BUCKFIELD — Barring an unexpected break or bounce, Buckfield had minimal intentions of scoring a goal in the first half of its boys’ soccer game Thursday against Richmond.

There was a method to the madness. By packing it in, the Bucks wanted to take advantage of their relatively narrow field, frustrate the skilled, explosive Bobcats and shorten the game.

To that extent, the strategy succeeded. Buckfield kept Richmond off the scoreboard until intermission. Eddie Stewart’s goal in the third minute of the second half broke the stalemate, however, and charted the course to a 2-0 Bobcats win.

Stewart cashed in courtesy of the continuing action after a corner kick, with Nate Tribbett furnishing the assist.

Tribbett also set up the second goal for Richmond (6-1), a second-chance blast by Randy Moody with 10:30 remaining.

“We moved some guys back who would normally play midfield because we wanted to be more defensive,” Buckfield co-coach Kyle Rines said. “We wanted to be 0-0 at halftime. You never know what could happen in a 40-minute half. At the half we were pretty pleased, but I knew they would come out strong.”

Richmond adjusted to the crowded box and Buckfield’s slender pitch by changing its alignment.

“We tried to draw it back out to create some seams,” Richmond coach Joe Scribellito said. “When we did that it created some goal opportunities. We regrouped a little bit, but it took us a half to do it.”

Stewart’s goal wasn’t enough to chase away the Bucks (3-5).

Goalkeeper Calvin Downey held up to the increased workload in the second half, making several stops at close range.

Buckfield’s best chance at the equalizer was a direct kick by Garrett Hamann. It sailed just wide of Richmond goalie Dustin Sullivan to the left side of the cage.

Another would-be Bucks breakaway was stalled because play had been whistled dead near the midfield stripe.

“Going in, we felt it was going to be close,” Rines said. “And it was a couple of calls, a couple of good shots away from being a tie ballgame.”

Moody put the issue out of reach. Downey (10 saves) dove to deny Tribbett’s initial shot, leaving Moody with an open look at the empty net after he swallowed up the rebound.

Still, this was a far cry from Richmond’s 5-0 win in the initial meeting.

“If you’re a defensive-minded team on a smaller field, typically good things will happen for you,” Scribellito said. “They were hoping for a couple of mistakes on our part. Fortunately for us today we didn’t make the mistake.”

It was the third straight shutout loss for the Bucks.

“We have a lot of experience playing Richmond. We know what they’re going to do every game,” Rines said. “It’s all about what can you do differently and what can you do to play better?”

Richmond hasn’t surrendered a goal since its Sept. 11 loss to Greenville.

Reading about Greenville’s subsequent surprising loss to Valley was wakeup call enough for the Bobcats prior to a road test against one of their time-honored rivals.

“Class D in Western Maine is pretty wide-open,” Scribellito said. “Anybody can beat anybody, but we can’t let that happen. These kids have an agenda. They want to go ahead.”

koakes@sunjournal.com

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