Vintage Parkins upset Holyhead

Wigtown Wanderers - 610* vs Holyhead Harpies - 480

	Harpies	Wanderers
Keeper	Griffiths	Warburton
Chasers	Gallies	Drummond
	Gladstone (C)	Mackenzie
	Barnacle	Anstice
Beaters	Tolipan	A.Parkin (C)
	Gibberd	Thruston
Seeker	Whitehorn	B.Parkin

The Holyhead Harpies and Wigtown Wanderers have been two of the biggest movers in the 2012 League compared to last year. The Harpies have overcome a horror 2011 and frightening start this season to hold down an impressive third on the table, best of the rest behind the uncatchable Magpies and Wasps.

Wigtown’s first half of the season was uniformly poor by contrast. Not even a late resurgence of sorts has been able to save the day for Wigtown, who are out of finals contention, or release the pressure on struggling captain Alaisdair Parkin.

The only change for the Wanderers saw Maighdlin Mackenzie earn her first start of the season in place of Justin Beardsley. But Harpies manager Gloria Gwestenak was rather more trigger happy, continuing further the burgeoning debate on modern-day resting policies by leaving out four of her very best.

Despite her rich vein of form, Seeker Zelda Bloch was rested, risking a potential breaking of her forward momentum. Also given a week off were the revelatory but young and fragile Keeper Filemina Weatherwax, form Chaser Gweneth Birchgrove and that fatiguing warrior Gwenevak Glossop. In Glossop’s absence, the Harpies were led by Generys Gladstone who was retained to try and play her out of a slight and subtle form slump.

In the early stages it was the Harpies who had the run of play, Gwendoline Barnacle taking advantage of her rare opportunity with early goals. But there was still a definite second-string feeling to Holyhead’s play nevertheless. There was a lack of ruthlessness from the Chasers, who made silly finishing errors after quality attacking setups, as well as allowing easy return goals.

The Wanderers, as per recent form, lacked the incoherence of the early season but were still uninspiring. But routine efficiency was all that was needed to keep the narrowly leading Harpies in range.

Sensing the chance to take a big scalp in 2012, and that his already eliminated side had nothing to lose anyway, the time came for Alaisdair Parkin to take everyone back to the 1990s. The heir to the patriarchy of Wigtown’s royal Parkin family, the veteran Beater put on a show of old, flooring Gladstone and Eduaphora Gallies in quick succession, while simultaneously providing brilliantly unorthodox shepherding defence of his Chasers from the Harpies own quality Beaters.

In time the Harpies lead had been pegged back, Wigtown at one stage pulling as far as fifty points clear before Talulah Tolipan and Rohesia Gibberd put Aileen Anstice to ground and helped even the match once again.

With the lead constantly changing in a gripping if slightly curious and second-rate contest, it came to Begonia Parkin to complete her historic family’s latest glory day.

Holyhead’s replacement Seeker Glaudusa Whitehorn is herself no slouch. Whitehorn would make the starting seven of many teams, but at Holyhead is kept on the sidelines by the majesty of Zelda Bloch. Whitehorn’s out-of-practice eyes were attuned enough to spot the snitch, but there was nothing she could do to stop Begonia Parkin slicing underneath her , wonderfully predicting the snitch’s change of direction away from Whitehorn’s descent and snatching the ball as it passed back over her shoulder.

The Harpies may have been rather second-fiddle, but the emotional scenes of jubilation were no less for the Wanderers, who looked as if they’d won the League Cup. Part of the reason for this became clear post-match when Alaisdair Parkin, looking almost content for the first time this season after a man of the match performance, announced his retirement at the end of the season.

Wigtown Wanderers - 610: Anstice 20, Drummond 13, Mackenzie 13, B.Parkin Capture

Holyhead Harpies - 480: Barnacle 20, Gladstone 17, Gallies 11

PLAYER OF THE MATCH: ALAISDAIR PARKIN (WANDERERS)