A Winning Start

Men’s 1st XI v West Herts

The men's 1st team began their campaign in their first National League season for 2 years in good form. A hard but productive pre-season meant the lads went into the first game in high spirits. 

Apart from a couple of useful new additions, the team was much the same of those who carved up the East Premier A league. Loughts started on the front foot, playing with speed and clinical passing. However the experienced West Herts got a foothold and opened the scoring with a neat finish from close range. However this merely gave the Purples a boost that saw new addition Jez Hopkins pounce on a ball in the D to score his debut goal for the club.

The second half was a similarly hard fought affair, both teams pushing hard at each other but top goal-scorer from last season showed his class by nudging in from close range to make it 2-1. A few more chances went to both sides, notably Kevin Ross taking a meaty chunk out of the turf bigger than his belly with a wild shot and one of the two Elliott Smiths  (the non-orange haired) missing from less than an inch away. However Loughts prevailed to get their first points in the league.

Post-game debutant goal-scorer Jez spoke with the reporters - 'Look, I came here to show these Poms how to do it and I did it in style. Once I get my haircut I'll be even faster and raring to push the boys further. Onwards and upwards.'

Next week the 1s host Chichester at the Luxborough Lane fortress at 5pm, more the merrier!

Academy v Witham 4

Thanks to all those who played for the Academy at Witham and to all of our travelling supporters!

It was great to see so many new players slot into the team.  Our six new boys were Luke and Ben Austridge, Avishkar Sood, Javier de Diego and the returning Falconer brothers Rob and Richard.

Richard and Nacho controlled the centre of the pitch with great support from Kevin and Rob behind them. Ball speed was good throughout the game and great width was given by James Beardwell on the left and Jack Fernandes and Avishkar down the right.  Luke made some telling saves when required, and brother Ben gave a mature display at full back as once again did Stuart Cuff.  The goal came from a Fernandes father and son combination at a penalty corner with Jack applying the finish at the far post.  We dominated possession and should have converted more chances but it was a good away win and a solid start to our league campaign

A really great effort from the younger players and something to build on for the challenges ahead. Well done all of you!

A Game of Two Halves

The first game of the season saw the ladies 1s away at Wapping, who they had beaten in a friendly a few weeks ago. A few minutes in, a well-executed short corner saw Loughts go 1-0 down. Despite some short corners and near misses (including Chantelle Wales hitting the crossbar from a reverse stick strike), the score stayed the same until the half time whistle. Having fought extremely hard in the first 35 minutes, the ladies came out prepared to do the same again. Unfortunately the pace of the Wapping forwards saw Loughts concede a few goals in quick succession. Loughts continued to fight until the end, forcing Wapping to keep playing the ball around the back. The score ended in an undeserved 5-0. Special mention must go to Miranda Baldwin for getting MOTM and Lisa Posnett, Zoe Wright and Liv Corry, who also got votes. 

 

The Code of Behaviour

As a club affiliated to England Hockey we have agreed to adopt their policies and procedures and as a member of the Club you have already signed up to the Code of Conduct which can be found in the fixture card.  As the season gets underway it is a good time to remind everyone about the type of behavior that is expected by all.   The Code of Behaviour applies to everyone involved in hockey including spectators so please ensure our supporters are aware of what is considered to be acceptable.  A copy of the document can be found using the following link:

file:///C:/Users/User/Downloads/Respect_-_Spectators_and_Parents%20(1).pdf

 

Items for HH to office by Monday 10 am please