Goals at the bottom end, draws at the top

The 1st XI were held 2-2 by Southampton in a cracking game, while the Ladies also held Purley by the same scoreline. There were goals galore at the bottom end of the club - the 3rd XI had the novel experience of handing out a drubbing as they thrashed Teddington 6-1, while the 4th XI made it 13 goals in two weeks with a 7-1 rout at Old Georgians. The Vets beat HAC 5-02, but the 2nd XI's woes continued as they went down 0-5 to the same opposition.


1st XI 2-2 Southampton 1
The hard work to achieve promotion and regenerate our first team was made all worth while when playing in games like that against Southampton on Saturday. We knew that they are going to be the side to beat this year being a young and efficient team and a large club. Indeed it was Southampton who condemned us to the drop 5 years ago and from all accounts were unlucky not to be in the A division of the league at the end of last season.

As with last week we came out of the traps fast but unlike last week Southampton were intent on playing a similar free and fast running game. We shaded the first 15 or so minutes and were rewarded with a Gavin Adair goal with his touching home a superb ball in from Eds, continued to press but found the opposition keeper in inspired form, making 3 or 4 top class saves.By half time we were 2 - 1 down with Southampton deserving their lead. 2 well finished goals follwoing a period of intense pressure. We could have been furtehr behind but a couple of chances went begging.

As the second half progressed our squad, well marshalled by David Cresswell dominated and it was no surprise when man ofthe match CV finished off one of the moves of a number of seasons that invloved most of our team and saw 3 crisp transfers of the ball from side to side. From here on it seemd as if there would only be one winner as we retained the ball well and snuffed out Southampton's midfield domination that had caused us problems in the first half. Not to be denied though, Southampton looked very dangerous on the break, forced a number of short corners and created chances that they could not take. Trickster made 2 good saves but it was the Southampton keeper who saved the away side a point and denied us 2 more. Perhaps we should have made more of the chances we had and there was a feeling of 2 points lost rather than one gained.

The match ended in controversy but respect to Sean who later held his hand up.

The biggest disappointment of the day was the lack of urgency on some occasions when Cressers called the subs which are called for a reason and at the correct time. The positive side was a good solid performance by new guy Dan Poulson, the Woods and Cato with Nick L putting in an excellent second half after being under pressure in the first and a strong OC second half performance with us taking the game to Southampton.

Arguably we could have nine points out of nine but equally Southampton may have an argument that had they taken a two-goal lead into the second half by converting one of their chances after their second goal they could have gone down the A3 with all three points. David Knapp

Purley Walcountians 2-2 Ladies XI
These days you hear so much about how motivational talks by coaches and managers before a game can inspire a team. With a tricky away game against an unbeaten Purley team everyone waited to hear what words would be used to get us ready - and were promptly told by goalie that he had “no faith” in us (sure we believe you when you claim you just got your words a bit mixed up...).

The opposition were full of fast young players and they used that to their advantage early on to score a breakaway goal. However, instead of letting our heads drop within two minutes we were level, some excellent play down the left-hand side saw the ball eventually break free to Katie in the area who coolly slotted the ball away. From then on we took the game to Purley and put them under immense pressure especially when we used the self-hit rule so effectively getting attacks moving whilst they were still getting organised. Jax was unlucky to hit the post with a shot. Eventually we were rewarded for our hard work a strong drive down the right and into the D by Snoops who crossed for Sarah Mann to score. As Purley looked to get back into the game they worked a quick 1-2 from a short corner and were back level prior to half time.

The second half was close, with both teams having chances, but neither managing to convert them. As the game went on more of the decisions favoured the home team, but everyone shrugged it off and got on with playing their own game. If it hadn't been for an excellent save from the Purley keeper we would have gone ahead. At the back the defensive line of Hels, Rosie, Lucy and Rewa dealt well with a number of Purley short corners which ensured they never got a clear chance from any of them.

Everyone played well and on another day we'd have got all 3 points, but to be truthful a draw was a fair result. Julia Dann


3rd XI 6-2 Teddington Oaks
With an early start to the game and only 11 on the pitch the first five minutes looked as if we had not yet woken up and we were lucky to keep it at 0-0. Nevertheless as the first half progressed we seemed to settle and started putting greater and greater pressure on our very young opposition. This pressure finally paid off with Louis Strover scoring a goal with his normal precision after about 15 minutes. This was quickly followed up by a second scored by Jamal to give us a 2-0 lead. We had our tails up and were really starting to play some great hockey. There were brilliant performances all over the pitch with the defence having a strong performance … with Jock Vickers moving back to sweeper where he is probably most suited, a big welcome back to Abs Janmohamed who really gave us a solidity which we had been missing, CD who seems to have made right back his position after today’s performance and Ollie who had got his focus back having his best game of the season so far. Unfortunately Ollie managed to pull a hamstring midway through the first half, but with the possibility of going down to 10 men he soldiered on. Towards the end of the half Teddington managed to pull a goal back with a slick move that had the defence and myself scratching our heads as to where it had come from. But on the upside we went into halftime with a lead of 2-1 and a confidence that we could go on and achieve our second win of the season.

At halftime we changed our structure to push Ollie up front up in order to protect his hamstring. The second half started well with the midfield staying really strong… Ross also had probably his best game this season, Dougie definitely proved that he is getting back to his very best, Preston despite being out of position made a big difference in the middle as the conduit between defence and attack actually existed today. We were able to put a lot of pressure on the Teddington defence even though their 11 year old keeper was doing some good work (yes I did say 11 year old !!!), They could not hold out forever and our latest makeshift attacker Ollie was able to take our lead up to 3-1. We did experience a number of scares and Teddington did get the score back to 3-2 with a well taken short corner. At this point Teddington did push hard and caught us out a couple of times but with a combination of well timed tackles by various members of the defence and a couple of saves from myself (even if I do say so!) we were able to maintain our lead. However eventually Louis was able to craft a 4th for us and at 4-2 we didn’t really look back. Before the end Jamal was able to add his second and Preston was able to slot a well deserved goal to make our tally 6. It has to be said that this was a great all round team effort as we concentrated on playing our game and used our experience to get the better of a very young, fit and skilful Teddington. I am extremely chuffed as, even whilst I don’t wish to admit this, having captained the side for a year and this being the start of my second season it was the first time that the team had won while I was playing. I personally blame the keeper!!! Hopefully we won’t have to wait so long for the second. Nigel "At Last A Winner" Hawes

Old Georgians 1-7 4th XI
This week, Mrs Amy Oxo provided the team with OC orange cup cakes after their match against the Old Georgians. The cup cake, like the 4th team, is having a bit of a resurgence. Back in the 80s they were very cool, but they have been overlooked for the last couple of decades. In 2009 they are definitely back.

The cup cake is sometimes known as a fairy cake. But there were no fairies on the pitch in Weybridge this week ... well other than the ever camp Harmer (maverick) and Archer (iceman). Both of whom had been caught singing to Girls Aloud on the journey to the pitch (Boyzone had been taken from the cd player out of respect).

The cup cake is made of flour, sugar and butter. The solid formation of the cupcake is provided by the flour. The central formation of the 4th team, Smith, Crumby and Harmer, Shakir started the game on a strong foot. With driving runs through the middle, one of which lead to a trademark roof breaker by Jemal to open up the scoring. It all goes it bit hazy after this point, I know Shakir got another 2, Bishop 1 and Dom 1, the others I forget.... - at half time it was 6-1

Any chef will tell you, if you want to make anything taste better, just add a bit more butter. And this is what the OCs did during the second half. By adding another goal to the tally from.....again I forget. With the Old Georgians rallying, it nearly felt as if they had more players on the pitch.

The sweetness of the cupcake is provided by the sugar. Our sugar daddies of Kevin, Crumby and Archer stood strong through the second half where Old Georgians started to make a number of attacks. Particular mention should go to Kevin for some fantastic tackles when he was the last man standing.

The final score stood at 7-1 and we move into a strong fourth position in the league. During post-match chat our captain this week, Grant Archer was overheard making reference to Diego Maradona's foul mouth tirade this week. "Today we are in the 4th place in the league, with help from nobody but with honour. To all of you who did not believe in us, and I apologise to all the women here, you can eat my cup cake and keep on eating." Mark Oxbrough Harmer, you're fired


HAC 2-5 Veterans
OC Vets followed up the glory of their "never-say-die" victory at Tring last week with an emphatic win away to HAC on an enjoyable afternoon played in great spirit in leafy Dulwich. This performance probably lacked the ‘derring-do / Guns of Navarone’ quality of the Tring triumph but was probably a more impressive overall performance. The outcome was never seriously in doubt and each time that HAC threatened to climb back into the match OCs found another gear and, more importantly, another goal. The 5-2 scoreline1 did not flatter the away side and this against a decent HAC side.

Graced by the classy and tireless Howie and the ever-menacing and powerful Gavin Rowlands this Vets performance was built around a strong midfield performance, the ball moving well through the middle of the pitch courtesy of another impressive display from Tommy ‘what-no-hat-trick-this-week’ Trinder. As ever the most effective passing proved to be the short ball in and out of the flanks and Jon Gray once again proved his worth, ever-dangerous down the right. At half-time OCs led 2-0, the second being a classic ‘fox-in-the-box’ effort from the sparkling Stuart Slemen following the all-important first goal, a short-range thwack by Tony Jones created by a neat pass from the aforesaid Slemen, surely a classic case of ‘poacher turned goal-maker’. . Jury service is clearly agreeing with him!

Half-time was interesting. Wade Pollard umpiring clearly had a plane to catch because he reduced the interval to just a few seconds. The shortened break proved long enough however for the HAC to neck a bottle of champagne between them – a magnificent moment and one that perhaps contributed to a level playing field given that a number of the OC team, having arrived rather earlier than expected, had ‘warmed up’ for the big occasion by getting comfy over a pint!

The second half was a roller-coaster. A powerful penalty corner strike from Andy Loates was deflected by Gavin to extend the lead, HAC nicked one back only for Andy Loates to touch a pass in after we had moved the ball around with four passes from a short corner to restore the three-goal cushion with a well taken goal. The team was served well at the back by Loates and Speers and Matt Olley in goal didn’t put a foot wrong notwithstanding the lack of clean sheet. In truth HAC’s second goal was the pick of the match, a Maradona style run half the pitch from their centre forward before a crisp finish that left our keeper no chance. We went immediately down the other end to seal the match with our 5th when Gavin Rowlands scored his second from a well worked short corner involving wall passes off defenders shins. Messrs Butcher and Eve meanwhile patrolled the left hand side to great effect. We even had the luxury of Osborn came off the bench in the second half to dazzle and help rub salt into HAC wounds.

We left the match in good spirits but with insufficient time for most of us to enjoy a post-match beer at the Greyhound, the lure of the evening Quins Toulouse game accounting for much of the team, another victory for an away side, but this one an unwanted result and no doubt reduced the OC Quins contingent to a bout of beer-based consolation! And anyway we can all reflect on a very satisfying afternoon’s hockey. It is official, OC Vets are now an a winning streak. David Burles

Little cheer as league starts

The league season spluttered into life on Saturday but there was little to celebrate as all three teams in action went down to defeats. The Ladies, in their first match back in Surrey Division Two went down 1-2 to newly-promoted Surbiton III, the 3rd XI, also playing a league down, lost 1-3 at Walton & Weybridge, while the 4th XI crashed to a 0-4 loss at home to Surbiton. To complete the fun, the 1st XI surrendered a one-goal lead with 15 minutes remaining to lose 1-2 to Epsom in their last friendly before their league starts next weekend.
Click here for this week's match photos

Walton & Weybridge 3-1 3rd XI
Turning up with a strong experienced side there was hope that the OC 3rd XI would start the season in a different vein to how they finished the last. The first 20 minutes looked like that this may be possible as the ball was knocked about well with the moves starting from the back four of Ross, Tim, Stuey and Armo and being played around with a degree of finesse. It was this type of finesse which led to our goal when the ball was played up the right before being hit across the goal for Dougie to fire in from close range. This left us 1-0 up and really we should have pushed on from here. Just before half time the Hawks began to threaten a bit more by breaking from midfield and overpowering us a bit. This eventually led to them obtaining a short corner and even after saving the initial strike the second shot was fired in. The ball allegedly hit a foot which was accepted (even though it had hit the stick first) and one of the umpires gave a short corner, however the Hawks umpire stood at the halfway line claiming that it was goalward bound and awarded a flick. The timing of this flick was poor and our players who were stood in a similar position were not of quite the same opinion as the umpire. With a well placed flick the Hawks drew level and we went into halftime at 1-1.

The second half started much the same as the first with Dunx and Chris Bents putting in some hard yards in midfield and Tissy and Dougie also making some great runs. A note for ourselves is that we probably need to utilise the skills of both our wide men more in future. In addition it was nice to have Preston and Andy up front for us but again we did not seem to utilise their skills enough. As the half drew on we seemed to lose our composure more and more not helped by our captain from the back. This led to almost continuous pressure from the Hawks and despite some saves from Nige we eventually ended up shipping a further couple of goals with the end score being a 3-1 loss. The 3rd team need to forget about the if, buts and maybes and all around need to improve the fitness levels and be led from the back with a sense of composure. We will be able to achieve far better results this season but will definitely need to work at it. Also thanks to Cookie for umpiring at such short notice, much appreciated.

Ladies XI 1-2 Surbiton
The start of the new season, we were all raring to go and kick the season off with a win under the new captaincy of Sarah Mann.

Playing Surbiton 3s, we started off strongly and had some good passages of play and attacks on the Surbiton goal. Distribution was good and we were doing our best to make the ball do the work and frustrate the opposition. The defence were keeping any Surbiton attacks at bay with some clinical tackling and they were quickly sending the ball back to the mids and forwards to start another attack. We had good and sustained pressure on Surbiton but the opening goal was not forthcoming and we went in half time 0-0.

A rousing team talk and we looked to turn our pressure of the first half in to the opening 3 points of the season. Unfortunately, Surbiton had the same idea and were fortunate to get a short corner early in the second half which they duly converted. Heads did not go down and we stepped up the pressure to get the equaliser,we had good attacks on their goal but could not get the last touch and when Surbiton had another short corner, they doubled their lead. With 15 minutes to go, fitness levels were still good and we stepped up the attacks, a surging run by Sarah Mann saw her take the ball in to the D and open the OCLHC account with crisp finish. A tense final 10 minutes saw Surbiton cling on and us do everything we could to get the equaliser but the final whistle came too soon for us and Surbiton were the victors.

Although we didn’t get the three points we were hoping for, it was a very positive start to the season. We welcome some new players to the squad and also welcome back players too, all of which adds tremendous depth and strength to the team. We will build on Saturdays performance and look forward to our opening three points of the season in our next league game. Vikki Mottram

Bedroom to rent in Bookham

As part of our off-season personal service, we are delighted to offer a room to rent.

It’s a good-sized double bedroom to rent in Bookham. Part furnished in a quiet location. Has large south facing garden near to station (Effingham Junction, four stops from TD) and amenities. Off road parking, approx 10 mins to A3 and M25, and 20 minutes to Guildford and Woking. Non smoker, must be happy to live with a dog and cat who are very friendly.

£500 pcm including bills … if interested call Sarah on 07828 692479.

Match reports - October 11, 2008

The 1st XI made it two in two with a 3-1 win at Merton, two goals from David Knapp securing the points, and the 2nd XI made it a double with a 1-0 win over the same opposition. About the only good news this week for the Bank of England came with a 5-3 win over our 3rd XI, and the 4th XI had to come from behind to draw 2-2 with ten-man Wanderers. After two draws, the Ladies’ first win of the season came with a 3-1 success over Old Kingstonians.

Merton 1-3 1st XI
An important victory against a side who we anticipate will be in the mix at the end of the season.

Playing some good hockey against a very defensively-minded Merton team we made the early running but neither side created much until just before half time. We were a touch unlucky not to win a stroke when a Merton defender appeared to stop the ball on the line with his chest … but the umpire thought otherwise. Aaron asserted his authority on the game early on ensuring that any back chat was punished by the forfeiture of 10 yards but we took some time to learn the lesson. Both sides had a couple of shorts but it was difficult to establish who had the poorest routine.

Five minutes before half time we conceded a shocker, allowing the ball to be brought into the D along the baseline on the left and somewhat softly run across the goal for the easiest of tap-ins. Fortunately, there was time for us to equalise with Ed B setting up Knapp whose cross found its way to Eds who rolled the ball home.

The first 20 minutes of the second half saw us take control with Merton receiving a couple of yellow cards for questionable tackles, and during that time a loose ball from a short corner was converted by Knapp who then had the easiest of tasks to slot home No. 3 after excellent work by Cato, whose incisive run and pass, aided by a super decoy run from Adair, took out the whole of the Merton defence.

From that point on we began to struggle and Merton dominated the last 10 minutes, hitting the post and missing a couple of chances with Bruce earning his Man of the Match award with 2 big tackles. Cato and Ed Breton pushed Bruce hard and with Duffy making a solid appearance we suddenly have options at the back.

Walton and Weybridge next week who have been impressive so far and so another must win game. David Knapp

Ladies 3-1 Old Kingstonians
We went into the match against Old Kingstonians undefeated but looking for our first win. They had just come up from Division 2, and we were well aware as the week before this didn't mean an easy match.

We had the bench loaded with subs and we went out hard, planning to run our little legs ragged until coach Mot called us off. We dominated the first 10 minutes and pretty soon a goal came from a well drilled (practice five minutes before the match) penalty-corner. Vikki injected, Sarah slipped the ball to May on the right who drilled the ball into the goal. So far a much better start than the week before. We were playing much slicker hockey, keeping possession, holding the ball up and passing it around the back to create space and movement. OK's were keeping the pace high and taking free hits swiftly which was also our goal for the match too so we were glad of our five subs! OKs kept the pressure on us and towards the end of the half we lost our stride a bit, conceding several penalty corners, which Georgie, Muriel, Rosie and Tux did a stella job of defending, Steph in goal having to pull off a couple of good saves and OKs hitting the post. We went into half time 1-0 up but OK's were by no means finished.

Again we came out hard after half time and nearly scored immediately with several shots from Gayle scraped away by the OK defence, and then one hitting the post. Within five minutes we had secured a 2-0 lead with May driving into the circle passing the ball to Sarah H at the top who hammered it home. OKs however it seems are used to coming back from behind and kept pushing hard but our midfield of Steph, Vikki, Nikki and Nina and forwards of Liza, Snoopy and Caz were working their socks off - we were not about to let this lead slip and 15 minutes from the end we put a third away, May once again driving down the right at her lightning speed and passing it across the circle for Jax to slot home. The game didn't finish there. OKs were determined and managed to get a goal back after a spate of short corners, but we held on to our first victory of the season and the game finished 3-1. Job done. Well done girls! Jackie Waite.


2nd XI 1 - 0 Merton 2nd XI
Great result, end of story. This really was a hard fought result on a baking hot mid-October day in England (never thought I would be writing that!). We had a long chat before the game and set out exactly how we wanted to play and pretty much everything went to plan with everyone applying themselves as requested and crucially as a team. Sure, there was the occasional negative comment but overall there was not to much to be negative about. We had to learn from last week (and season!) that we and the umpires make mistakes and there is no point whining about it, and today we got it right.

The hockey itself was sensible and controlled, if not inspirational, but it is early season and we are learning how to play together and it was good to see us using our heads rather than last week's headless chicken act. The goal itself came from a loose ball that Paul drilled in from the top left side of the D. We did have other chances with Neil, Duncan and Bruce all having decent efforts importantly on target saved - even the short corner routines were well worked. On balance though this was more about the defensive set up and a great clean sheet, with Mez epitomising the effot putting his body on the line and coming away with a split chin for his efforts. Our midfield helped with defensive duties - exceptional work rate from Duncan and Grimesy - and Tissy held the ball up perfectly when we broke from the back. The back 4 protected by Ports were very solid and organised and new kid on the block Richard was superb in goal pulling off a number of varied saves that protected our one goal lead.

If we can build on this momentum and structure we will be well set for the season ahead. Most importantly thanks to Eb (from UCL) and Helen for helping out and umpiring very competently at very short notice. Paul Acutt


Bank of England 2nd XI 5-3 3rd XI
There are some match reports where you think what happened in that match? What shall I write about? This was not one of them!!! To say that it was eventful would be probably an understatement. We had turned up to the salubrious surrounding of the Bank of England Sports Ground and had to admire the setting for this away game. We all just hope that it still the same after the Credit Crunch.

We welcomed back our ex-captain today and are glad that Armo has finally returned. In addition, we continued to increase our influx of new players with Ross joining us this week and a number of our other new players continuing to attend.

The match started off with Bank pressurising from the whistle. This unfortunately seemed to be the way the half was going to proceed as I don’t think we actually had the ball outside of our half for the first 25 minutes. The makeshift defence of CD, Tim, Armo and Ewan, which we had formulated due to certain missing players, stood strong throughout and with the half time approaching the score still stood at 0-0. Unfortunately though with two lapses of concentration from us and a bit of good play from the Bank we ended up shipping two quick goals and the halftime score was 2-0.
Well I hear you say “where’s all this eventful action?” Well that was just the first half the fun was just about to all get going. Unfortunately we decided to put a seasons worth of bloopers into one half.

The second half started with us pushing a lot harder with Tom and Ross starting to take more of a control of the midfield. In addition it seemed that Rich’s hangover had started to pass and with Andy on the other wing we were making better inroads into the Bank’s half. This good work eventually culminated in a cracking goal from Dave who took the ball and then on running into the D before scaring the oppo keeper by cracking it into the right corner (an early contender for goal of the season). Unfortunately though The Bank came straight back at us and were able to make it 3-1.
We were then reduced to 10 men for a short period as Ross received a yellow for deliberate use of the back of the stick. Ross called it ineptitude!

This was followed a few minutes later by another strong attack by Bank who after rounding Nige in goal had a clear strike on goal. Just as we thought we were about to concede again Ewan dived in with a last ditch tackle. Ewan did take the ball but unfortunately the umpire thought he took the oppo’s stick and as Ewan was the last defender he gave a flick. Thankfully, justice was done though as Nige made the save. It has to be said that it wasn’t the best flick though and it would have been very disappointing to have gone a further goal down from it.

With Ross back on the pitch unfortunately the relentless pressure from the Bank eventually paid off. Ewan was obviously not happy with giving one flick away so he thought that Nige needed some more penalty practice. The ball was flicked up by the Bank into the D and Ewan brought it down with his stick above his head. The umpire correctly yellow carded him and awarded a P flick. Just so Ewan is clear on this, the rule book which he has now been given is an early Christmas present, and, yes, he does get our Dick of the Day award.

The Bank changed penalty-flick taker and duly scored to make it 4-1, even though Nige did get a glove on the flick after going the right way. The Bank then issued a sucker punch to make it 5-1 with another pressure goal.

It was at this point with Ewan back on the pitch that our strike force decided to get going. Preston got his name on the scoresheet for the first time this season to make it 5-2. Then Dave not wanting to be out done decided to get his second to make the scoreline look a lot more sensible 5-3.

The match was played in pretty good humour and was generally umpired very well. May we thank BoE for providing both umpires and wish them well for the rest of the season. Nigel Hawes


4th XI 2 Wanderers VIs 2
The 4s season started last week with an impressive 4-0 win over a Walton and Weybridge team who, over the past year, have proved to be a difficult team to beat. A strong all-round team performance saw us dominate Walton for 90% of a game which was clearly enjoyed by everyone involved. Enthusiasm and expectation were consequently high as we looked forward to our first home game of the season against Wanderers 6s.

We welcomed Darren Pouts into defence for his OC debut (in place of new father Grant Archer – congratulations to the Archers!) and Austin Vowles returned to the club after several seasons at sea to impress on the left wing. The 4s started the game the better of the two teams, pushing for a goal for the first 15 minutes. Andy Monkton and Austin pressed well down the left, linking well with Rob Jonker in midfield and Adam Justice alone up front. Following several near misses the deadlock was deservedly broken by Adam who struck from close range to give us the early lead that we hoped for.

Then, chaos struck, the opposition woke up, and Wanderers hit two goals to give them a 2-1 half-time lead. Surely this couldn’t be?

In the second half, the 4s made it difficult for Wanderers to escape their own half, setting a defensive D well and early. This allowed us to push forward, searching for the all important equaliser. Pressure again led to numerous opportunities, culminating in Adam hitting his second goal of the day (2-2); the game was now ours for the taking. Play opened up and we were put through on goal on several occasions, each time being thwarted by a mean Wanderers keeper.

Rob Crumby, Steve Harmer, Nick Aston and Darren dealt with almost everything that came their way in defence; when Wanderers did find their way further towards the goal they found Nige Smith in their way, making several late and very important saves to keep the scores level until the final whistle. Credit has to go to the team for persevering until the final whistle, showing a team spirit that should hold us in good stead for the season ahead.

(I might have forgotten to mention that Wanderers only had ten men, but surely you haven’t read this far down the page?!)

Thanks go to Rob and Martin for umpiring.

Match reports - January 12, 2008

The second half of the season started with a good 3-2 win for the 1st XI at Walton, while the Ladies hammered bottom side Barnes 5-0. The 2nd XI enjoyed a hard 0-0 draw with Walton, while the 4th XI also drew, 2-2 at Reigate. But struggling sides the 3rd XI and Veterans both lost.



Walton & Weybridge 2 1st XI 3 The month of January is always an important month as teams can fall away or come up on the rails following a month of inactivity. For us the next six games will see if we have the character to force us back into contention. The current leaders UCL slipped up again before the break and with Wanderers and Bank of Boks to come early this half their season could similarly be decided. At the beginning of the season they caught both sides cold but one has the feeling that the previous results could be overturned.

On a fast and excellent pitch Walton and Weybridge were going to be a difficult side to beat having had a good first 11 games picking up dramatically from last season’s travails. The first few minutes saw us caught cold giving away an unnecessary short corner with W & W’S slick routine punishing us most emphatically to put us one down. We thought we were level five minutes later when Knapp swept home a quick free hit but Eds was deemed to have passed the ball with his foot – in our view it must have been a wooden and size 28 foot. Nevertheless by half time the lead had been gained, Paul marking his league debut with a tap in after Bruce’s reverse stick pass across the goal took the whole defence by surprise and Cookie using the space that was created ahead of him and using his pace to outstrip the defence and hitting a sublime shot into the top right hand corner – one of the best individual and team goals of the season. The move had started at the right back position and with three passes round the back and a sharp pass up field to find Cookiey we took the ball from one end to the other in a minute or so.

Having taken the lead we inexplicably tried to play a completely different game and lost our way somewhat having put together some wonderful hockey in a 15-minute spell in which we scored our two goals – something to take home and put right for next week.

The beginning of the second half saw us play another five minutes of good stuff but W & W were not going to lie down and came back at us strongly but against the run of play very unselfishly Cookiey set up Knapp by taking out the goalkeeper and slipping the ball across the goal for Knapp to have the easy task of popping the ball home.

Instead of wrapping the game up we missed a number of chances and allowed the oppo back in when a beautifully worked short enable the gap to return to one goal with seven minutes remaining. W & W certainly showed the benefit of having a well drilled short corner routine. The last few minutes were Walton’s as far as the first four were concerned with Nigel Smith making one good save and one top drawer save that enabled us to run out winners following a needless yellow card for chat that reduced Walton to 10 and took the steam out of their challenge.

Once again we had two umpires, Peter and the experienced converted player Ian Jolly umpiring us for the first time who worked well together and umpired very consistently. Another tight but must win game next week against Addiscombe to ensure we stay in the top section of the league.

Barnes 0 Ladies 5 Our first match back after Christmas was expected to be a struggle and we did take our time to find our stride. The pitch was half frozen and hard but playable. Our first goal came about halfway through the first half - a bit of a scramble in the circle and Vikki finished it nicely to put us 1-0 up. Katy, after one-hour’s sleep, was not having to do much at all in goal up the other end and Tux the centreback/forward was having a stormer with some great creative play bringing the ball forward and distributing it around. Muriel and Rosie as ever solid as a rock for us at the back. Nothing was really on for Barnes an before long Nikki had a scored a second goal after a taking the ball around the Barnes keeper and hammering it home. Supersub George came on up front and within minutes had an aerial shot on goal rebound off the cross bar! Her usual position being defence she was so busy admiring her shot we failed to capitalise on the rebound!! But a few minutes later George did manage to score her debut goal for OCs and all was forgiven! At half time the score was 3-0.

We came out hard in the second half determined to rack up some more goals. The forwards of Mez, Caz and Nina were doing their usual job of closing down the Barnes defence and creating scoring chances. The midfield of Sarah Hardiman, Nikki and Jax were again working hard and putting Barnes under pressure. We did concede several penalty corners which Rossie P and her defence defended solidly. Another goal came shortly from some great team play a cross into the D and Vikki fired her second goal past the Barnes GK who had no chance. It was all over for Barnes but we kept pushing winning a final penalty corner. Sarah Hardiman had the final hit of the game to smash the ball just over the Barnes keeper who had gone straight down on the floor, to convert our penalty corner into a fifth goal. The final whistle followed immediately and the OC ladies had started the second half of the season as we mean to go on! A good solid win. Well done ladies! Jackie Joyce