Well the day finally came; the day the U12 boys had been waiting for all year, the day that they had been working hard for all season, the National Finals.

They arrived at Beeston hockey club in Nottingham on Saturday 13th May with great optimism and anticipation but also with an air of apprehension. So with a few butterflies in their stomachs the boys made their way on to the pitch for their first match against Rugby and East Warwickshire, accompanied by tunes played out on the jangling nerves of their parents.

They got off to a great start, scoring early, which helped them to settle and find their rhythm. Although they did concede an equaliser, this just seemed to spur them on to move up a couple more gears, and they ended the game 3:1 winners. Off to a great start and with the nerves settled a little you could feel the tension lift and their confidence grow.

This got them through their second match which was a fiercely contested match against Bournemouth.  Again they got off to a good start with an early goal but Bournemouth battled hard and though the boys continued to play some excellent hockey they failed to hit the back of the net again, fortunately they also managed to prevent Bournemouth doing the same. The game finished 1:0, but that was 2 games played and 2 wins, a fantastic start.

The boys carried this momentum into their third game against Ben Rhydding, and proved too strong for them scoring 3 goals in the first half and adding a fourth at the end of the second. A great result, maximum points from the first 3 games which set the team up for their final pool match against Canterbury, who had also won all 3 of their matches with a slightly better goal difference, which left Lought’s needing a win to progress to the final.

After a long break and some running repairs to the boys, they set about their task eager to take the game to Canterbury and produce the win they needed. It didn’t get off to a good start when Canterbury scored an early goal which unsettled the boys slightly and whilst trying to regain their composure Canterbury struck again to lead  2:0 by half time. However, at half time the boys regrouped and came out for the second half all guns blazing. They scored an early goal and despite some desperate and at times brutal defence by Canterbury the boys created some fantastic chances that were brilliantly saved or whistled tantalising passed the wrong side of the post. As time started to run away from them, they pushed even harder for the equaliser and in time added on at the end of the match Canterbury scored a break- away goal to produce a very flattering 3:1 victory. The boys were devastated having given it everything and left nothing on the pitch. They had worked so hard for it, played some wonderful hockey and were thwarted by some extremely physical hockey.

However, they had still finished second in the pool and earned the right to play for third place against Deeside Ramblers. They had gone through their pool unbeaten and lost out only to Surbiton on goals scored. The boys, picked themselves up, dusted themselves off and pulled themselves together ready for their final match. They got straight back in to their stride and took a 1:0 lead in to half time, but the opposition scored early in the second half and the wind was knocked from the boys sails, despite their best attempts to regain the lead it proved one game too many and Deeside went on to score a further 2 goals to secure a 3:1 victory.

It was another bitter pill to swallow, but as the hurt began to lift and the boys went up to collect their fourth place medals, they began to reflect on their achievement. They had made it to a National final, where they not only turned up, but through some fantastic play, great team work and a lot of hard graft, they put themselves within millimetres of a place in the final. They did themselves, each other, their parents and the club proud. It was a great day and one to look back on with pride. Well done to all the boys who played in the team:-

Finn Sayers (GK), Luca Gormley, Toby Gayler, Archie Crowley, Nathan Gladman, Ethan Parr, Caspian Coupe, Leo Kendrick, Jos Gidney

 

Congratulations to:

Stuart Cuff wins the Essex U14 Boys award!

Bob Gotobed, president of Essex Hockey, handed the award over during a summer league match from OLHC Loppers.

Back to Hockey Award Winners for 2016/17:

Player of the season: Rob Gayler    Most Improved: Rachel Abi

Awards not collected are behind the bar!

 

Coming Up………

Fun in the Forest - 26th to 28th May

Hockey4Heroes – 3rd June

We will be hosting three games of hockey as part of Operation Stretcher so come along and show your support.  For more information about the challenge visit www.hockeyforheroes.co.uk

OLHC Alumni matches – 17th June