21/03/15 Whitchurch ladies 1s 6 Golborne Ladies 2s 0

The ladies 1s won Division 5 Cheshire league and gained promotion with a comfortable win over Golborne.

From the start Whitchurch took the game to Golborne and within ten minutes Chloe Crump opened the scoring deflecting home a cross from the left to settle the nerves and give Whitchurch the lead. Lisa Sullivan scored the second with some individual brilliance as she ran through the Golborne defence minutes later and slipped the ball under the keeper.

Whitchurch continued to pressure and grabbed another as Sue Read deflected home number 22 of the season. Gayle Ladd pushed forward from defence looking to get in on the scoring and her shot was going inches wide of the post when Jess Kimberley deflected it into the goal.

The second half saw Whitchurch pushing for more goals as they looked to finish the season on a high. Lisa Sullivan continued her solo competition for goal of the season when she again went through the entire Golborne defence and slotted past the keeper with another spectacular individual effort.

Whitchurch pushed their inspirational captain Catherine Reece-Gresty up front and all her efforts for the season were rewarded when with minutes to go she scored the final goal of the game to round off a promotion-winning season.

Whitchurch ladies 2s 0 Wrexham Ladies 2s 4

Whitchurch entertained Wrexham in their final game of the season with Wrexham pushing to secure the second promotion place in the league.

Whitchurch expected a difficult game and Wrexham pushed the Whitchurch squad from the start to the end of the game. Whitchurch raised their game with some outstanding defending from the back four of Becky Brookfield, Mel Reid, Charlotte Ridgeway, Nina Brown and keeper Shola Bailey, who throughout the game withstood the Wrexham attacks and held firm making Wrexham work for every goal.

The midfield of Tracy Tolhurst, Helen Machin, Emily Vernon, Julia Neale, Phoebe Jones, Wendy Page, Monique Higgs and Sally Pearce ran themselves to a standstill competing for every ball and the goals that were conceded showed why Wrexham are competing for promotion. Laura Workman worked hard up front chasing the Wrexham defenders but was starved of possession for long periods by a disciplined Wrexham defence.

Whitchurch were extremely pleased with the result as the team again raised their game and some excellent performances restricted the number of scoring opportunities.

 

Whitchurch Men’s Fathoms 6 Old Wulfrunians Fathoms 2

The fathoms enjoyed a solid win on home territory this week.

The ten players from Whitchurch Fathoms had their numbers boosted by Jess Kimberley of the ladies firsts who played a key role in helping secure victory.

Jack Barnes opened the scoring in the first five minutes, in what went on to be a relatively one sided affair with most of the pressure on the Old Wulfrunians defence throughout the game.

A yellow card for arguing with the umpires meant Old Wulfs went down to ten men allowing another Jack Barnes goal, followed by one from Iain Bones from a well-executed short corner.

With backs to the sun in the second half, the Whitchurch Fathoms focussed on passing the ball more to open opportunities on the Old Wulfs goal.

Further goals from Ben Kimberley and Jess Kimberley from well worked short corners where the ball was passed around the D before ending up at the back of the net.

Old Wulfs pulled a goal back from a short corner, but a final goal from Simon Briceno ended the match 6 – 2.

The game was a relatively heated affair with Simon Briceno receiving a yellow card for a clumsy tackle. However the Whitchurch Fathoms kept their cool in what was a comfortable win.

Special mention to Jess Kimberley for stepping in at the last minute and making some well-timed tackles and a well-taken goal.

 

22/03/15 Alderley Edge ladies 6ths 0 Whitchurch ladies 2s 0

Whitchurch 2s travelled to Alderley Edge to play a Sunday game and complete their fixtures for the season.

Whitchurch’s confidence was up after the improvements of recent weeks and again they took the game to Alderley Edge from the start. Laura Workman and Charlotte Lawder making use of her pace up front to run through the Alderley Edge defence at every opportunity and Phoebe Jones using her skill to control the game down the left.

Whitchurch’s best chance of the game came when Charlotte Lawder broke down the right and shot from the top of the dee and the subsequent deflection was scrambled off the line despite the Whitchurch team diving in to the crucial touch.

The game remained very even between the two sides match with both competing keenly for ball but without either creating any clear-cut opportunities.

At the end of the game the Whitchurch team were very satisfied with another point to complete their season.

 

Whitchurch men’s 1s 3 Yardley men’s 1s 2

Whitchurch entertained bottom of the league Yardley and from the start took the attitude that it would be an easy three points. Throughout the half Whitchurch created a number of chances which they failed to convert, but finally took the lead as Ollie Jones slotted home a back post cross.

Yardley were not the team Whitchurch expected with some quick forwards and silky stick skills and caused Whitchurch problems throughout the half and it was deserved when they equalised to leave it all even at the break.

The second half again saw Yardley take the game to Whitchurch and score a brilliant deflected goal to give them the lead. This was what it took to wake the Whitchurch team and get them to raise their game. Ben Lea driving the team forward and scoring a blistering strike to bring Whitchurch level. At this point Yardley tired and Whitchurch pressed for the win. Despite creating numerous chances it appeared Whitchurch were to be thwarted before Alex Harris deflected home the winner to the relief of all.

 

Mid-Staffordshire Men’s Fathoms 0 Whitchurch Men’s Fathoms 6

The Whitchurch Men’s Fathoms travelled away to Mid-Staffordshire in what turned out to be a one-sided, yet good-humoured affair.

Mid-Staffs’ game plan was to keep a player high up the pitch to stretch the Whitchurch defence. However the Whitchurch mid-field remained solid and intercepted numerous attacks only to run the ball back into the Mid-Staffs twenty-five and keep the pressure on their defence.

The first-half account was opened by Jack Barnes who slotted away three well worked Whitchurch goals, followed by a further goal from Ryan Murtagh before half time.

A relaxed Whitchurch side entered the second half determined to pass the ball better and get captain Phil Tranter a birthday goal. This was made more challenging by in the spirit of Fathoms hockey giving up goalkeeper, Neil Jones, to the opposition, who had not touched the ball in the first half.

The Whitchurch Fathoms continued to dominate the game with numerous attempts on goal; to finally celebrate a Tranter birthday goal whose new stick scrabbled the ball over the line under an out stretched goal-keeper.

A further goal from Simon Bricento made the final score 0 – 6 in what was a dominant performance from the Whitchurch Fathoms.

Special mention to Ben Fry for effectively running back to bolster the mid-field, and Simon Bricento for making numerous piercing runs through the opposition’s mid-field and defence.

 

South Cheshire Ladies 2s 0 Whitchurch Ladies 1s 3

Another must win match for Whitchurch Ladies 1st team on Saturday as they came head to head with South Cheshire Ladies 2nds.

It was clear from the beginning that South Cheshire were not to be underestimated as they came out with a fast strong attacks but Whitchurch were up to the challenge. Within 10 minutes of the first half starting, Whitchurch were dominating the game and attacking hard with plenty of passes from Ellie Windsor and Catherine Gresty resulted in a first goal for Sue Read and shortly after a second from Catherine Gresty from a short corner strike.

South Cheshire broke through the Whitchurch mid-field on numerous occasions but were quickly dealt with by Katie Plant and Emily Hilton with some solid defensive work and one great save from goalkeeper Phoebe Jones ensured Whitchurch kept a clean sheet throughout the first half.

The second half continued with Whitchurch dominating periods of play with strong mid-field play forcing the ball into the dee for Keeley Hathaway and Jess Kimberley to apply further pressure on the South Cheshire goal. The final goal came from a short corner where a well executed set play from Whitchurch saw Sue Read finish with a well timed deflection into the South Cheshire net.

 

Whitchurch ladies 2s 1 Oxton ladies 3s 1

Whitchurch 2s put together a performance that reflected their rapid progress and improvement of the past couple of games.

The team played with more confidence and took the game to the Oxton side with fluid passing and dynamic runs into the opposition half. Emily Vernon and Helen Machin worked well down the right wing causing problems for the Oxton defence from the start.

Whitchurch were finally rewarded for their efforts when Tracy Tolhurst picked out Laura Workman just outside the dee and she glided past the last defender and slotted calmly past the advancing goalkeeper to give the team a lead at the break.

The second half saw Oxton bounce back and challenge the Whitchurch side and for long periods both teams cancelled each other out. As Whitchurch tired they stopped the attacking runs of the first half and sat back allowing Oxton to pressure the Whitchurch goal.

The equaliser for Oxton came late on in the game as the ball fired into the dee bounced around and despite all Whitchurch’s efforts was scrambled past goalkeeper Shola Bailey.

Despite a valuable point for the 2s the team knew they had lost the opportunity for the victory despite all their efforts.

Whitchurch 1s entertain Golborne at home on Saturday whilst the 2s have two games next weekend to complete their season with Wrexham 2s at home on the Saturday and a re-arranged fixture away to Alderley Edge on the Sunday.

Whitchurch ladies 1s 10 Whitchurch ladies 2s 0

The return fixture saw the 1s having to go all out to keep their promotion chances alive and from the off they took the game to the 2s.

Lisa Sullivan opened the scoring with a well stuck penalty corner to give the 1s the lead, the 2s however where in no mood to lie down and a quick counterattack saw Laura Hollinshead break through the centre of the 1s defence and fire just wide of the post.

This focused and fired up the 1s and saw Keeley Hathaway score a brace before the halftime break. The juniors in the 2s stepped up their games for long periods and defender Becky Brookfield and goalkeeper Shola Bailey made a string of crucial tackles and fine saves to keep them in the game.

The second half continued as the first finished with both sides not willing to give any ground. The 1s kept the score ticking over with a clinical display of finishing that has got them top of the league. Sue Read scored two from crosses from Jessica Kimberley on the right wing. The 2s gave everything with Tracy Tolhurst and Julia Neale never stopping in the midfield, but as the 2s started to tire the 1s took full advantage with another two goals for Keeley Hathaway and one each for Catherine Gresty and Ellie Windsor.

The 2s had a momentary lapse of concentration and Lisa Sullivan scored the goal of the game taking a quick free hit that was run to the top of the dee and smashed into the bottom corner of the goal.

Both teams took a lot out of the game the 1s the points and the 2s some excellent performances as the team gets stronger with every game they play.

The 1s travel to South Cheshire next week whilst the 2s take on Oxton at home 12.30 at the Whitchurch Leisure centre.

 

Whitchurch Fathoms 1            Barlaston Fathoms 6

Whitchurch Fathoms learnt a hard lesson against an experienced Barlaston team, Whitchurch couldn’t play their normal attacking game using their pace and youth to dominate the opposition.

Whitchurch had the early run of the game but against the run of play Barlaston took the lead. Whitchurch came back into the game as Ben Kimberley poached another goal on the back post.

Whitchurch attempted to attack the Barlaston team but they easily soaked up the Whitchurch attacks and counterattacked on the break exposing Whitchurch and took the lead again before the break.

The second half saw the Whitchurch team continue to attack Barlaston in an effort to get back in the game but Barlaston continued their game plan and continued to pick off the Whitchurch team with a number of well-executed goals.

The game gave the Fathoms plenty to think about and work on before the start of next season.