U11 A Hockey v Kimbolton Friday 3rd March 2017
We arrived at Kimbolton confident that we had trained hard to address our positional frailties (our undoing at Oakham), but knowing that Kimbolton A's would be a stern test of all our hockey skills.
With a strong team, and a subs bench packed with quality, we started really well. Competing in all areas, keeping our shape, defending and attacking in equal measure. It was an exciting and equally matched first quarter. With subs rolling on we continued to play well as a team, going close on a number of occasions, midfield working tirelessly, and defence looking strong - so it was a cruel blow, close to the half-time whistle, when a Kimbolton forward managed to sneak behind us to collect a cross at the far post and put them one up.
Buoyed by our first half performance we set out to repeat it in the second half. However, the sucker punch came early; catching us too high on the pitch a Kimbolton counter-attack sped through the midfield and overloaded the defence. We were powerless to stop a second goal going in. A great shame, but we kept our energy levels high, and pushed hard to get one back. As the half wore on I think we could feel the game slipping away, and as is common with teams chasing a score, we started to over-compensate. The inevitable result was a loss of the shape that we had held so well early in the game. Kimbolton were running freely by this time, and exploited the spaces we left with two more goals before the final whistle.
The 4-0 result was certainly not a reflection of the energy and skill that the Copthill boys demonstrated, nor the progress that the team has made over the term, but in this case the Kimbolton boys were just that little bit smarter in their execution, and once they got their noses in front it was always going to be hard to peg them back.
There is no lack of spirit in the Copthill team, so we look forward to one last match at Ratcliffe where we can put it all together; the complete performance!
Well done all! Thanks to Will Le Voi for captaining so well, and congratulations to Reuben Isaac; Man of the Match for his non-stop running, critical tackles and fast counter attacks - he covered every inch of the pitch!
Nick T
With a strong team, and a subs bench packed with quality, we started really well. Competing in all areas, keeping our shape, defending and attacking in equal measure. It was an exciting and equally matched first quarter. With subs rolling on we continued to play well as a team, going close on a number of occasions, midfield working tirelessly, and defence looking strong - so it was a cruel blow, close to the half-time whistle, when a Kimbolton forward managed to sneak behind us to collect a cross at the far post and put them one up.
Buoyed by our first half performance we set out to repeat it in the second half. However, the sucker punch came early; catching us too high on the pitch a Kimbolton counter-attack sped through the midfield and overloaded the defence. We were powerless to stop a second goal going in. A great shame, but we kept our energy levels high, and pushed hard to get one back. As the half wore on I think we could feel the game slipping away, and as is common with teams chasing a score, we started to over-compensate. The inevitable result was a loss of the shape that we had held so well early in the game. Kimbolton were running freely by this time, and exploited the spaces we left with two more goals before the final whistle.
The 4-0 result was certainly not a reflection of the energy and skill that the Copthill boys demonstrated, nor the progress that the team has made over the term, but in this case the Kimbolton boys were just that little bit smarter in their execution, and once they got their noses in front it was always going to be hard to peg them back.
There is no lack of spirit in the Copthill team, so we look forward to one last match at Ratcliffe where we can put it all together; the complete performance!
Well done all! Thanks to Will Le Voi for captaining so well, and congratulations to Reuben Isaac; Man of the Match for his non-stop running, critical tackles and fast counter attacks - he covered every inch of the pitch!
Nick T
Comments
Post a Comment