Bragging rights are targeted as well as Cup glory

Today, the 19 year-old gets his chance.

The Doncaster-born player, who has represented the club since the age of six, will proudly represent the whole of Yorkshire when Doncaster, who play in the second tier of English hockey, battle the English Hockey League champions and holders Beeston in the National Cup final in Cannock.

It will be the biggest game in Morrison’s career, but, as a young boy when he imagined it, things were slightly different.

“I dreamed about playing in the FA Cup final,” he said.

The National Cup final is hockey’s equivalent and the creative midfield talent, who has hockey in his blood as both his parents played for Doncaster, said he did not let himself get carried away with the prospect of playing in club hockey’s big game.

“In the quarter-finals we just said we’d aim for the semis because we’d never been there,” he said.

“It wasn’t until half-time in the semi-final that we realised we could actually get to the final. It all happened a bit quickly.”

The 3-0 semi-final triumph over Premier Division side and six-time finalists Cannock has been the highlight of Doncaster’s fairytale Cup run, which began in October.

Morrison, whose passion for hockey grew when he was awarded a hockey scholarship at Worksop College, played a vital part in that success, scoring two goals.

But, the grounded perfectionist was not willing to sing his own praises.

“I should have had three,” he observed. “I missed a great opportunity.”

And, while he is delighted to help a Yorkshire club get to the final for the first time, he was still disappointed that Sheffield managed to finish higher than Doncaster in the league.

But, if Doncaster bring home the Cup, the county bragging rights will be theirs.

Hence the trepidation Morrison will feel on the trip down to Cannock.

“I’ll keep my iPod on and try not to think about it on the coach,” he said.

“We’ll go for a team lunch and just try to have fun and relax. When I get out there and start playing the nerves will go.

“It will look good on my CV to play in a final. There will be lots of spectators there and people from top clubs watching which will be a new experience.

“I’m sure that will just get me even more up for the game.”

According to Morrison, Doncaster – who will be underdogs going into the final – will be celebrating their achievement tonight no matter what happens in the game.

“It’s going to be brilliant on the way back,” he said. “We’re all going out in Doncaster and some of the guys who live further away are going to sleep in tents.”

Morrison’s coach at Doncaster, Leigh Hodgson, said the club can already be proud of their success and can go into the game under little pressure and with nothing to lose.

“The achievement in some respects is actually getting there,” he said.

“It’s a first for the club and it’s a first for any club in the whole of Yorkshire.”

But the Doncaster team have not driven down to Staffordshire just to make up the numbers.

Hodgson and the players are confident they have a real chance of making the coach a little bit heavier by bringing some silverware back up the M1.

It is Beeston’s fifth final and ominously their fourth in a row.

The holders have won two of those last three and have scored 23 goals in their four-game cup run so far this season.

But Hodgson believes he has pinpointed their biggest threat.

He said: “They’ve got a big Australian guy who plays at the back (Andrew Monte).

“We need to try and deny him some space behind our back line.

“We don’t want to get overstretched. We’ve got some guys who are quick and we’re good on the counter attack so we will naturally try to set up defensively and use the way we like to play – which is on the break.

“The three goals we got in the semi-final all came from short corners.

“So, if we can win some corners we feel like we can get some success.”

Doncaster’s league season ended five weeks ago, while Beeston have been playing in the championship play-offs as well as participating in the Euro Hockey League.

Hodgson’s side played last weekend against the Yorkshire county side but have found it hard to arrange games.

For Hodgson and the team, the gap between matches has made preparation difficult but the coach believes Beeston’s crowded schedule could work in their favour.

“It’s been difficult, there’s no doubt,” said Hodgson, whose only major injury absentee is 23-year-old Tim Shirley, who recently broke his ankle.

“We’ve trained a lot, which has been different for the guys because some of them are keen cricketers and we’re bordering on the cricket season now.

“We’ve struggled to arrange games because nobody is available to play as the season is effectively over.

“But, we’ve got a game plan and we’ve been able to work on that over the course of the last four or five weeks.

“Hopefully, we’ll be fresh. Beeston have played a lot of hockey in the last few weeks, so you never know, that might work against them.”

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