Reports 17th October 2009
Men's 1sts maintain their stranglehold on Div 3 with a win at Cambridge University.
Men's 2nds beat an underpar March Town by 4 goals.
Men's 3rds are just edged out by the odd goal in 7 agains March Town 4
Men's 4ths draw 0-0 with v City of Peterborough
Ladies' 2nds v Huntingdon 2 cancelled as the opposition fail to raise a team.
Cambridge University III 1 - 3 Cambridge South Men's I
H/T: 0 - 3
Scorers: Chris Baker, Mark Pears, Keith Hewitt
MoM: Rob Garrett
In a fascinating and fast-paced game which many felt was one of South's best ever, the University were vanquished by a superb all-round performance based on rock-solid defence and lethal counter-attacking moves with a high hit rate.
The University, swift, aggressive and confident from the start, gave notice of their intent with early domination of the South half but, after their first penalty corner had been deflected, a warning shot was fired across their bows when the thrusting Mark Pears beat four men on a direct run and slipped a pass to Russell Johnson arriving on cue at the left post. A firm second touch just eluded him as the goal thoughtlessly failed to bend to his will but South soon returned as Lukas Snetler mugged the home team's right winger and found Keith Hewitt close by. Hewitt danced his way up the flank before locating Pears, who picked his spot low with the defence well out of position.
The University redoubled their attacking efforts and it required all the sang froid that Chris Graveling and Matt Readman could muster to hold them at bay. They, as well as the classy Leo Tomita on the right and an unflappable Nick Young on the left, drew the sting with pinpoint tackling, drop-dead interceptions and swift distribution to the wings. Rob Garrett masterminded escape routes up the middle, while Chris Baker, fully appreciating the value of the early ball, fed quickly to right and left and was never afraid to impersonate a brick outhouse with men coming towards him.
Although the University continued to press from all areas, South developed the more effective impulsion going forward and another Readman-Snetler-Hewitt foray on the left side paved the way for Baker, finding himself in confined space at top left D, to play a cunning reverse scoop as daring as it was unpremeditated, with the result that the entire defence was wrong-footed as the ball found the bottom corner to double South's lead after 18 minutes.
Inexorable passing movements from the University were strangled by Young, Readman and Graveling and, when the ball did end up in a melee near the penalty spot, it was swiftly cleared upfield with a Hewitt cannon. South brought their right flank more into play, with good triangles between Readman, Tomita and Eliot Read, Read once neatly nutmegging a University defender before laying off to Garrett. Snetler displayed his Stakhanovite tendencies on the opposite side, feeding Hewitt, who was always threatening to rampage, but the University were never slow to turn defence to attack, forcing Readman and Tomita to pull off some death-defying tackles on the edge of the D. The biter was soon bit, though, as Tomita himself quickly squared to Garrett, who threaded a needle's-eye pass through to Hewitt. The Tassie Terror, cruising smoothly into the D, then slipped the ball in for the third as the home defence was again made to look static.
South's first-half performance, in which they never allowed the opposition to get in from the by-line whilst poaching brilliantly themselves, inspired greater confidence on the ball at the start of the second half and more continuous possession was the result, especially in the right-sided link between Tomita, Read and Johnson. Continued vigilance was required at the back, however, and the ubiquitous Garrett was one minute found reverse-tackling on his own back-line and the next ragging the ball cross-field to Pears, whose first-time flick was unlucky to be denied by a reflex stick save from the home keeper.
When the University finally managed to penetrate into the D, Readman put on his Santa Pod boots to rescue matters with a last-ditch poke away, but there was no respite as a home striker then found just enough room for a wicked rising reversed shot which Steve Parker in goal saw all the way, mastering it with his blocker before kicking to safety. South's resistance was finally broken after 50 minutes, though, when a slipped short was threaded back through the centre for an unmarked striker to tap home on the post.
This upped the ante for a thrilling last quarter, where each of South's rotating subs - not to say their breathless supporters - got through a substantial portion of fingernail. Garrett read an aerial cleverly, Young relieved pressure in the centre and Graveling made a clearance in desperando on the by-line. A fifth University short was stopped in its tracks by Young, who then stuck to the ball like glue as he manoeuvred it out through three onrushers, while Hewitt made the most of South's interludes of possession up front to try and drive the ball on to the hard-running Pears. South were indebted, too, to Garrett's uncanny reverse interceptions and telescopic tackling as the University explored all avenues from East to West, although Readman proved his equal in a tremendous all-action spell in the centre.
As the final ten minutes approached, it was all hands to the pump as Young deflected for a long, Snetler - fresh from a breather - made a key interception and Tomita whipped the ball straight off an attacking stick on the edge of the D. South then put together a thrilling coast-to-coast move at the end of which Snetler narrowly missed the left-hand post with a trademark reverse. The University for once got in round the back of the visiting defence and crossed menacingly but Parker was foursquare and kicked resoundingly out to touch.
Two more home penalty corners came and went as Young held the midfield, Readman threw himself into the fray with a diving tackle and Parker was out to block. The University increased the volume, clustering wholesale in the 25, but South held their lines brilliantly, with Read, Readman and Graveling all making crucial interventions and Baker sacrificing his body with a will when being dumped as he took the ball to safety. The home side's threat was eventually extinguished in the last couple of minutes when Johnson took command up the right and squared to the waiting Hewitt, who confused stick with boot, and South ended on top as a screamer from Snetler just whizzed past the top right of the University goal.
South can be justly pleased with this very gutsy and committed display, in which the opposition's frequent substitutions perhaps proved more of a hindrance than a help to their flow, and it was of particular note that individual players seemed to be settling well in appropriate positions, thus facilitating greater cohesion over wider areas of the pitch. The team remain top of Division 3NW on goal difference, with the dangerous Rutland next on the agenda.
Team played: Steve Parker, Nick Young, Leo Tomita, Chris Graveling, Russell Johnson, Chris Baker, Rob Garrett, Eliot Read, Matt Readman, Mark Pears, Keith Hewitt, Lukas Snetler
Cambridge South Men's II 4 - 0 March Town III
H/T: 3 - 0
Scorers: George Wych, Tristen Knight, Bhavdeep Virdi (2)
MoM: Ben Buckley (Clean sheet on his debut for the club - a great start!)
LOM: Bhavdeep Virdi (Despite scoring 2 goals, his outrageous attempts at reverse sweeping from wide on the right earn him the LOM.)
Cambridge South 2's set out against March Town with a slightly changed team, but hoping to return to winning ways.
South needed a strong performance right from the off, and they wasted no time in setting about the opposition, with an early cross reaching Bhav Virdee on the right side of the area, but the ball was put just past the post.
Further bright attacks came and went, before Bhav settled any nerves with a sweetly struck shot from a short corner. The ball came to Bhav on the edge of the D and he wasted no time blasting the ball past the helpless keeper into the goal. This opener was soon followed by a similarly sweet struck shot from Tristen Knight. He controlled the ball at the top of the D, wasted a little time winding up his shot, but the goal was certainly worth waiting for, as it whistled past the goalie into the top left hand corner.
South continued to play swift pass and move hockey, opening up the March defence with their pace. It was no surprise that another goal was scored before half-time, Mr Virdee again being in the right place to steer his shot past the keeper.
3-0 at the break, but South needed to ensure they did not take their foot off the gas. A string of short corners came March's way early in the second half, but these were well dealt with by the water-tight defence, with new keeper Ben Buckley producing fine saves when called upon. The keeper also commanded his D well and came out to thwart opposition attacks, and was well deserving of his man of the match award.
Whilst desperate not to concede, South were still keen to add to their tally. A fine move down the left resulted in the ball being cut back to the top of the opposition area. A shot from James Cobbe was well saved by the March keeper, but fox-in-any-box George Wych was first to the rebound, driving his first (but not last) goal for South hard against the backboard, a finish Lord Rob Barton OBE himself would have been proud of. This capped a professional display from the team, who now look forward to a tough (but winnable) match next week away to Rutland, one of the division's early pace-setters.
Team played: Ben Buckley, Ron Oren, Dave Monck, George Wych, Nick Bristowe, Tristen Knight, Tim Clapp, Bhavdeep Virdi, Dave Aston, Kev Rowland, Rob Barton, James Cobbe
March Town IV 4 - 3 Cambridge South Men's III
H/T: 1 - 1
Scorers: Jack Chalk, Paul South, Andy Lewis
MoM: Paul South (Midfield dynamo, and sharply taken goal. Epitomises what we need to thrive in 5NW )
This match was decided in the dying minutes as the best player on the pitch, the March playmaker, eventually decided to let his (ex-first team) skills show, rather than this verbal abilities. CSouth had led 3 - 1, but he inspired 3 quick goals as the away team finally capitulated.
Up to that point CSouth had played well, with 3 well taken goals of their own from smoothly executed short corner routines, scored by Andy Lewis, Jack Chalk, and Paul South. Unfortunately, we were unable to capitalise on other chances from open play, as the physical March defence and classy keeper stood firm.
March had scored their first from a surprisingly awarded P-flick, but didnt get close otherwise until the fateful few final moments, again due to stalwart CSouth defending. (PassmoreGloverLansdellSnead). It was only at the end when March were pressing that the quality CSouth central midfield of SouthChalk ceded the initiative as they were pinned back into defence.
Hero of the day was Ian Glover, who tweaked a hamstring in the first half, leaving the team with 10 "fit" players, only to return himself later on to goal hang in the team cause, keeping March defenders occupied.
Overall it was good to see the 3rds competing well at this level, but worrying to see heads drop, and team composure and movement evaporate under pressure at the end. The campaign to reduce matches to 60 minutes starts here
Team played: Shahbaz Ali, Ian Glover, Neil Sneade, Andy Passmore, Jack Chalk, Paul South, Andy Lewis, Wilco Dijkstra, Sam Lansdell, Rob Barton, John Greaves
City of Peterborough VIII 0 - 0 Cambridge South Men's IV
H/T: 0 - 0
Scorers: None
MoM: Tim Dean (Easily won by a long way, bravely volunteered to go in goal, saved a penalty, lots of shouting and kept us in the game)
After last season's 6-4 score line, South was determined not to get caught out cold this time 'round. Although started sluggishly South did keep Peterborough at bay. South started passing the ball around better after 25 minutes and began to have more of the play and even won a penalty which was saved by Peterborough's 'keeper, who seemed unorthodox, but was very effective in keeping the scoreline level. The first half ended pretty even.
Despite feeling more confident in the 2nd half, it was Peterborough that had more possession and they too had a penalty that was saved by Tim Dean. Our highlight was probably Tim's performance and he even had a save right on the corner of the post which only some one who has been working in the theatre had the agility to save. In the end we were thankful for a draw. A lesson from the game may be that South's players should not choose to change positions at will and have more disciplined in keeping to the planned formation.
Team played: Tim Dean, Shahbaz Ali, Ian Evans, David Bridge, Ky Ho, Dom Nelson, Simon Jelley, John Somerville, John Sharp, Boris Lossy, Shahzad Ali, James Raikes
Cambridge South Ladies' II OFF - OFF Huntingdon II
H/T: ? - ?
Ladies' 2nds v Huntingdon 2 cancelled as the opposition fail to raise a team.
