Reports 3rd December 2011
Men's 1sts draw against City of Peterborough 4
Men's 2nds win again! This time against Rutland 2
Men's 4ths stage a great comeback to beat Bourne Deeping 5
Ladies' 1sts lose to Spalding Ladies 1
Ladies' 2nds draw with Spalding Ladies 2
Cambridge South Men's I 0 - 0 City of Peterborough IV
H/T: 0 - 0
Scorers: None
MoM: Chris Graveling (Rock solid in defence)
LoM: Tom Watson (For texting on Friday that he wasn't really up for an away match. Having said that, special mention must go to Jack Chalk who, when tasked with tallying the votes up, a) started writing the results on the back of a tiny sticker when there was a whole pad of paper right next to him and b) once he switched to the pad of paper, writing out 'MoM:
South 1s had to pick themselves up after last weekend's hugely disappointing draw against Wisbech 2s and steel themselves for a much tougher encounter with close rivals Peterborough. Taking the pitch with a 4-4-2 formation for the first time this season in an effort to neutralise Peterborough's strong midfield, South were determined to put in a solid performance. A large gathering of partisan home supporters added to the sense that this was a significant match for both teams.
It was clear right from the start that Peterborough had some very useful players with skills that South couldn't really match. But what we perhaps lacked in individual skill we more than made up for in teamwork and effort. The back four of Aston, Graveling, Johnson (F) and the fill-in Chalk all defended resolutely and with huge discipline, conceding very few short corners all game, much to their credit. The midfield spent most of the game harrying and challenging the opposition, with Virdi, Watson and Hawkes patrolling the flanks while Williams and McCulloch stuck like glue to their opposite numbers. A couple of South players even threw a few aerials up. Aerials! Whatever next..?
With so much commitment to defending strongly and marking closely, there wasn't much opportunity for the forwards Claes and Johnson (R). The odd chances we did get went agonizingly wide of a South stick in the opposition's D, and not a single short corner was awarded, despite some obvious Peterborough infringements.
Half-time came and went with no score. Peterborough pushed harder in the second half and created some great chances - but Parker was equal to all but two of these. The first was inexplicably (but thankfully) missed from half a yard out by a Peterborough forward at the far post and the second was pulled away off the goal line at waist height with ninja reflexes by Johnson (F) - showing an ironic aptitude for cricket, a game he professes no interest in. Miraculous goal-line clearances are becoming a habit for the curly-haired (or is it straight...?) defender.
As time ticked away, a break-away by the lickety-split Claes had everyone dreaming of a cheeky 1-0 victory but the chance was snaffled up by the hastily retreating defence. As the intensity of the game increased, the tolerance of the umpires decreased. Following a couple of free-hits taken from the wrong place and an unfortunate misunderstanding about which side had committed an offence (yes - I'm being kind. For once.) Johnson (F) was shown the yellow card for his, shall we say, over-enthusiasm. The 'Defenders Card Competition' is hotting up...
Fortunately Peterborough were unable to capitalize on the man-advantage and the final whistle eventually blew signalling much relief (and for a certain Mr Claes some not-so-subtle boisterous whoops of delight) for South. A fantastic team effort to keep our promotion hopes alive.
Team played: Steve Parker, Dave Aston, Chris Graveling, Jack Chalk, Mark Williams, Bhavdeep Virdi, Richard Claes, Finn Johnson, John Hawkes, Russell Johnson, Graham McCulloch
Cambridge South Men's II 2 - 1 Rutland II
H/T: 0 - 1
Scorers: Tom Howell, Rob Barton
MoM: Paresh Parsot (Solid at the back)
LoM: Tom Anns (Variety of reasons, including Movember madness)
A brisk winter afternoon was the setting for Cambridge South’s attempt to build some momentum in their league, playing host to a struggling Rutland 2s team. Just how much trouble Rutland is facing, was epitomised by one of their cars, trying its luck on just about every pitch in town before arriving at Catz a mere 5 minutes after the scheduled push-back. Considering that the missing players included the visitors’ goalie, it seemed only fair to give Rutland the time to get their players onto the pitch (if not necessarily warmed up).
Whether due to the warm-up, the buoyant spirit or the quality of the line-up, it was the home team that started their game with more verve. Solid work by Dom Nelson and Chris Pearson in central midfield saw the ball smoothly moving up to the rotating trio of Tom Howell, Ally Ward and Rob Barton upfront, while right-mid Ron Oren made good use of Rutland’s total disregard for marking him. While much of the play was in and around the visitors’ D, South couldn’t convert their chances into goals. In fact, it was Rutland that opened the score, when a quick break won them a short corner, which was duly dispatched past interim-goalie Chris Collinson.
At half-time, with a score line not reflecting play at all, the team unanimously decided to stop fannying about and start playing the hockey they’ve shown in earlier matches. True to their word, the home side pressed hard throughout the second half, reducing Rutland to chancy long balls as the only way out of their own defence; with these mopped up through solid marking by Andy Passmore, Ian Glover and Tom Anns, or equally solid tackling by sweeper Paresh Parsot, the visitors could only manage one or two more shots at goal and saw those ably dealt with by a confident Chris C.
At the other end of the pitch, meanwhile, chances were coming thick and fast, but goals were less easy to get by. In the end, it fell to Rob to get the equaliser, when a trademark duck-and-roll shot slipped past the ‘keeper. Considering the score was only level and the clock a long way off 70 minutes, Rob’s slightly exaggerated celebrations could be considered a bid for the Lemon of Match award. A few minutes later, Tom H. showed that scorers can be dignified, too, after a short-corner resulted in a drag-flick into the top corner, contending for goal of the season. Playing out the clock more composedly than last week, the home side secured a confidence-boosting set of back-to-back wins for their efforts.
Although unfortunate not to score more against a weaker side, the team can be proud of their commitment and fighting spirit, pulling three well-deserved points out of the fire to get themselves closer to safety in the division.
Team played: Chris Collinson, Ian Glover, Tom Anns, Andy Passmore, Ron Oren, Dom Nelson, Paresh Parsot, Tom Howell, Chris Walsh, Chris Pearson, Rob Barton, Ali Ward
Cambridge South Men's III 5 - 1 Ely City IV
H/T: 3 - 0
Scorers: John Parker, Tom South, Paul South (2), Rupert Espley
MoM: Benji Groom (Dynamic attacking play from right back and worked hard to cover in defence)
LoM: Neil Sneade (Even later to the meet than Wilco)
A funny game this. Against the division’s bottom side, still to rack up their first point of the season, Cambridge South 3rds were confident of getting a result to put a halt to their nascent losing streak. More important though was the performance, with South looking to put away the woolly decision-making (and finishing) that had dogged their previous two showings.
The game started brightly enough for the visitors. An attack straight from the push back saw Tom South, anchoring the play in the centre of midfield, surge into the D to find himself directly in front of goal with time to size up his shot: 1-0 to South with barely 45 seconds on the clock.
Buoyed by their first goal in five weeks, South began to relax a little and look more confident in possession. Benjie Groom, having played three games for the club and lost all of them, was making his final appearance before returning to Grantham and had been moved to right back to take best advantage of his instinct to get forward. Jan meanwhile was capably filling the sweeper role, his clear calls and solid play at the back creating a good defensive platform for the team. Tom, Nick Venner and Stu Creed were a formidable midfield combination and, making his debut leading the line for the 3rds this season, Paul South was making canny runs to move the defence around and create space for runners from deep.
Despite the positive notes, some of the old failings remained present: the opposition keeper still seemed to exert a magnetic effect on crosses, too many of which were aimed at him rather than pulled deeper towards the P spot. The temptation to try wind-ups for big hits through a crowd in the D rather than simple slips to teammates in space or quick flicks or pushes on goal was allowing too many shooting opportunities to be closed down before they could be taken.
As South searched for the additional goals to build a solid lead, Ely reminded their opponents that they still posed a threat, particularly on the break. Their pacy centre forward was allowed to get goal side of his marker just inside the halfway line with the sweeper caught square, resulting in an unequal race between the striker and Neil, who was unable to overhaul his man but managed to put enough pressure on to make him take his shot at speed on the move, sending it wide of the South goal.
With the scare of an equaliser over, South finally managed to make their dominance count and two further goals were added from Paul South and Rupert Espley before half time. At the break, South felt they could build on their performance in the first half to put clear water between the sides in the second period.
This resolution proved easier to say than do, however. South were, again, in command but equally were, again, labouring to add to the scoreline. As against Newmarket and St Neots, short corners came and went to frustratingly little effect. One of the best opportunities of the half came when another run towards the D by Tom was met with Paul moving laterally away from goal, dragging his defender with him and opening space for Tom to run straight through on goal but unfortunately his shot failed to find its target.
After a period of mounting frustration, Paul broke the second half deadlock with his second goal before John Parker, whose effective deep crosses from the left wing had been a feature of the game, got his reward when he met a ball across the goal to get on the scoresheet himself.
The result was no longer in doubt and Benjie would be able to leave South with a win finally under his belt but one final frustration remained. With South having failed to make anything of their dozen or more short corners, a few minutes from time and with only their second or third short of the game, Ely pulled a goal back when a clean strike clipped Jan’s stick as he advanced off the line and deflected to hit an inch below the top of the backboard. The late concession led to a rather flat feeling as South’s victorious squad trooped off the pitch.
A marginally improved performance from the previous weeks’ debacles mollified by a significantly improved scoreline. The feeling persists though that the team is yet to get back to firing on all cylinders but encouraging signs are appearing and there remains a final opportunity to get it right before the winter break.
Team played: Shahzad Ali, Jan Brynjolffssen, Neil Sneade, Benji Groom, John Parker, Simon Jelley, Wilco Dijkstra, Nick Venner, Tom South, Stu Creed, Paul South, Rupert Espley
Cambridge South Men's IV 4 - 3 Bourne Deeping V
H/T: 1 - 2
Scorers: Boris Lossy, James Raikes (3)
MoM: James Raikes (The whole team deserves it, but it as to go to the hat-trick man James Raikes)
Bourne Deeping was a good side and the team just played really well on the day with lots of positives.
- The passing was really good
- Great contributions from 2 people playing their first game for us, Guy Mulley and Oliver Lamming
- Came back from 1-3 down to actually win 4-3
- A genuine side of 4th team players with no higher team players doubling up
- There are at least 4 or 5 players who could have been man-of-the-match
- Great to watch the tussle between Nathan and a very good young Bourne-Deeping right back.
- James Raikes getting his hat-trick having initially declared "I haven't picked up a hockey stick in a month"
Well done everyone.
Team played: Josh Blanchard Lewis, Ky Ho, Dave Monck, Guy Mulley, James Siddorns, John Sharp, Oliver Lamming, Boris Lossy, Andrew Fraser, Nathan Monck, Simon Frampton, James Raikes
Cambridge South Ladies' I 0 - 4 Spalding Ladies I
H/T: 0 - 2
Scorers: None
MoM: Lou Cantwell
Cambridge South L1s had an early start this week for a match against the Spalding first team. Our opposition were second in the league with a good track record at home, so a final outcome of 4-0 is perhaps not surprising, though disappointing. The South team worked hard in defence, doing well to close down the majority of Spalding's attacking play and earning Lou Cantwell the man of the match award for her consistently calm head and strong skills as the last line of defence (and nominations for the keeper and the rest of the defensive line).
Three of the Spalding goals came from short corners and one from open play, again exposing our weakness under sustained defensive pressure.
We struggled to consistently clear the ball through the midfield but did maintain some great periods of pressure in the opposition 25, sadly without managing to convert that into goals either from open play or several shorts. The result leaves the L1s 6th from a league of 9 at the season's half way point. There's much to do after Christmas but lots of positives given that this is a team which lost around half its regular players at the end of last season so are new at working together.
Team played: Louise Tonkin, Ellie Raffan, Lindsey Berends, Julie Sadler, Caroline Dent, Lou Cantwell, Claire Sherwood, Serin Dabb, Kylie Beasley, Alice Hug, Bex Baker
Cambridge South Ladies' II 1 - 1 Spalding Ladies II
H/T: 1 - 0
Scorers: Leonie O'Donnell
MoM: Ash Price
A late pushback for the 2s at 3:30 giving time for Spalding to make the trek down on a Saturday afternoon with perfect hockey weather - clear and cool but not cold!
Spalding had first pushback and surged forward but the defence held and the ball was cleared up to the other end ending Ash making a fantastic run in on goal. Ley was perfectly positioned on the opposite post and tapped in Ash’s shot. 1-0 South. Spalding regrouped and started to pass the ball around well and showed some good individual skill. However, our defence and midfield held up with some good tackles. Then the attack of the shorts began. I’m not entirely sure how many short corners Spalding had in the entire game as I lost count after the first 5! The short corner defensive line of Lou G, Pip, Lydia, Lyn and of course Ali G in goal held firm and continued to clear our lines. We continued to look dangerous on the break with all the forwards making surging runs. Half time and a breather. Then onto the second half and it was more of the same. An evenly contested bout with telling tackles on both sides, then a break from Spalding found their centre forward at the top of the D who timed the hit perfectly (unfortunately) and the ball raced into the bottom right corner of Ali’s goal just high enough to get over Ali’s foot. 1-1. Further opportunities then fell to both sides but to no avail. Final score 1-1. Well played everyone!
Team played: Ali Graham, Lyn Wood, Louise Gutteridge, Pip Noon, Lydia Fison, Gemma Young, Catherine Anthony, Liz Harte, Jo Read, Katie Walland, Leonie O'Donnell, Ash Price
