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| Hockey Colts A Team 'Blog' |
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Match One Wednesday 21st January against Caldicott at Wellington College, 1500 Eagle House 1 Caldicott 3 The first game was always going to be difficult as we had only just switched to hockey and we were going to play our first match against a team that already had match experience. That experience certainly helped Caldicott build a commanding lead by the break. Their attacks were penetrating and too often Eagle House watched the ball and were unprepared to make that crucial tackle. Too many passes went astray and Eagle House seemed to play with no real determination and commitment. At three nil down at half time, it seemed that the flood gates would open and Eagle House could well be on the receiving end of a good thrashing. Yet a more determined and reorganised tactically team took the field for the second half and gradually gained the upper hand. Though only one goal was scored which was well worked, there were far more opportunities in the second half to score. A more experienced side would easily have buried those chances. Charles Waters in his holding position in front of the back line did some sterling work and was able to stop or slow down the Caldicott attacks. Adam Robinson did a fantastic job linking up the defence with the attack line. The second half saw a much better performance overall. The team will have learnt from this experience and with Adam Robinson guiding the team on the field as captain, I am sure that we shall see some good hockey being played and perhaps even a victory or two.
Match Two Wednesday 28th January against Parkside at Wellington College, 1415 Eagle House 1 Parkside 0 This fixture has always been the toughest in the season with Parkside being one of the best drilled and skilful team that we have to play against. Consequentially the results against Parkside have all in recent history been defeats by either a small or a large margin. With this in view, this victory was a great achievement. From the first minute Parkside made their intentions clear with an opening attack that nearly ended up in a goal. Most of the first half saw Eagle House with their backs to the wall defending as though their lives depended on it. The back line was strong and dramatic saves by the goal keeper ensured that a clean sheet was kept to half time. Parkside had their chances with a few penalty corners but were unable to convert any of them. Eagle House have very few chances but with Adam Bailey on his own in the opposition circle there was always that possibility that he could sneak in a goal, much against the run of the game. The second began where the first had finished with Parkside having much of the possession yet being unable to use it. The game changed noticeably after the goal had been scored. On one of the rare incursions into the Parkside half, the Eagle House midfield swarmed forward to put the pressure on Parkside. A raised ball into the circle gave Eagle House a short corner. A well drilled and executed short corner resulted in a superb goal by Adam Robinson. Parkside had now to push up even further to try to score an equalizing goal. That stretched the defense and gave more opportunities for Eagle House to break into the opposition half. The last quarter saw a frantic defense by Eagle House as they tried and succeeded in preventing a goal being scored against them. Though this may not be the most skilful of hockey teams, it was certainly one of the most determined and committed. Every player gave a 100% and played as a complete unit. It was very pleasing to hear during the match each player encouraging and advising each other. This afternoon saw one of the great achievements of a Colts hockey side ever. The boys have a right to be very proud of that achievement. Well done!
Match Three Wednesday 4th February against Hoe Bridge at Goldsworth Park, Woking, 1400 This match was cancelled because of the snow. Match Four Wednesday 11th February against St Andrew’s at Wellington College, at 1500 Eagle House 1 St Andrew’s 3 This was always going to be a tough game with the bad weather making practices impossible and with the team changes that were necessary. Nevertheless the squad gave a very good account of themselves with some excellent hockey and a determined commitment. The match was real end to end stuff with opportunities being given to both sides to score and some very entertaining hockey being played by both sides. Unfortunately St Andrew’s were able to make more of their chances. St Andrew’s opened the scoring with a great goal as Eagle House gradually got into their stride. A sudden impetus came into the team and an equalising goal quickly came as Eagle house mounted attack after attack. A second St Andrew’s goal came just before the break which did not dampen the determination. For a long time the match remained finely balanced at 2-1 with Eagle House pressing for that equalising goal again. Unfortunately fate was not on their side as over eagerness and tiredness began to affect the performance. Towards the end a well worked move By St Andrew’s finished off the game which they well deserved to win. Though a lack of practice and tiredness affected this performance the team played with enthusiasm and commitment. Tanaquille Manton-Jones joined the squad playing in the right half position and did some sterling work and good tackling. Adam Bailey took on the very difficult and for him new position as the goal keeper. He did the best he could and made some noticeably secure clearing. Charles Waters again made an impression on the performance playing in a variety of positions as the game demanded. Mohammed Rubbani again was secure at the back and Oscar Gaff made some great backward diagonal runs across the circle to stop an impending attack. James Fowlie was very threatening on his right wing. Had fortune favoured us, his many great crosses would have, I am sure, have ended up as a goal.
Match Five Wednesday 25th February against Hall Grove at Wellington Collge, at 1500
Eagle House 0 Hall Grove 1 This final eleven a side match proved to be a high octane and exhilarating match in which we saw two sides playing to the best of their ability in an exciting exhibition of great and exciting hockey. Eagle House dominated the game with some great passing and runs. The positional play was excellent and the tackling secure. Unfortunately fortune was not on their side as time and time again they swarmed forward into the opposition circle with a goal in the beckoning only to be frustrated at the last with some superb defending by either the goal keeper or by the excellent central defender. Eagle House also had many other opportunities to score as they were awarded penalty corner after penalty corner, only to see them well defended or the effort come to naught. In some respects it was a most frustrating afternoon and perhaps with more and longer practice sessions the experience may have helped to convert many of those opportunities into goals. In the second half Hall Grove were able to make good inroads into the Eagle House half. As Eagle House tired, mistakes were made. The only goal of the match came from a penalty corner in the last quarter of the game. By then Eagle House had spent all their energy in what was a frustrating game for the players. Nevertheless the quality of hockey played was very good with some superb passing and linking moves between defense to midfield and midfield to attack. The mid field players were excellent and supported both equally the defense and attack.
Match Six Wednesday 4th March. Tournament at The Dragon School, Oxford. 1345 Full list of results below. Played eight. Won six and drew two. Ist in league group. second overall. This tournament saw some excellent hockey being played by the whole squad and the final culmination of the term’s work. The standard of performance was excellent and had we began the term with hockey and not rugby, and had full quota of practise sessions the full eleven a side squad would have reached this standard earlier on in the term. The team began the tournament with two very tentative performances in which we managed just about to win by one goal. The third match saw a well fought game which could have gone either way. Fantastic goal keeping by Charles Saxby in a very dramatic fashion ensured that this game finished a nil-nil draw. That game spurned the squad into action as they won the fourth game and the fifth in style 1-0 and 3-0 respectively. In the sixth game the foot came off the pedal and a well organised team put Eagle House under a lot of pressure. Nevertheless this was soaked up and the game ended in a goalless draw. Yet again a draw really motivated the squad as they easily broke down the opposition and dominated both final games. Overall Eagle House first squad (Colts A seven) came first in the league group and second overall in the tournament as the winners, who played in the other league group, won all of their matches. This is a great result for Eagle House when one considers how results have gone elsewhere in the season. This afternoon we saw great positional play, very secure passing, good off the ball support and running, and some first class shooting. At the end of the day, the team looked like an excellent and unbeatable team. Throughout the afternoon not one goal was conceded. Very few penalty corners were given away. Very few passes indeed went astray, and practically every shot ended up in a goal. This afternoon we finally saw Adam Bailey at his best and on top form as he scored 9 of the 15 goals that were scored. This has been an excellent way to finish what has been at times a disappointing season. Well done to the squad! Adam R, Adam B, George W, Charlie W, Charlie S, Noah W, Oscar G, and Jamie F. Results. First in our league group, second overall. Pl W D L F A Pts 8 6 2 0 15 0 14 V Magdalen College 3 won 1-0 V The Dragon 3 won 1-0 V The Dragon 1 drew 0-0 V Magdalen College 2 won 1-0 V Winchester House 3 won 3-0 V Bromsgrove 1 drew 0-0 V Winchester House 2 won 5-0 V New College 2 won 4-0
Season Review Though the results this season have not been as good as those in the past, the quality of hockey played remains high. The commitment and enthusiasm of the team was 100% despite the setbacks, defeats and frustrations. And yet this was the squad that after many years defeated the Parkside under eleven team. This shows that there is ability and potential in this squad. That win was one of the highlights of the season. the second highlight was the excellent performance at the Dragon tournament. Hopefully as many of the players move up the teams they will build upon the experiences of this season and achieve some good results in future seasons. My thanks to all the squad for playing this season. To Mohammed, Charlie, Oscar and Noah for the sterling work and keeping their cool in the Parkside match. To Ben, Michael, Adam and Charlie for the combination play in linking with the defense and providing an attacking platform for the forwards. To Hassan, Adam, George and Jamie who presents the threats up front. Finally just a brief thank you to Adam Robinson for being captain and for giving good and useful advice during the games and by leading by example. Colts A Squad. Charles Saxby( Colours), Oscar Gaff, Mohammed Rubbani (Colours), Noah Walton, Michael Gimson, Adam Robinson (Captain and Colours)Charles Waters (Colours), James Fowlie, Adam Bailey, George Wilks (Colours), Ben Barnard and Hassan Rubbani.
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