Juraj Huska’s lone goal was not enough to prevent the Invicta Dynamos losing out 7-1 to Streatham IHC in the London Cup on Saturday night.

The Mos were down to just 12 players due to injuries and illness with Billy Phillips, Tommy Ralph, Matt Foord, Richard Harris, Joshua Condren, Luke Thirkettle, Mason Webster and Taylor Chard all missing out. Club legend Karl Lennon returned to bolster the numbers whilst goalie Ben Clements was back in action after several weeks out with a hand injury.

In the opening frame it took until just 07.32 for Streatham to take the lead – Ivan Antonov and Joshua Ealey-Newman combined before James Warman beat Ben Clements for the opener. That edge was then increased at 16.25 – Thomas Beesley teed up Antonov who turned the puck over the line for 2-0. And it was soon 3-0 – Ben Paynter finding Scott Bailey who played on to Joshua Ealey-Newman for the finish at 17.02.

In the second period an interference penalty on Ben Ealey-Newman and elbows minor on James Warman gave the Mos a 5-on-3 and they struck through Juraj Huska at 26.27 with assists going to Ashley Jackson and Brandon Webster to cut the deficit to 3-1. Streatham were immediately back on the front foot though and made it 4-1 at 27.04 – Ben Ealey-Newman finding Ivan Antonov who tallied his second of the night, this time shorthanded.

At 34.39 the Mos fell further behind – Michael Farn and Ivan Antonov combining before Ben Ealey-Neman added his name to the growing list of scorers. Tempers then flared at 39.10 – Brandon Webster and Scott Bailey ditching the gloves to exchange the blows in a tough fought bout.

In the final frame the gloves came off again at 46.05 – this time Streatham’s Ben Paynter tussled with Henry Aiken. When the action restarted the hosts saw out the game with two further goals that cemented a 7-1 victory. The first came at 58.37 – Ivan Antonov and Ben Paynter in the mix before Joshua Ealey-Newman fired beyond Ben Clements. Ealey-Newman also scored the last of the night exactly a minute later – this time Milique Martelly and Conner Smith getting the assists.

So it was defeat for the Mos against the league’s current strongest side but it was always going to be an uphill battle given the significant absences from the squad.