Winning messy

The 1st XI returned to winning ways after two draws with a 3-2 win at Old Midwhitgiftians in a game David Knapp admitted was “our worst performance of the season”. The 2nd XI turned the form book on its head with a battling 2-2 draw against league leaders Old Whitgiftians, our first points of the season. The 3rd XI overcame the almost forgotten fun of playing on grass to beat bottom side Spencer 1-0, the side’s first back-to-back wins in more than two years. The 4th XI beat Leatherhead 3-0 with all the goals coming in the first 20 minutes. The Vets beat Cheam 2-0.A diving Chris Porter nets our first goal in the 2nd XI's 2-2 draw with league leaders Old Whitgiftians
Click here for this week's match photos

Old Midwhitgiftians 2-3 1st XI
Our worst performance of the season but three valuable points against OMW's who have always made life difficult for us.

A few shuffles of the pack gave us our starting line up and as with the last few weeks we played well for 20 minutes, poorly for the next 20 and then regained our momentum for the last 15. Two goals to the good early on courtesy of two sharp finishes from man of the match Gavin should have been the platfrom for a convincing win and but for one smart save Trickster had nothing to do in the first half where we had been pegged back to 2-1 following a crisp strike from the OMW's only short of the half and indeed the match.

In essence we lost our pattern and played the ball long instead of keeping it short and sharp as we had done when on top. The home side also pressed more having gained considerable confidence from their strike. We missed chances to wrap up the game and paid the penalty when a stroke was conceded and the scores were level, Trickster unlucky to see the ball dribble home after guessing right.

Fortunately Dan P was on hand to nudge the ball home with 15 to go and although hanging on at times again, had bags of chances to kill of the game but making bad choices and suffering as a result of some bad basics. A couple of professional tackles went unpunished by the umpires in our ranks although Rippers took a yellow for the team late on and we came away with three valuable points to put us right back in the mix.

Excellent game from Gavin and another good performance from both CV and Dan which will make selction interesting with CB, Cato, James W ood and Jonny H back next week. David Knapp

2nd XI 2-2 Old Whitgiftians
This week's match photos
Yet again we found ourselves playing the league leaders – that’s 3 times out of our first 4 games (and before they picked up points against us!!). We welcomed back our old friends Old Whitgiftians. They moved up the 2 leagues with us and last year saw 2 epic games against them – coming back to gain a draw after being 3-0 down after 15 mins at home and then beating them by a couple of goals at their place later in the season.

We had the advantage this week of a reasonably settled side (by our standards anyway) – not that you would have known it in the first 10 minutes when we invited them to repeatedly pour down our right hand side. The pressure eventually led to a well struck short corner which the skipper missed on the post. 1-0 down after 10 minutes was not the start we had hoped for. This did seem to galvanise us though and we started to string some passages of good hockey together. JP Davidson replaced Rob Merry to play in his favoured position of right back and did a fine job throughout. We played some good hockey but once again gave the ball away too much in their half and rarely entered the d – which continues to put us under unnecessary pressure. It has to be said that they were putting in some fairly average tackling which they were lucky to get away with (more of that later). A quick transfer round the back (probably for the first time in the game) provided some space down the left. Several quick, precise passes cut them apart and Porter did the rest.

Half time at 1-1 and things were looking good. Unfortunately we got the second half of to a disastrous start – Jon Heard, who up until that point had had a fairly faultless game, had a wobble to many in the middle and their striker duly accepted a very kind gift – the result a three-on-one and ultimately a goal. At this point our heads could have dropped but encouragingly we picked up the pace a bit and started to attack more. Austin Vowles, a late replacement for Bruce who had been pinched by the 1st XI, working hard to create something. A rare trip to the d led to a short corner and Rob Merry, who had come on up front, was on hand to blast the rebound in from the penalty spot – 2-2.

What followed was a real battle, reminiscent of our tussles with Old Whits last year. A bad tackle or nine too many from them led to the first yellow for them. We failed to really take advantage of this and almost inevitably started to put in some bad challenges ourselves – leading to a yellow for Chris Porter. The backs worked hard – Chris O’Neil-Dunne making an excellent save on the line form a short corner and Ross Kingsnorth making several other fine saves. When we did pick up the pace and really attack them we looked dangerous. A long run up the left and through the middle from Rob Merry drew a foul just in front of the D – nothing much but then it had been one of four committed in the same passage of play. The result was a short corner and another card to their player – perhaps a little harsh but consistent.

Even with a man down they continued to press. We still looked dangerous on the break but lacked the penetration to get into their d much. A clash of sticks in an otherwise good tackle by James Bents meant he saw yellow with about five minutes to go, the result of us once again needlessly loosing the ball in their half. So we had to play out the last three minutes a man down. Unfortunately we conspired to concede a short corner with a minute to go but Ross made another fine save. The whistle was in truth probably a blessing for both sides and certainly the umpires!

2-2 was probably a fair reflection of the game – resulting in Old Whits dropping their first points of the season and us winning our first points of the season! The next four weeks see us play three out of the four bottom sides – which have become must-win games for us, even at this early stage of the season. With decent availability and hopefully a player or two from the 1st XI we should be ok and hopefully we will be able to provide some players to the 3rd XI to aid their important quest for promotion. Rob Merry

Spencer Harlequins 0-1 3rd XI
Congratulations to us all on grinding out another win by managing to beat Spencer Harlequins 1-0. This may not sound the most amazing win, but to take any result where we score more than the opposition whilst playing on grass is good enough for me. The game this weekend felt as much of a lottery even though I feel we would have wiped the floor with them on Astro.

Our Third win of the season has taken us up to the heady heights of 5th in the league. Congratulations to new recruit Ed Brown for scoring the all-important goal. Nigel Hawes

4th XI 3-0 Leatherhead
The prodigious 4’s turned up to a cold & damn OC ground somewhat down on the numbers readied for battle on Friday evening, (various dubious reasons ensued!) Thanks go to stalwarts Andy “the Duracell Bunny” Eve and Howard “the Interceptor” Cruthers for stepping in to boost the squad.
Tactics were set as we studied an oppo with only three goals conceded in four games, whilst they sat in third place with us in fourth.

Play started on a slick & greasy surface with some good pressure and fast runs from Leatherhead for the first ten minutes. There somewhat immovable king-pin hogging the top of the D, looking to provide some deft touches to fast young oppo running in from deep. A strong defensive line from Kevin “the Power Tackle” Smith, Robin “Longarms” Crumby and “I’m not Nasty” Nick Aston, quelled most of the early pressure.

In a break from our 16, an irrepressible Grant “Dodgy Chicken Legs” Archer carried the ball quickly with James “Slick” Bish to bash the Oppo D. Eventually the ball was passed from the right, for Archie to finish neatly across the keeper at the right post. Whether this galvanised us even more, or Leatherhead head’s had dropped who knows, but we continued the pressure with some fantastic running up our right flanks from Dom “Skin’em Gonzales” Tucker!! Perseverance was rewarded as we set up for a shortie which ran right to Dom who slotted it deftly into the corner. 2-0.

As the oppo rallied slightly, moving on by him there was a loud memorable guttural sqawk as jetsetter Stevie “Ohhh Nick Griffin!! I will NOT be beaten like that,” Harmer sped earnestly back across the pitch in a resplendent effort to get the ball! He did. More resilient pressure in Leatherhead's D saw an Archie nutmeg go just wide. Another shortie resulted in a foot stopping save, and a P flick was duly awarded. Step forward Chris “I did miss my breakfast with my delightful conquest from Friday nights night out” Bents to power home a delightful stroke to the top of the net! Some post goal sloppiness saw the Oppo in our D for a shortie, strongly blocked by Power Tackles. Four or five first half attacks were stopped dead due to the new rules not quite sinking in just yet.

The second half resumed with the oppo applying good pressure, but perhaps they had a little more wind as we struggled to regain the control we had for the last 20 minutes of the first half. Great link up on the right with Chris, Andy & Dom to set us up for another shortie, but alas we could not convert. A nose-bleeding run from Longarms Crumby, linking up with Gonzales and Nick “Ever-ready & Roaring” Jocelyn saw a decision of question, as a possible shortie transpired to be an Oppo 16?
It must have been correct though as Martin “I’ll only umpire if you bring me cakes!” Williamson took his legendary firm control!

The last ten minutes of the game saw a fairly even match, with our last action coming as we took another shortie, which found Chicken Legs heady with excitement as he struck for the left corner, but forgetting to move his right foot, yelped in sheer pain as a his calf spasmed in anger with all that running forward. Or maybe it was just cramp!

An excellent team performance providing solid midfield link-ups, strong rearguard defence and superb speedy attacks. Monday Stats see the OC4’s sitting second.
Smithers. Nigel Cakeman Smith


Veterans XI 2-0 Cheam
So we are at TD on a very mild, overcast afternoon to take on a good Cheam side. Tommy sets up the side as a fairly rigid 442. Cheam start well, maintaining possession without really hurting our stout defence (can use any interpretation here). Cheam did however create a number of short corners but these were well defended (more of this later). We finished the 1st half with a few good moves and half-time came along with a scintillating 0-0 score-line, fairly reflecting the play.

The sun came out during the half-time chat and Tommy/Andy correctly assessed we lacked width in attack and were consequently playing to Cheam’s strengths - so they changed the formation by playing two left-halves. I know this sounds rather strange but it worked – Cheam’s most effective attacker was their ‘right-wing’ playing high up – so the 1st left half man-marked this player while the second maintained width. I think we ended up with a sort of 352 which would sometimes be 3142 or 361 or 3241, Benitez et al - eat your heart out.

The result of this tactical masterstroke enabled us to take more control of the midfield and put together some nice passages of play. This was assisted by Myles being able to find space and get on the ball to hurt Cheam as second forward with the tireless Judge Sleeman

To cut an already long story short – we managed to score two goals from open play by picking up loose balls in the ‘D’ and firing home – Myles & Clive – the best of pals. Apart from everyone putting in a good shift, we should not forget the passage of play where being 2-0 up, we decided to run the clock down by conceding a number of short corners in succession – all of which were ‘run down’ by the amazing Jon Gray– in total he must have done 10 sprints to the top of the circle – outstanding effort.

However, there was one champagne moment when the Cheam striker having again been ‘run down’ by John hit an absolute screamer past the excellent Shanks – going at shoulder height into the net when Matt produced an amazing save by upper-cutting the shot over the bar.

This led to the main debating point in the bar – the decision by TC was a 16 – due to this being the first shot, there is an argument that the striker had attempted to get a form of shot away which was stopped by Jon and also - due to the defence having touched the ball in the ‘D’ – first shot rule is eliminated? As you can see the writer hasn’t a clue and would like clarification.

To sum up at last – an enjoyable game against a good opposition played in good spirit where I suppose the result could have gone every which way. And a final note of admiration for two fine demonstrations of CF play where late on, the Judge ran ~ 50 yds on two occasions to beat the Cheam full-back and get shots in. Andy Eve

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

Marshall and Carter Keall send Vets to defeat

The 2008-09 season finally crawled to a finish as the Veterans completed their one remaining fixture, going down 1-4 to Spencer. To be fair, Spencer fielded more than a few familiar faces after struggling themselves to raise an XI, and we welcomed back former stalwarts such as Simon Marshall and Chris Carter Keall.

Spencer enjoyed more of the possession in the first half, although they failed to make that count in the final third, and it was against the run of play that Ed Breton gave us the lead. It didn’t last long, Spencer equalising soon after and then going ahead in bizarre circumstances five minutes before the break. A typically powder-puff shot from Marshall dribbled apologetically towards the goal, watched with interest by attackers and defenders who wondered if it would give up of its own accord before someone stopped it. As Pete Shanks prepared to end the farce by kicking it into kingdom come, Carter Keall, behind him in the goalmouth and nominally on the same side, called for him to leave. He did. So did Carter Keall. The ball puffed and panted its way about an inch over the line before expiring. Marshall had scored from a record distance of ten yards. Spectators headed to the bar.

In the second half we created no end of opportunities, most originating with Breton, but gilt-edged chances were spurned by Stuart Sleeman (whose chuntering against the umpire’s decisions included the justification "I’m a judge … I’m paid to be impartial") and Jon Gray.

For Spencer, Marshall showed superb pace, judgment, stick skill and awareness. Dan Marshall that is. His father, panting and clearly suffering, substituted himself shortly after half time and refused pleas to come back, preferring to lean on the fence and chat up the umpire's wife.

Marshall younger scored a third when Shanks, determined not to make the same mistake twice, made a different one instead, diving to keep on a ball heading off and allowing young Dan to slot home. A fourth was just salt in the wound.

Match reports - November 1, 2008

The 1st XI made if five out of five with a 4-1 roasting of a tetchy and ill-disciplined Bank of Boks; the 2nd XI squandered a 2-0 lead to be held 2-2 by Reigate Priory; the 3rd XI are still looking for their first win after going down 0-5 to Old Reigatians, while the 4th XI lost 1-4 to the same opposition. Two Stuart Sleeman goals gave the Vets victory over HAC while the Ladies lost a friendly at Epsom.



1st XI 4-1 Bank of England
At last we have recorded a comprehensive win against the team that seems to always present us with problems.

We welcomed Rory Alexander into our midst following his joining the club three weeks ago and working his way via the 3rds and 2nds into the 1st XI. A hugely positive signal to all club members that by playing for one team does not mean that the door is closed to promotion within the ranks and that by turning up to training your face will become known.

The first 10 minutes saw us totally dominate the match without really creating many good chances although some scrambled clearances kept the score level. We probably had too much time and did not box that clever trying to force the wonder pass instead of being patient. The goal eventually came with Ed Breton drag flicking our third corner giving us a deserved lead. Although pressing for the remainder of the half and not taking the advantage of some good half chances Trickster had to be on his game to make an excellent one on one stop to keep the feisty Bank at bay.

A change in formation at half time suddenly opened up the game and with Bank losing their discipline we took advantage, Ed Copleston sliding in to nudge home our second and Paul Acutt finishing the best move of the game to make it 3-0. Bank's indiscipline led to two yellow cards and regrettably we joined in the testy exchanges and came off the boil. Deservedly Bank pulled one back with their taking advantage of a lapse in defence and but for man of the match Ed Breton taking one off the line it could easily have led to a very uncomfortable last 10 minutes. Nevertheless another short corner was converted with Ed Breton again popping the ball home with a sweet reverse stick strike and the points were ours.

There were two real positives from today. Firstly was the performance of the 4 players who have played second eleven hockey this season, Chris Valentine, Paul Acutt, Dodie and Rory which means that unavailability of first eleven players will mean second team hockey on their return - a healthy and correct situation. The seconds with 2 more new players were unlucky not to win and remain undefeated so suddenly training has become a premium. Secondly the average age of the first two XIs has tumbled down and so it must remain.

The best start to a league season since our halcyon years of a decade ago must now be built on with cockiness, arrogance and an expectation of winning (as opposed to a real desire to win) going to be our most likely downfall over the next four weeks. David Knapp



Spencer Saints 2-2 2nd XI
The 2nd's 100% winning streak came to an halt on a cold and damp Saturday afternoon in Earlsfield. In the end we had to settle for a "desmond " (tutu) with Spencer whose performance defied their lowly league position. It was a game we should have won, taking a 2-0 lead deep into the second half. However Spencer scored with 15 minutes to go and agonisingly drew level in stoppage time....2-2 felt like a loss.

In reflection 2-2 was probably the correct result given that Spencer provided a far sterner test than any of our previous opponents: Well organised, athletic and pacy up front they will surely climb the table throughout the course of the season. Home advantage also counted with Spencer more attuned to what was a very quick and bouncy surface.

However it was the OCs who started the stronger and carried more of a threat throughout the first half. Our two new recruits, brothers Nick and James or James and Nick (I can't tell) settling in quickly and providing some of our most promising work. But for some top notch defending we would have been two-up at the interval. Sadly and importantly we lost Bruce after 20 minutes, who damaged his shoulder in a 50/50 with a Spencer central defender. His goals and general nuisance factor were greatly missed, especially in the second half when we were trying to really apply pressure and force Spencer into errors.

Locked at 0-0 at halftime; it was collectively agreed that we could prosper if we changed the point of attack more often and with more urgency. The first goal came as a direct result of that with the ball being sprayed first left and then right before being fired into the D for Tissy to sweep home from close range. 1-0 and some Andy Murray-esque fist pumping. We continued to press without ever really being on top but managed to double our advantage after Jon Heard's viscously struck free hit was astutely deflected in by Neil Grimes. 2-0 time for cool heads and some "keep ball". Well not if you are Chris Tiss; who decided he would have a crack at decapitating and generally maiming Spencer's midfield playmaker straight from the restart. Out came the yellow card; off went the diminutive Sri Lankan. Idiot/plonker/short arse (can I still get a lift next week mate?)

As clichéd as it sounds we actually played pretty well with 10 men, kept our shape, stepped up our intensity and held out for the 10 minutes whilst Tissy was having a rest. Unfortunately with time ticking away Spencer were awarded a short corner from which a topped 6-iron inexplicably found its way into our net. 2-1. There was a general sense of foreboding as Spencer found the kitchen sink and began throwing bits of it at us, and alas; after some great work from their quick front man (who had been generally speaking well shackled by Jon and Andy) he pulled the trigger and the rest is history.

In summary - our first real test, an enjoyable game to have taken part in; but the type of game that if we want to stand any chance of winning this league; we must close out in the future. Discipline and cool heads are required to succeed and we do have enough experience to deal with situations like the one we encountered on Saturday. However we must keep our chins up, we are still undefeated, 2nd in the league with a home game on Saturday to look forward to.

Keep up the good work - those of you who aren't snatched by the 1sts on Wednesday night or have a dislocated shoulder ... Chris Porter

3rd XI 0-4 Old Reigatians
After a number of poor results the aim of the day was to try and turn our fortunes around. The weather it has to be said was not in the mood to help us out on this mission. This week we welcomed Seb and Richard to our side with Chris also making his first league start.

We started very strongly which is something that has not been seen from the 3rd XI for a while. Unfortunately though this was not to last as OR’s started to reverse the pressure onto us. This pressure ended up with OR’s gaining a short corner which they duly converted. Thanks go to Dickie for stepping in in goal for us after the last minute injury to Nige. Dickie was unfortunate not to save the short after getting an arm to the shot but not being able to stop the ball from going in.

The pressure continued to be applied on the defence of CD, Ollie and Adam and even they could not keep ORs out with them getting another couple of somewhat fortunate goals before half time. We felt pretty unlucky to be going into half time 3-0 down. The weather if anything was continuing to get worse it was noted during the second half that the rain was coming down at a pretty much 45-degree angle.

The second half continued in a similar fashion although the midfield did strengthen up with Armo, Ross, Seb, Richard, Chaz and Chris all starting to link up a lot better. There are some link up plays which we can improve on here but this will come as the midfield play together more. Additionally with the midfield linking better this started to bring Preston and Dave into the game a lot more and we managed to make a lot more chances in the 2nd half. Nevertheless despite this better play ORs were still able to catch us on the break another couple of times and the end result was a 5-0 beating.

The results will come once the team start gelling together we just hope that that is sooner rather than later. Nigel Hawes


Old Reigatians 4-1 4th XI
Report to follow.

Veterans 2-1 HAC
A 10.00 am home game so no change to the usual routine for a vets game of most of the guys turning up at 9.55am some claiming that they had done their warm up by turning their car heaters on full. By 10.10 am we we ready to go on this very cold morning with the OCs having 12 players and providng two umpires in the well wrapped up Cook and Eve with HAC with 11 players.

This must have been one of the first games in many a year with no Eve or Pollard on the team sheet, both breaking bits of their bodies in recent weeks in the line of duty without knowing it. Andy Eve taking a tumble and hurting his shoulder three weeks ago and only finding out that he had dislocated his collar bone a few days later at casualty. Wade was heard to remark in the pub that Andy was a bit of a plonker for not going to check it out after the game, after a game that he had hurt his foot but played to the end. It was not until the week just gone that Wade seeing the Doc for his company medical was told that he had broken his metatarsal bone in his foot!...as you can see these vets boys are made of stern stuff!

So to the HAC game, which started without stalwart keeper Pete Shanks who was in the garden when called by Andy at 10.00 am. Amazingly he was on the pitch 25 mins later in full keepers kit to pull of one of his trademark double saves. A scrappy first quarter gave way to some "just like watching The Arsenal on a good day" hockey for the rest of the first half with Speers, Butcher and Loades solid as rocks at the back happy that their old mate Pete was now behind them protecting their rear flank.

Tireless running from Jonny "Dorian" Grey and Nelligan and no little flair from Orsborn and Hothersall soon had the old army boys chasing shadows. All that was lacking was a goal to make the silky stuff count. This was finally provided by that fox in the box , his honour Judge Stuart Sleeman showing all the "its just like riding a bike" skills of old as someone finally got on the end of one of the many crosses that were being fired into the D.

Half time was taken with a sense of relief that the good work put in had resulted in some reward at last. The only regret was that no one had thought to get a jug of the mulled wine now on tap at the bar to warm things up a bit more.....

The second half brought more frustrations as a second goal proved difficult to get. Eventually this led to a few of the lads attempting a bit too much and possession was often given away far to cheeply allowing the army boys to get their dander up and start having a go. This eventually led to an equaliser which actually shocked the OC troops into more positive action. A few calm heads were needed just to work possession into the right areas and get back to playing it simple. We also needed to get on the end of things in the danger area again.

Cue the man of the moment. The goal poacher himself, Judge Sleeman spotting a ball coming over from his fellow court room man of action Councillor Dave Burles QC, gets the most important of deflections to stear the ball into the back of the net for the winner. The defense then decided that was enough of that so shut up shop for the remaining minutes to produce the win that the lads deserved.

The beer never tasted so good after that in the bar............and the chilli for lunch finally warmed the boys up. Tommy Trinder


Epsom 2nd XI 2-1 Ladies
On a miserable Saturday afternoon we found ourselves at Blenheim playing a friendly against Epsom 3s, from Divison 2. At the start of the day we had 12 players which by recent standards is not many of us, and by the time we met we were down to 11 which meant no subs for a change! Following confusion over meeting times, Ems was running late so we started the match with 10 men, a little disorganised and with several players out of usual position. The rain had started to bucket down and the match looked set to be hard work, although we were looking forward to a no pressure match.

We started slow which was to be expected and we were all having to work extra hard, especially the forwards on closing down the ball, and by this time we had news that Ems was in a cab and on her way from Streatham, so we were determined to work hard try and put some pressure on Epsom and use the match as a good fitness session! Epsom dominated the first 10 minutes and we were forced to defend fairly hard. We soon found our stride though and settled down and began moving the ball around the back, creating space and getting around Epsom with some quick passing, skillful play and fast runs. We had several crosses into the Epsom circle and a penalty corner but no finish. We were pressurising well but a break from Epsom and some complacent defending from us say Epsom take the lead against the run of play. We went into half time wet, bedraggled and still waiting on Ems to arrive. The jelly babies - a gift from Epsom - were gratefully received, a very nice gesture from our oppo. We talked tactics whilst we learned Ems and the cabby were still battling the traffic and Tux reminded us as we stood there hair plastered to the sides of our faces, soaked through and getting cold that this match was for 'fun'!

Second half we new we just had to stick to our players, try and keep the pace up and continue to play our hockey and an equaliser would come and sure enough it did after five minutes from a pass into the D to Caz to Dor who 'melted' it into the goal. We were back in the game. Epsom upped the pressure and were obviously a little narked and things started to become a little more feisty, Nikki in the middle battling it out with her opposing playing and nearly getting a stick in the head (and not whilst playing the ball either!) She retaliated in the best way possible, by demonstrating superb skill and dribbling circles around her opponent. Half way through the second half Epsom had a spate of penalty corners and pushed their players high we defended well on the whole with Lucy who had stepped into Stephs pads in goal for the week having to pull off some cracking saves to keep the score level. Eventually, Ems showed up and we were glad to have some fresh legs to keep us going and try to get a grip on the game again. Just as she arrived we conceded another penalty corner which unfortunately after a melee in the circle the ball was slammed into Mrs Hawes foot who was covering the post - causing Hels a fair bit of pain but not as much pain as the penalty flick that was awarded. Epsom converted and took the lead again. We didn't give up and Ems made her mission to the pitch worth while with some silky skills on the right and a fantastic ball hammered into the circle across the goal mouth but unfortunately our tired legs failed to get on the end of it. We won a final penalty corner but failed to convert and then the final whistle blew. Despite the weather and the fact we lost, it was an enjoyable match. Thanks to Tux for getting it organised, to Ems who spent God knows how much on the cab (we shall def buy her a few beers bonfire night to make up for it!) and to the Epsom umpire for umpiring the whole match. Jackie Waite