent contributions to the win.

Perhaps the most exciting aspect of the game was Uddy’s now dangerous attack led by new recruit and senior Scotland player Euan Gilmour.  It was Gilmour who scored two of Uddy’s goals, one an audacious lift and smash over the keeper in the second quarter, the second a slap from close range following a penalty corner in the third. Uddingston, at last, has the striking power to match arguably the best defensive set up in the league.

Against Inverleith, Uddy’s attackers weren’t quite at their best. Too often balls crashed into the fencing behind the goal, ricocheted off the post or were shut down in the D by a good keeper and his crowd of desperate defenders. The windy conditions also made it difficult to judge or trap aerial balls, several of which sailed high and harmlessly over the baseline.

But this is very early season, and three goals was a decent return in the end. More clinical finishing will be needed, however, as the season progresses.

The penalty corner routine, in particular, seemed far below what the team is capable of and will need to be sharpened up considerably in the coming weeks.

The Uddy defensive set up remains hugely impressive with Angus Sinclair, Jedd Campbell and Stephen MacKenzie looking impenetrable at the back for most of the game. It was Sinclair who scored Uddy’s third goal, the result of a goalmouth scramble following a penalty corner. Keeper Nic Hadland, recently back from injury, marshalled his backline well and would have been more than happy with the clean sheet.

It was good to see the continuing development of players such as Andrew Docherty, Luca Gardiner and Ben Young, who all had a decent opening game.

Overall, this was a satisfying and encouraging win by a team which has the potential to go all the way in this competition. Few teams will relish their visits to Bothwell Castle and the Uddy faithful are quietly confident that 2026/7 will be a standout season for the men in blue and yellow.

Adrian Hadland

We stream our Saturday games live on our dedicated YouTube channel, UddyTV. Make sure you check out the latest game here – Uddy Hockey YouTube. 

If you are interested in compiling a match report for another team, please get in touch with [email protected]