Ladies Section, Match Reports, Men's Section

Match reports 21/10/17

Whitchurch Men’s 1s 0 – 3 Liverpool Sefton 3s

The Men’s 1s were hoping to bounce back from last week’s heavy defeat, facing a Sefton team promoted along with Whitchurch last season and previously offering very competitive fixtures.
Whitchurch started brightly and were beginning to dominate the midfield when Sefton broke quickly and scored ten minutes into the game, catching the Red’s defence by surprise.  The home side picked themselves up and continued playing as they had been, controlling most of the pitch and creating chances from open play and a series of short corners, but weren’t able to convert, despite Martin Beecher, Tom Leonard and Jack Barnes all coming close.  To add insult to injury, another Sefton break forced a second goal before half-time.
The second half was almost a repeat of the first, with the Whitchurch midfield controlling the play through Ben Fry, Rob Chappell and Jake Wood, and the defence looking comfortable with only the occasional challenge.  But again, Whitchurch were unable to turn possession into goals, despite Leonard and Ben Kimberley coming close several times.  Five minutes from the end, Sefton scored a final counter-attacking goal to give a result which did not reflect the balance of the game, but certainly tells the story of Whitchurch’s need to convert their chances and put the pressure on the opposition, which will be the main focus of their visit to Neston next weekend.

Wrexham Mens 2s 14 Whitchurch Mens 2s 0

Storm Brian was the least of their worries as Whitchurch 2s were blown away by a rampant Wrexham 3s side in North Wales.

Whilst the 2s fielded another young and inexperienced side, Wrexham, fresh from four impressive wins at the start of the season, lined up with a full complement of experienced hockey players. Right from the start their quick movement and one-touch passing was causing the 2s no end of problems.

Penned back on the edge of their own dee, the 2s defence of Luke Davies, Danny Foulkes, Iain Bones and Doug Buckeridge did well to weather the Wrexham storm for the first 10 minutes of the game. They were eventually undone by a slick passing move that left keeper Neil Jones exposed and helpless for the opening goal.

With Sam Conway and Craig Hockenhull swamped in midfield and the younger players struggling to get involved in the game, Whitchurch were finding it hard to make any progress higher up the pitch. When they did gain territory it was quickly won back by Wrexham and the 2s were exposed on the counter-attack.

Despite a number of good saves by Neil Jones and the best efforts of the defence, Whitchurch found themselves 6-0 down at half time.

The second half played out in a similar fashion. Whitchurch tried to block up the large spaces that Wrexham were exploiting and defend in greater numbers, whilst the Wrexham players seemed keen to add to their own personal goal tallies.

With Fred Egerton sidelined during the first half after a stray stick to the face, Joe Coburn and James Page took turns down the left-hand side in the second half and both worked extremely hard at both ends of the pitch.

Locki Price had a brilliant second-half on the right constantly offering himself as the out-ball for the defenders, he showed great maturity in knowing when to drive with the ball and when to pick an attacking or conservative pass. His performance again drew praise from the opposition after the game.

Josh Parry worked tirelessly up front. Badly isolated in the first half, he dropped a little deeper in the second-half and was involved in all of the 2s most promising attacking moments.

Craig Hockenhull, Airan Jones and Sam Conway worked hard to supplement the defensive efforts and drive Whitchurch forward when the opportunities presented themselves. Ultimately, however, the 2s were up against a very fit, capable and experienced Wrexham side and despite their best defensive efforts they struggled to repel the attacks from the Welsh side.

Wrexham ran out 14-0 winners in the end, but there were still positives to take for the 2s. It was also an eye-opening lesson for the younger players in how to move the ball quickly and play one and two-touch hockey.

Next weekend the 2s look to bounce back when they entertain Neston 8s.

 

Buckley Ladies 1s 5 Whitchurch Ladies 1s 0

Whitchurch ladies 1s played their first away game of the season at windy and rainy Buckley.

From the first whistle Buckley put pressure on the Whitchurch defence with some very big hits into the dee. Whitchurch fought hard but Buckley scored their first goal within 5 minutes. Mid players Grace Berry and Millie Edwards pushed the ball up the pitch to centre forward Becks Morrissey but Buckley defence were very strong.

Ellie Windsor and Charlotte Lawder had some good runs up the right wing but Whitchurch just couldn’t make their opportunities count. Buckley were all over Whitchurch when they entered the dee leaving them with no time and space. Before the half time whistle Buckley fired their second into the Whitchurch goal.

After the half time talk Whitchurch came out with a little more fight, having a good run of chances at goal.

Buckley continued to defend strongly and Whitchurch’s spirits lowered. Buckley made a run into the Whitchurch dee to smash another shot but as captain Catherine Winter-Gresty got to the ball the shot rose into her hand putting her out for the remainder of the match.

Buckley kept the pressure on and had a run of short corners from which they scored another two goals. Whitchurch player Morrissey was carded leaving Whitchurch with ten players for the last 10 minutes; this gave Buckley time and space to score their 5th and final goal.

 

Sandbach ladies 2s 2 Whitchurch ladies 3s 1

The day started badly when we lost our sweeper and experienced defender during the warm up due to injury.

Whitchurch started well but Sandbach got a very early goal putting them one up. The remainder of the first half saw Whitchurch have the majority of possession. Ellie McEvoy and Izzy Huxley made fine runs on the wings creating lots of shots at goal but not able to convert. Wendy Cooper and Jan Teggin defended well along with keeper Phoebe Jones to keep the score the same at the end of the first half.

The second half saw Whitchurch start a little slow and again Sandbach took advantage scoring an early goal. This rallied the team and they got back on track with Annie Buckeridge and Milly Carruthers were excellent through the centre and left wing.

Not long before the end, a great shot in from Wendy Cooper picked out Izzy Huxley and her shot was tapped in by Ellie McEvoy for her first goal for the club, making it 2-1. Not enough of the game remained by the time Whitchurch had found their confidence and the game ended without any further goals.

The team were really pleased but tired after playing a full match without being subbed; they continue to grow in confidence the more games they play.

Annie Buckeridge was awarded player of the match.

 

Whitchurch ladies 2s 1 Golborne Ladies 2s 9

Whitchurch Ladies 2s played top of the division Golborne Ladies 2s this week.

It was evident from the first few minutes that Whitchurch were in for a tough match as Golborne started off strong, scoring, taking the lead by four goals. By the end of the first half however, Whitchurch managed to gain composure, and the resilience and determination from the defence and great goalkeeping by Shola Bailey meant Golborne were unable to add any more goals to their lead for the time being as Whitchurch gained possession.

After their half time talk, Whitchurch realised they needed to step up their game if they were going to score. Unfortunately, during the second half, Golborne took advantage of their tiring opposition, gaining another five goals. However, Whitchurch didn’t back down as great efforts from the mid-field and attack allowed Stephanie Stanton to get past Golborne’s defence and score, meaning Whitchurch were able to finish their difficult game on a high.

Player of the match went to Jess Kimberley.

The 2s have a break next week before their next league game against Neston Ladies 4s at home.