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| Hockey Under 11 Girls Team 'Blog' |
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U11A Squad for 1st Match U11B Squad for 1st Match Wednesday 27th January V Daneshill U11A Drew 1-1 (Megan Wilkins) Player of the match - Megan Wilkins The Eagle House girls looked much more organised for this match. A fantastic goal from Megan in the first couple of minutes made them even more determined. Their stick skills have developed, allowing them to control the ball and send it effectively into space. Caitlyn showed particular skill with a reverse stick goal just before half time. Unfortunately it was disallowed by a mean umpire (me) for being outside the D! The second half was slightly more uneventful and Eagle House looked set for a win until the five minutes before full time when Daneshill pushed a stray ball over their line. A slight lack of fitness meant that we couldn't quite do enough to score the winner before the final whistle. Teamwork and spacing on the pitch can still be an issue at times but generally a great game - well done! Wednesday 27th January V Daneshill U11B Lost 1-0 Player of the match - Ella Samuel We were very unlucky not to draw this match as the Daneshill goal was scored in the last five seconds of the game and the two teams were very evenly matched throughout. As an unbiased coach (!) I think that the Eagle House girls had the better skills. However, we were just too nice! We need to develop a desire to be first to the ball and get it in the back of the net! The ball was a magnet at times, with both sides being attracted to it. This meant that the center of the pitch got very crowded and prevented the play from flowing. However, it was great to see all the U11s getting involved. Particular mention should go to Ella and Chloe who both worked their socks off. Wednesday 25th November v Lambrook U11A Lost 8 - 0 Player of the match - Caitlyn Earwaker After a few disappointing losses for Eagle House U11 A’s the girls have been practising really hard and were determined to show that they have the skills to make a winning hockey team. Unfortunately Lambrook had other ideas and were a force to be reckoned with. Lambrook took control from the first whistle and dominated the majority of play on the pitch as we unfortunately didn't show much spatial awareness on the pitch and we often just hit the ball straight to the opposition instead of dribbling around them. Caitlyn Earwaker had a superb match and kept running continuously never giving up, both in attack and defence. Girls, when we are attacking with the ball, wanting to score, we do need to get more players in front of the ball and into the “D” otherwise we will never get the ball in the back of the goal. We also need to work on not following the ball around the pitch, especially in defence because we sometimes left our opposition alone in the “D” unmarked. However on a very positive note many of the Eagle House girls fought hard and went in strong on tackles plus it clearly showed that their stick skills are improving. Keep going girls - it will come together soon!
Wednesday 11th November V Marleston House U11A Lost 6-0 Players of the match - Caitlyn E & Lucy W 'Mud, Mud....not so glorious mud!' Hockey played on astroturf or a hard surface is a very different game from hockey played on very wet, long grass. The girls struggled to transfer their skills onto this new surface, while the Marleston House girls were very used to playing a hit and run onto the ball type game. Excuses aside...we often let the opposition's attackers roam free in our 'D' meaning that when they did get a lucky break, despite some saves from Caitlyn M, all too often they scored. However, I was impressed by the tenacity that Eagle House showed. Caitlyn E,Lucy and Alice ran their socks off but found it difficult to move the ball into space. We needed to get more players in front of the ball when we had possession if we were ever going to score. Scoring did look more and more likely as the game progressed and in the dying minutes we put one in the net which was disallowed as it was struck outside the 'D' and Caitlyn struck a glorious shot which missed the far post by about two centimeters! The score does not indicate how much of the play we actually had. The team are still searching for that illusive win and I am sure that with the progress I have seen of late it will come soon - don't give up, girls! Saturday 7th November V Hoe Bridge U11A - Lost 2-3 Opposition's 'Woman of the Match' - Alice Coach's 'Women of the Match' - Caitlin M (Goalkeeper) and Caitlyn E This was a really exciting end to end game between two very equally matched sides. I had asked the girls to come out fighting and give me every last ounce of determination and that is what they did. Their positioning on the pitch and passing to players in space could have been better, however they showed good stick skills and attack in the 'D'. For much of the first half Eagle House were in the lead through an excellent goal by Caitlyn E. Hoe Bridge fought back with two goals early in the second half. However, as Hoe Bridge's pressure in the 'D' increased, Caitlin M saved some excellent shots to keep us in contention. Megan equalised half way through the second half and Alice looked likely to score another on a number of occasions. Unfortunately, Hoe Bridge got the winner two minutes before full time. A great game to watch. Keep up the good work, girls. Wednesday 23rd September V Holme Grange U11A - Lost 4-0 Woman of the Match - Caitlyn E The first match of a season is always difficult to play away, but the score line does not really do the girls' efforts justice. It was a game between two very evenly matched sides and I was proud of how Eagle House showed skill and tenacity. In fact, it was 0-0 up until the last five minutes of the game when unfortunately, Holme Grange found their accuracy in the 'D' and we allowed them to take control of the match. Although the Eagle House girls fought hard and showed good stick skills, we didn't show much spatial awareness on the pitch. We need to work on not following the ball around and on better positioning in the 'D'. Although all the girls worked hard, special mention should go to Caitlyn and Alice who worked their 'socks off' to be first to the ball and put in a tackle. I hope that in future we can learn how to finish all that effort with a hard shot on goal! Well done, a good start, but we know we can do better don't we! U11B - Lost 4-2 Player of the Match: Ella Samuel Coach’s Player: Ella Samuel This was not a bad result from a team who had not played a competitive match together before now. A slow start allowed Holme Grange to move the ball easily up the pitch but a couple of excellent saves from GK Caitlin stopped an early goal. Gradually EH got into the game ably led by the defence, especially Ella, who was working extremely hard going in for the tackle and clearing onto the wing. She and Sarah halted many a ball heading into the circle and put it out wide. HG’s attack had a determined spirit and were not deterred by this, finally making a great run up the wing, crossing into circle and finishing off with a lovely goal. Despite a dogged performance from Elisa and Maria we just couldn’t get the ball into the goal and went into half-time 2-0. It’s surprising what juicy oranges and a half-time talk can do for energy levels! Eagle House went into the second half with renewed vigour. Captain Sasha with Maria drove the ball up the pitch to Octavia who produced a lovely hit with the ball going straight into the corner of the net. Goal! Great jubilation! Now all heads were up, spacing improved and the ball travelled over the ground with more pace. HG kept coming at our goal but again Ella and Sarah were a good match for them but finally they scored another making it 3-1. We were caught off guard by the next goal but not disheartened by this; our forwards made a great run up the wing putting pressure on HG’s defence. An opportunity for goal came from a good pass by Maria, Captain Sasha took the ball into the circle and ….GOAL! There is still an awful lot to learn but there were some good performances here. We must always keep our heads up and LOOK before we pass the ball and always try to make use of the spaces on the pitch. Well done to Ella for her fine performance and a big thank to all the parents who came to support.
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