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| Hockey Girls U11 Team 'Blog' |
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U11A Squad Monday 14th March Cranleigh Tournament Team: Gabriella (C), Tilda, Ella, Amynta, Sophie, Josie, Emily, Charlotte After most of the girls had had an exciting Saturday at the National IAPS Netball finals they just didn't seem up to this tournament either physically or mentally! There were some flashes of brilliance at times, particularly from Gabriella and Tilda , however, as a team we just could not gel on this sunny March afternoon. Never mind girls - it is the end of a long and very successful season! Results V Felton Fleet Won 2-1 (Gabriella, Josie) V St George's Lost 1-2 (Gabriella) V St Andrew's, Woking Lost 3-0 V Ripley Court Won 4-0 (Gabriella 2, Sophie 2) V Bishop's Stortford L 0-1
Wednesday 26th January U11B V Edgeborough Won 4-1 Team: Sophie (C), Jess, Maeve, Gaby, Dasha, Maddie, Isabel (GK), Player of the match: Sophie
Wednesday 26th January U11A V Edgeborough Won 14-1 (Gabriella 6, Tilda 4, Amynta 1, Josie 1, Ella 1, Emily 1) Team: Gabriella (C), Ella, Tilda, Josie, Amynta, Emily, Daisy (GK), Player of the match: Tilda Match Report written by Gabriella and her team: ' Unfortunately Charlotte was ill today so Daisy 'willingly volunteered' (!) to step up from the B team to the As as goal-keeper. She did amazingly well and only let in one goal, while saving many. At the beginning of the first half we weren't playing as a team, although we were scoring quite a few goals because Edgeborough didn't tackle very much. However, by the end of the second half we were moving off the ball and passing well. Our stick skills and tackles were great! As the score got too one sided, Miss Palmer stopped both Tilda and me from shooting - although a couple of my passes in the D accidentally went into the goal! We were happy that all the team scored at least one goal. Tilda was chosen as Woman of the Match and it was a fantastic day all round - 14-1 WOW!' Thanks Gabriella - And well done to everyone.
Wednesday 19th January V Hall Grove Won 7-0 (Gabriella 5, Tilda 2) Team: Gabriella (C), Ella, Tilda, Josie, Amynta, Emily, Charlotte (GK), Sophie Player of the match: Gabriella Eagle House dominated the game from the first whistle with Gabriella scoring a fantastic individual goal one minute into the first half. The whole team played some really good hockey in the first ten minutes - moving appropriately off the ball, passing accurately and tackling strongly. Hall Grove were a little reticent to tackle and could not seem to make the most of the few mistakes that we made. Gabriella went on to score another three goals before half time. The opposition's defense gave her space and time in the D that she made the most of! Although Eagle House continued to have most of the play in the second half, unfortunately we began to look tired (Too many chocolates and afternoons watching films on the sofa over Christmas perhaps!?). I took Gabriella off after her 5th goal of the match and at this point Tilda took on the role of 'main goal scorer' with some great individual play. Well done to all the team and thanks to the parents who came to support on a very cold and frosty afternoon. LSP Wednesday 15th December V Lambrook Won 7-0 (Gabriella 4, Sophie 1, Amynta 1, Ella 1) Team: Gabriella (C), Ella, Tilda, Josie, Amynta, Emily, Charlotte (GK), Sophie Player of the match: Gabriella This was a great way to end the term. Even though the girls hadn't played hockey for two weeks due to the frost and snow, they played very well and deserved their resounding win. We had most of the possession throughout the game. It would still be good to see the girls moving off the ball more to support the attack and looking more widely for an appropriate pass. However, it is hard to ask them to pass the ball when many of them are very capable of scoring by taking the ball into the D themselves! Lambrook were very wary of our hard hitting, which gave us time in the D to prepare a shot. Special mention should go to Gabriella for her hatrick plus 1 - her most skilful goal being scored from a great short corner fed to her by Tilda. We could have scored far more but the sportsmanly thing to do was to play our team out of position in the second half. I hope that the U11A continue their unbeaten season after Christmas. Well done girls for a fantastic term of sport.
U11 IAPS Regional Competition @ Millfield School, Somerset Thursday 18th November Team: Gabriella (C), Ella, Tilda, Josie, Amynta, Emily, Charlotte (GK), Sophie The girls had a good day at Millfield and they definitely put Eagle House on the Hockey map! There was some excellent play from all of the team at times but special mention should go to Gabriella Dyer and Tilda Kneen who played some fantastic hockey to help Eagle House gain some great results. There were 32 teams competing who were in three pools of eight. Games were 10 minutes one way. Results from our pool V Portsmouth Grammar school 0-0 We should have won this match as we had most of the possession and were the better side. However, it was a good start to the day and boosted the girls confidence. V Taunton 2-2 Our best match ever against the team who eventually won the group! We were 2-0 down and came back to 2 all through some particularly fantastic play from Tilda and Gabriella. This game really showed that the U11s have team spirit! V Cheltenham College 0-0 Very tough opposition. We battled well and almost scored on numerous occasions, while also having to defend hard. V Knighton House won 1-0 A good win where we looked strong. This meant that we went to lunch not having lost a game and drawing equal first in out group. V Stonar won 3-1 Our worst game as it was directly after lunch. The girls looked sluggish and disorganised. Although we won convincingly, we should have scored far more goals! V Hazelgrove lost 2-0 A very strong team who eventually qualified second in the group. This was the first defeat and unfortunately our heads went down a little. V Millfield Lost 1-0 A great game against a strong team. It could have gone either way but they scored in the last couple of minutes to put us out of the next round! This was a superb day of hockey. I was proud of the Eagle House girls both for their abilities on the field and for how nice they were to be with throughout the day.
Wednesday 10th November U11A V Oratory Prep Won 2-1 Team: Gabriella (C), Ella, Tilda, Josie, Amynta, Emily, Charlotte (GK) Scorers: Ella, Gabriella Another very well matched game. The Eagle House girls came out fighting from the start and in the first ten minutes of the game they played their best hockey so far this season. There were some excellent long passes down the pitch from Tilda. It was from one of these that Josie made an determined shot which was finally put in the back of the goal by a well positioned Ella. Gabriella was stalwart in mid-field; looking for passes and spreading the play. Charlotte made some great saves in goal but also accidentally hit a ball into the nose of the Oratory attacker - who lived to tell the tale! Although the girls tired towards the end of the half and didn't hold position as well as they had, it was great to be 1-0 up at half time. Unfortunately, it didn't last long! Oratory scored about ten seconds into the second half, after some confusion and fumbling from Eagle House at the push back! There was a tense period of play where we just couldn't seem to keep possession. However, Gabriella calmed nerves a little by scoring a fantastic goal from a short corner about five minutes before the end of the game. Well done girls! A great performance on a very cold afternoon. You are really making progress with your hockey and I look forward to a whole day of matches at the IAPS tournament next week.
Wednesday 3rd November U11 A V Holme Grange Drew 2-2 Team: Gabriella (C), Ella, Tilda, Josie, Amynta, Emily, Sophie, Maeve, Charlotte (GK) Scorers: Sophie (2) Player of the match: Gabriella This was a totally different game compared to when we met Holme Grange at the beginning of October. In fact, it was a much more skilful and exciting game to watch, with two very well matched teams playing end to end throughout . The Eagle House girls have really improved but Holme Grange looked a different team! It was great to see the excellent standard of hockey played at such a young age-group. Tilda and Gabriella were the work-horses of the Eagle House attack and defense, demonstrating some fantastic stick skills to win the ball, keep possession and build the attack. Amynta also made some great runs down the right wing. The teamwork and passing have definitely improved but it is still an area we need to concentrate on. Better passing and movement in the circle may help more shots on goal to be on target and not just given to the defenders. Sophie scored two good goals - one just before half time to equalise after an early goal from Holme Grange and one just after half time to take us into the lead. Unfortunately, we couldn't hold on to the lead for long and Holme Grange equalised soon after. From then on both teams had numerous chances to win the game but neither could hit the target! Well done again girls! The whole team played some of the best hockey I have seen this season. I was really impressed with your drive, athleticism and never-give-up attitude.
Wednesday 6th October U11A V Holme Grange Won 2-0 Team: Gabriella (C), Ella, Tilda, Josie, Amynta, Emily, Sophie, Charlotte (GK) Scorers: Ella, Tilda Player of the match: Tilda Another good game for the U11s. The first half saw the girls dominate the play. They began to link together more as a team and half way through the first half, a great pass into the D from Gabriella resulted in a lovely goal from Ella. The girls showed that they were beginning to understand how to find width and space on the pitch. They kept the pressure up throughout the first half. A goal-mouth scramble resulted in the ball going over the line once more before half time. However, the referees decided that the goal had been scored by a defender and that there had been no real shot on goal by us so the goal was disallowed. Although we talked more about looking for passes at half time, unfortunately the teamwork seemed to break down early in the second half. Our defense was put under pressure but Holme Grange only had one real shot on goal. Finally, persistence paid off and Eagle House were rewarded with another goal from Tilda. This was a good win girls but we still need to work on looking for a pass before we lose the ball to a defender. Wednesday 29th September U11/10B V Marlston House Drew 3-3 Player of the match: Jessica Hill Squad: Jessica Hill, Sophie Bignell-Edwards(capt), Eleanor Sherlock, Isabelle Edwards, Maria Mikhaylenko, Daisy Robinson, Emily Louisa Brett, Alexandra Edwards, Lucky Zhang, Gabbie Hayes(goalkeeper) and Eleanora Bull Wednesday was drizzling with rain, but the girls pushed on coming out with a well deserved draw. Both teams were equally strong with new and odd players to the game. Eagle House did well throughout the game, matching each goal of Marlston House. The girls were a new team and need to work more on their ball skills and using the space of the pitch. Gabbie did well in goal for her first match with Eagle House. Sophie and Jess whizzed up and down the pitch effectively as the girls followed. Sophie showed great ball control proving that with a perfect shot in goal and setting up many other shots. Jess also scored her first two goals of the season, winning her the player of the match by Marlston House. Well down to Marlston House who performed fantastically on the day and put up good competition for Eagle House. Well done girls for such a brilliant match. Thank you to all the parents who came to support the girls.
Wednesday 29th September U11A V Marlston House Won 3-1 Team: Gabriella (C), Ella, Tilda, Josie, Amynta, Emily, Dasha, Maeve, Charlotte (GK) Goal scorers: Gabriella, Amynta, Tilda Player of the match: Gabriella Having begun the term concentrating on netball, the hockey season has now hit us hard! It has been great to see the girl's individual stick skills during practices. However, it has also become apparent during Games that the girl's tactical understanding of an invasion game is the thing we need to work on! It was with this knowledge that we faced our first opposition of the season. Throughout this match, the Eagle House girls demonstrated good control of the ball - Gabriella and Tilda dominated the play with their ability to keep the ball on their stick and to find space. This paid off early in the first half with Gabriella scoring a lovely goal through great individual skill and persistence. However, we found it hard to link up as a team and lacked the movement and passing skills that would have given us the lead we actually deserved. Amynta scored a sneaky goal just before half time by being in the 'right place at the right time', which meant that we were 2-0 up at the break. The girls listened to advice at half time and really tried to find good passes in the second half. However, Marlston House scored from a quick break making it all a little tense. Tilda scored half way through the second half, again demonstrating good individual skills in the D. Although the goal sealed our win, we should have had many more! This team has great potential. I set them prep to watch how players move off the ball in a football match on TV - I am sure that their tactical understanding will develop quickly and with some hard work, they will have further success against stiffer opposition in the future.
Wednesday 15th September U11/10B V Daneshill Lost 4-1 This was a great way to start the term and there was much that was good. Perhaps the score line is a little harsh, but ultimately Daneshill were more competitive and stronger in the tackle. Indeed, the first half ended with Eagle House conceding a rather soft goal, after a first half during which we failed to make the most of our chances. We drove up both flanks with Eleanora and Emily giving us the width to create the space. Daisy and Amy worked tirelessly in the first half to support Maeve and Lucky(and then Charlotte) in defence. The first half was evenly matched, competitive and fun to watch. We conceded another goal in the fourth minute of the second half and with that, Daneshill grew in confidence as our legs and our ability to think quickly with the ball slowed down. We did play some good hockey, and Emily finished off a good movement down the right. However, two soft goals in the final minutes spoiled what should have been a good scorecard, with Ellis leading from the front in goal. So what do we learn? We must not chat during the game. We must be much, much, much more hardworking off the ball running into space. We must be much more solid in our tackling, with the bottom hand low. We must pass the ball quickly after bringing it under control. We must, must, must not attack the strong side of the defending player, but move our feet round to pass the ball to our right. Do not be afraid to take a quick pass to yourself, and finally, stop kicking the ball. Keep your feet away, watch the ball with the stick down. There is much that we can improve and there is something that can certainly build upon - do you want to? |
