The Mens 1s game was cancelled after a breakdown resulted in the team being unable to make the start time for their away fixture in Brooklands.

Whitchurch ladies 2s 1 Crewe ladies 4s 3

The game started and Crewe put on a strong attack against Whitchurch 2s. They were up in the dee within minutes and the ball was unfortunately put into the goal by the Whitchurch defender as she tried to defend the shot. Whitchurch held their heads high and defended the ball right until the whistle was blown for half time with many chances for a goal against Crewe.

The strength they showed was immense and with the team talk at half time, Whitchurch came back as fierce as ever. The fight stayed strong and although Whitchurch faced multiple short corners, the strong defenders Claire Fitzgerald, Helen Machin, Edina Jones, and Emma Clarke and goal keeper Shola Bailey used their strength to save each another and showed team work really does make the dream work.

Whitchurch were then faced with a penalty stroke and goalkeeper Shola Bailey managed to get her left leg on it and saved it. This gave Whitchurch more spirit and mid fielders Becky Brookfield, Edina Jones, and Helen Machin along with attackers Tracy Tolhurst, Emily Vernon, Ellie McEvoy and Phoebe Jones took the ball up the pitch and struggled against the Crewe goalkeeper. With good attempts, Tracy Tolhurst finally got the ball into the back of the goal and Whitchurch were drawn with Crewe.

Another short corner gave Crewe another goal but Whitchurch bounced back and were awarded a penalty stroke, which was well saved by the Crewe keeper. Whitchurch tired at this point and the ball came strongly back down to the Whitchurch goal and Crewe were awarded another penalty flick and this time scored. With the final score being 3-1 to Crewe, Whitchurch we’re disappointed but it was an amazing game with amazing spirit.

 

Oxton ladies 2s 4 Whitchurch ladies 1s 1

Ladies 1s travelled away to play Oxton 2s this Saturday with a new mix if players due to half term. From the off Whitchurch played well together pushing the ball back up to the Oxton dee. They held their positions despite Oxton fighting hard to score. Millie Edwards held her own at the back along with Jess Kimberley making Oxton work. A short corner allowed Oxton to score from a scrappy number of passed.

Hebe Dixon held the middle along with Holy Jepson and Catherine Winter-Gresty giving the ball up to Jessica Carruthers to send into Grace Berry for an amazing fight with the keeper and she flicked into the net.

Whitchurch became a little lax and let Oxton creep up into the Dee and score from another scrappy play just before half time.

After a quick talk Whitchurch were back using the width with Laura Workman holding high but Oxton were defending strong. This half seemed a lot different with the ball going back and too like a yoyo, tiring both teams. More chances for Oxton but Gwyn Thomas-Rees kept on her toes and kicked the balls clear.

Feet were not always being blow by this stage and Oxton took advantage and scored from yet another messy play. Natasha foster and Beth Sykes had their work cut out as Oxton kept the pressure on and with 2 minutes before the final whistle Oxton managed to get through a tired Whitchurch for a 4th goal leaving Whitchurch walking away with another loss of 4-1.

The 1s play at home against top of the table Brookland Poynton next week.

 

Whitchurch Men’s 2s 1 Lymm Men’s 3s 3

Whitchurch Men’s 2s welcomed Lymm 3s to a sunny, but chilly, SJT on Saturday afternoon.

Bolstered by some returning senior players and with a debut for another academy graduate in 13 year old Will Snaith, the 2s went into this game with an usually large squad of 16 players.

The early stages were fairly even. Both teams looked good in possession, moving the ball around well, but struggling to make any impact in the attacking thirds. Matt Brooks and Richard Leigh were strong in the centre of defence for the 2s, whilst Wyn Morris and Mark Sugden were stifling Lymm’s attacking width, but also providing the launch pad for Whitchurch’s own attacks in wide areas.

Jacob Buckeridge and Euan Morris were finding good positions on the wings and linking well with the midfield of Rupert Yeoward, Danny Foulkes and Doug Buckeridge, but the Reds were struggling to get the ball up to forward Martin Beecher.

Lymm had their attacking moments, and from a short corner midway through the first half they opened the scoring. The ball was fired towards goal but came back off the post and hit keeper Neil Jones and bounced over the goal line.

Whitchurch responded positively, with Martin Beecher dropping deeper to find the ball , enabling him to drive forward into the Lymm dee. This proved fruitful for the Reds, with the team becoming more of a threat to the Lymm goal. Martin was firing in shots from good positions, forcing the Lymm keeper into a number of saves, and seeing one shot ricochet to safety of the post.

Just before half time Whitchurch got their reward as Matt Brooks smartly played an early ball into Martin, who drove from the middle of the Lymm half, into the dee, before smashing a low shot into the far corner of the goal to level the scores.

The second half proceeded in a similar vein, with Sam Conway coming on to provide the drive from the Whitchurch midfield and Joe Coburn & Joe Winter rotating on in the wing positions.

Lymm had regrouped at half time and were also pushing forward looking for goals. The Whitchurch defence continued to work hard and limit clear-cut chances but Lymm scored two quick goals midway through the second half. Again the bounce of the ball seemed to be in Lymm’s favour, although the third goal was a clever finish to a ball dropping from out of the sky.

Again Whitchurch responded well and Martin Beecher pulled a goal back with a powerful, jinking run through most of the Lymm team, before finishing into an unguarded goal. And Whitchurch almost snatched an equaliser when Euan Morris’ shot came back off the post, across the face of goal, but spun onto Jacob Buckeridge’s foot rather than his stick.

Try as they might, Whitchurch couldn’t find an equaliser and Lymm hung on for the 3-2 win.

Despite another defeat, the young players continue to improve at this level of hockey. With five 13 and 14 year olds involved on Saturday, all in their first season of men’s hockey, and a number of others unavailable this weekend, the future of the 2s looks good.

Joe Coburn and Euan Morris continue to be real assets on the wings and Joe Faithful is becoming more confident and improving with every game. 13-year-old Jacob Buckeridge played well again today and was unlucky not to score, while 13-year-old Will Snaith had a very impressive debut in defence against far more powerful and experienced opponents.

Next Saturday the 2s entertain Runcorn 3s at SJT.

 

Whitchurch ladies 3s 1 Alderley Edge 7’s 4

The opening 10 minutes of the first half saw some relentless attacking from Alderley Edge right from the outset and thanks to some excellent defending from our goalie Maddy Sugden, left half Emily Lister and our two backs Mel Reid and Wendy Cooper, we were lucky to keep the shots out only allowing 1 goal in.

Finally, we built up enough confidence to run at the opposition with Millie Carruthers and Nicola Workman up front taking the ball into the dee several times. Whitchurch settled down to play much better hockey, passing into space and resulting in Victoria Corlett being able to slot home a goal giving a 1-1 score line at half time.

Caitlin Shaw on the right wing received the ball well and made some impressive runs, showing how much confidence she has gained with match experience.  Our two inners, Nicola Workman and Annie Buckeridge were passing beautifully to our centre forward Millie Caruthers who also tracked back well to help the defence when required.

The second half saw Alderley Edge start with pace and score two quick goals in the first few minutes. Rosie Shaw worked hard down the left wing and Kate Buckeridge was switched to right half firming up our defence and slowing the relentless attack of the young Alderley Edge team allowing them only to score once more giving a final score of 1-4.

Maddy Sugden was awarded another well-deserved woman of the match and although we were disappointed to lose we were pleased with our much-improved game considering we lost at Alderley Edge 1-10 earlier on in the season.

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

Whitchurch travelled away to Liverpool this week on the back of a hard weekend of mixed fortunes the week before, and faced a Liverpool team full of strength and speed.

The games against this team last year had been hard-fought, and this match was no different: from the whistle Sefton were pressing hard and moving quickly, and they were able to convert this into an early goal as they got away from their markers and round keeper Neil Jones.

The defence of Alex Fry, Steve Kay and James Partington, supported by Ben Fry as formations moved and changed, was constantly under pressure and the Reds were lucky that Sefton didn’t score again early on.

A break through the middle from Rob Chappell to Tom Leonard and Jack Barnes led to a goalmouth scramble which ended with the goalkeeper smothering the ball and a penalty stroke was awarded. Dale Seymour stepped up and put the ball away in the top left corner despite the keeper getting a touch to it. This, however, appeared only to encourage the Sefton team to throw themselves back into attacking, and once again they got the overload from a through-ball and were able to bypass the Reds’ defence and score.

The rest of the half was played out with Whitchurch making a number of good attacks, with Martin Beecher and Tom Leonard unlucky to score, and Jon Chappell was unable to extend his impressive scoring record – but the last pass, or final strike just eluded the Reds this week.

The second half was a stronger performance by Whitchurch with a number of good attacks – with Ben Kimberley able to carve through the opposition defence again – but ultimately without success. The Fry, the Chappell’s and Seymour were able to move the ball around far more easily, and Neil Jones kept a number of shots out, and so attacks were built from strong foundations and just lacked the final touch.

Whitchurch got a number of short corners but were unable to convert any, and Sefton were able to counterattack on the break and nick a third, with some skilful work bouncing the ball on their stick through the dee before drilling it past a diving Jones.

Whitchurch kept their focus, and regrouped and were again unlucky to score – a chance across the dee was buried by Leonard but only after a missed short from Kimberley mean a free hit to Sefton, and Kimberley was very unlucky not to score “goal of the season” with a wonderful deflection that bounced off the keepers mask but would otherwise have made a hole in the Sefton net.

At the other end, Whitchurch kept out a number of short corners and strikes with Right Post putting in another turn as an extra defender, and the final play of the game was another short corner they did well to defend.

 

Whitchurch Men’s 2 0 Wrexham Men’s 2s 4

Whitchurch Men’s 2s entertained Wrexham Glyndwr Men’s 2s, without regular goalkeeper and Captain Neil Jones due to 1st team commitments. Looking to avoid a repeat white wash like the 14 nil loss in the reverse fixture the Whitchurch players started well, getting in the face of their opposition and preventing them from stringing together any real moves of danger.

In the early throes of the game both teams attacked well but despite the best efforts of centre backs lain Bones and Danny Foulkes a Wrexham player found themselves free in the dee and slotted away a neat finish out of the reach of stand in goalkeeper Euan Morris. Not to be deterred by conceding this goal brothers Sam and Marcus Conway linked up well.

The first half started to become continuous waves of Wrexham attacks but exceptional play from Airon Jones and Mark Sugden prevented Wrexham’s wide players from cutting in as they so expertly did the reverse fixture, limiting Wrexham to scrappy chances around the edge of the dee. Wrexham’s good link up play was soon sniffed out by the strong midfield trio of Tom Forster, Ryan Murtagh and Jake Wood who looked to release the young Joe Faithful, Joseph Coburn and James Page on the wings.

As the first half got into its final stages the Whitchurch defence started to tire and gave away a few short corners. The defenders and goalkeeper did well to keep these out but a wicked deflection from a bouncing shot left the young Whitchurch goalkeeper stranded to end the half two down.

The second half started in a similar fashion to the end of the first, with Whithurch giving away a few short corners but solid defending and some more great saves kept the score line at 0-2. As the game progressed Whitchurch grew in confidence and started to press the Wrexham team higher up the field. This allowed both teams more space and time on the ball which Wrexham exploited with a perfectly weighted pass for an on running player who fired in from the centre of the dee.

The benefit of great substitutions started to play into Whitchurch’s hands; good defending from substitute Wyn Morris ensured no Wrexham players were getting past easily. This allowed the midfield trio to push higher up again and pick out the attackers for some great 2v2 and 3v3 counter attacks. This in turn lead to more chances for Wrexham who took advantage of some confusion between players and umpires and slotted past goalkeeper Euan Morris for the fourth and final time.

Trying to get a consolation from the game the Whitchurch players pressed Wrexham hard in their own half. This led to a short corner for Whitchurch that bounced around the dee for a long period of time without success.

The match ended 0-4 to Wrexham and the Whitchurch team were justifiably disappointed not to have got something from such a well fought game. A special mention must go to the man of the match, stand in keeper Euan Morris, who made a number of outstanding saves to keep Whitchurch in the game and frustrate the Wrexham attackers. Every player from both teams made sure they shook his hand with the Wrexham captain even commenting about what an asset he is to the club.

 

Whitchurch ladies 1s 0 Buckley ladies 1s 1

This was a game that the ladies 1s will want to forget. Buckley came at Whitchurch from the start and were awarded a string of penalty corners from which they took an early lead.

Whitchurch then woke up and started to pass the ball around creating a number of chances but failing to convert. A number of unforced errors by Whitchurch players gave Buckley the opportunity to increase their lead but fortunately they couldn’t get the ball over the Whitchurch goal line.

The second half carried on as the first had ended, despite lots of possession Whitchurch passed the ball around but then miss-controlled and gave the ball away time and again. When Whitchurch did manage to string a series of passes together they looked dangerous and caused Buckley problems however they couldn’t convert chances into goals.

 

Whitchurch ladies 3s 7 Sandbach  ladies 2s  0

The first half started really well with the first goal being scored in minutes by Helen Hocknell.

Sandbach tried to regain possession but Kate Goodwin, Milly Carruthers and Wendy Cooper held a great centre and Whitchurch continued to dominate. With a series of good passes Jessica Carruthers and Nikki Workman added two further goals. Whitchurch weren’t finished there and just kept battling for more, just before half time another goal was scored by Victoria Corlett leaving the score at half time 4 – 0 to Whitchurch.

Despite the score Sandbach seemed to rally in the second half and didn’t lose spirit. Great defending at the back by Mel Reid, Sally Pearce, Maddy Sudgen and Chloe Lloyd meant short corners were defended and the ball quickly passed back into the forwards. Both players on the wings, Holy Gilbert and Ellie McEvoy were brilliant and had great possession throughout the second half. Jess Carruthers scored a great goal on the reverse and shortly after Ellie McEvoy scored an amazing goal diving at the back post to tap home.

Sandbach really wanted to get a goal and didn’t give up, some quick passes and strong centre players resulted in further opportunities for Whitchurch.  Whitchurch dominated and missed several opportunities before Jess Carruthers scored her third goal of the match. Both sides gave it their all until the end but Sandbach couldn’t break through to score. Ellie McEvoy was named player of the match.

With the Mens 2s and the ladies 3s game cancelled at home due to a flooded pitch.

Chester Men’s 5s 1 Whitchurch Men’s 1s 10

Whitchurch played at Chester’s newly-built pitch at Abbey Gate College this week, looking to make amends for their goalless draw at home earlier in the season, and the Reds were the first to adapt to the very sandy and bouncy new surface.

With a full team, they were able to build the structure and passing play that has led to their success this season, and it wasn’t long before Jon Chappell got the first of his five goals: some strong passing through the midfield via Jack Barnes, Alex Fry and Rob Chappell lead to a great pass into the dee which Chappell deflected in past the diving keeper.

More attacking play from Airan Jones on the left and Tom Leonard on the right stretched the Chester defence, and two more crosses into the dee were each deflected in by Jon Chappell. The Whitchurch midfield built plays up with ease with Rob Chappell feeding balls through to the wings or forwards, and this gave the Reds’ attack the chance to put the pressure on the Chester defence again, leading to a short corner. The ball was fired in from the injection but bounced out to Leonard who put it away with style.

The Chester attack found its form as the game progressed, and were able to put some pressure on the Reds, but a break got the ball back up to Jon Chappell who ran free and put in a hard strike to claim his fourth of the half before the half-time whistle blew.

The second half started brightly with Whitchurch claiming an early short corner: the injection was driven in by Leonard, but the defence could only get it as far as Martin Beecher who buried it in the back of the goal. This was followed soon after by a sharp strike by Ben Kimberley from a bobbling cross from Jon Chappell.

By now, the Chester team were getting used to the pitch more, and were putting together better attacks down both wings. The defence of Danny Foulkes, Steve Kay and James Partington were put under increased pressure, and a number of attacks were only cleared as far as the Chester midfield with Fry and Rob Chappell working hard in the midfield to help out. A string of five short corners were kept out by a combination of hurried defence and excellent keeping by Paul ‘Sturge’ Leigh who was under much more pressure in the second half.

A breakaway by Whitchurch ended in a short corner which, after a goalmouth scramble, was put away by Barnes who was working hard after a few weeks away, but then the Reds let their concentration ebb and a rolling substitution left the defence unstructured and the Chester forwards built an overload with four on two and their striker put away a well-deserved shot past a diving Sturge.

Whitchurch reset at the back, and built up again to give Jon Chappell the chance to get his fifth of the game after a good run through the middle, and Beecher joined him again on the score sheet after Chappell had gone on a strong run to the by-line, with Chappell’s cross falling perfectly for Beecher’s strike which was the last hit of the game.

It was a solid display from the Whitchurch team this week, and continues the good form from last week’s game. With two games to play this weekend, the Reds can expect to continue to build on these successes.

 

Whitchurch ladies 1s 2 Alderley Edge ladies 4s 1

Whitchurch ladies 1s played Alderley Edge 4s this weekend at home, but after the Whitchurch pitch was deemed unplayable due to water and ice, quick thinking managed to move their game to the Heber pitch to avoid having to organise another date.

Whitchurch knew this would be a tiring game as Alderley brought a fit young side. Whitchurch held their own attacking with a nice collection of accurate passes into the dee resulting in Sue Read getting the first goal. Alderley Edge came back with a vengeance and managed to score a blistering shot from the top of the dee into the top corner of the goal just before half time.

After a quick break the race was on for both teams to get another goal. Midfield players Grace Berry, Hebe Dixon and captain Catherine Winter-Gresty worked tirelessly in the middle and kept a steady supply of passes to forwards Laura Workman and Ellie Windsor.

Hebe Dixon intercepted the ball in midfield and drove towards the Alderley dee drawing out the keeper, the resulting challenge saw the umpire blow straight away for the foul as Dixon maintained her balance and slotted the ball home, much to the despair of the Whitchurch team and supporters. Fortunately Dixon stepped up and stuck home the penalty corner to give Whitchurch the lead.

With Whitchurch ahead Alderley Edge continued to keep the pressure on, attacking hard into the Whitchurch dee keeping defenders Gayle Ladd, Catherine Reece-Gresty on their toes. Keeper Gwyn Thomas-Rees made several amazing saves that earned her a deserved player of the match and allowed Whitchurch to get another well earned three points.

 

Bowdon Ladies’ 6s 0 Whitchurch (Shropshire) Ladies 2s 0

Whitchurch ladies 2s faced Bowden ladies with our usual strong team. Despite not having chance for the normal pre game warm up the team soon found their stride. Whitchurch expected a tough game against a well-organised team and this is what they got. Both sides struggled to play their nicest hockey in a scrappy first half, although Whitchurch continued trying to play the ball into the wings and onto the forwards.

The first half ended goal-less with neither side having created any gilt-edged chances, but the tempo was raised immediately in the second half, with both teams perhaps sensing that a slight percentage increase in performance could yield a positive result in this game.

Both teams started creating chances, but neither team seamed to be able to get the vital breakthrough.

Whitchurch were disappointed at the end the game was frantic and despite securing a couple of short corners they were unable to make them count, and ended up drawing the game.

 

Wednesday January 16th 2018 – Re-arranged game

Whitchurch ladies 1s 4 Triton ladies 2s 1

Whitchurch entertained Triton on a snowy cold January evening. The teams watched the snow falling as they warmed up with half wanting it to go ahead and the other wanting to back in the warm.

As the snow eased the game commenced and within a minute Whitchurch passed the ball around quickly and Sue Read tapped in the ball. Triton had a strong midfield and always looked likely to get a goal with a big hit up the middle, through the Whitchurch defence and wasn’t long before Gwyneth Thomas-Rees was called into action in the Whitchurch goal.

Whitchurch struggled to contain the Triton free hits but there were glimpses of their passing game coming back and when it did they caused the Triton defence all sorts of issues.

Hebe Dixon at the heart of all Whitchurch’s plays picked out Ellie Windsor who drove down the right and who crossed into the dee for Laura Workman to tap in Whitchurch’s second.

Whitchurch rode their luck as Triton pushed forward but eventually Triton were rewarded and pulled one back.

Whitchurch continued to rotate their players more to keep everyone warm than for a break and Grace Berry scored a wonderful individual effort as she broke from midfield and flicked over the advancing keeper.

The halftime break was kept to a minimum as the temperature continued to drop and the snow again started.

Triton started to take control of the game and created a number of chances but the defence of Catherine Reece-Gresty, Claire Fitzgerald, Helen Machin and Jess Kimberley kept breaking down the Triton attacks.

The Whitchurch breaks were few and far between but the tireless work in midfield by Millie Edwards and captain Catherine Winter-Gresty continued to frustrate Triton.

Millie Edwards drove down the right and crossed and as the ball bounced around in the Triton dee Sue Read reacted fastest and poked in the ball for her second.

The final whistle could not have come soon enough for both sides but Whitchurch were glad for the victory and an important three points.

 

 

Whitchurch Men’s 1s 7 – Brooklands MU 5s 1

Whitchurch 1s returned to action this week against Brooklands MU 5s, a team who gave the Reds a hard match in the away fixture in the first half of season, but also a match in which Whitchurch really began to gel as a team and perform as they can. It was, then, fitting that this match gave Whitchurch a similar challenge and, with the return of several senior players, the chance to show again what is possible from this team.

The game started brightly with Whitchurch having the majority of possession and able to put together some good attacking runs. Brooklands responded strongly down their right wing, with a young but very talented player driving hard and passing well to cause the defence some trouble, but a strong defence of Ryan Murtagh, Steve Kay, Danny Foulkes and James Partington kept close to their attackers and were able to shepherd the ball away. Paul ‘Sturge’ Leigh in goal was on hand to make some last-minute saves to cover when Brooklands had got away, and short-corners were dealt with well.

At the other end of the field, a strong run from Felix Jeffreys on the counter-attack led to the first goal of the game, and Jeffreys was on hand again to pass to Ben Kimberley whose strike beat the keeper. The game settled into a pattern of strong attacks by both teams, but Whitchurch were the stronger in defence and rode their luck in attack – with a goal-mouth scramble ending with the ball looping up off the Brooklands keeper and landing at Tom Leonard’s feet for a tap-in measured in inches.

Felix Jeffreys then got his second with more strong attacking play and Jon Chappell’s strong afternoon continued with a run to the by-line and a cross to Martin Beecher who was waiting at the top of the dee to crack the ball in just before half time.

The second half continued much in the same vein, and strong holding play in the middle by Alex Fry, Dale Seymour and Rob Chappell gave structure to attacks and a good base to build from, allowing Jeffreys to score his hat trick. Sadly for the Reds, Brooklands were able to grab a consolation goal after a good attack ended with a strike in the dee being deflected past a diving Sturge by a valiant defending block, and on balance,

Brooklands deserved something for their efforts. With renewed enthusiasm, they attacked again and a diving save from Sturge was the only thing to prevent them doubling their score.

With the time ticking away, Jon Chappell got himself onto the score sheet with a flick to put away a rebound off the keeper’s pads, and the game ended with a satisfying result for Whitchurch who can build on this for their game away at Chester next week.

 

Warrington Men’s 2s 4 Whitchurch Men’s 2s 0

The end result did not reflect how well Whitchurch played in this match. They travelled to take on second in the league and for long parts of the game Whitchurch completed with the experienced Warrington team.

The first half saw Whitchurch have chances to take the lead as Lockie Price was stopped by an excellent save by the Warrington keeper and Craig Hockenhull blazed just over the cross bar.

Despite good defending from Richard Leigh, Matt Brookes, Airan Jones, Mark Sugden and keeper Neil Jones, Warrington created one opportunity and clinically finished to take the lead.

Whitchurch continued to push and felt they were still in the game at half time with only a one-goal deficit.

The second half saw Whitchurch continue to pressure and shots from Sam Conway and Fred Edgerton were again saved by the Warrington keeper.

Despite all the efforts of Tom Forster, Iain Bones, Joseph Coburn and Rupert Yeoward in the midfield Whitchurch started to tire and as Whitchurch made a number of errors Warrington’s experience began to show as they took their chances and the three points.

 

Deeside ladies 4s 12 Whitchurch Ladies 3s 0

Whitchurch 3s went off to Malpas hoping to put up a strong fight against Deeside 4s. However, Whitchurch did not have their regular goalie, but luckily another outfield player volunteered to take up this challenging position.  Deeside played strongly from the start and sadly for Whitchurch, they dominated the match in terms of goal scoring but Whitchurch did fight back at every opportunity!

Their stand-in goalkeeper did a brilliant job keeping some flying balls out and there was great communication between all the defenders. Forwards Evie Whatmough, Beth Sykes and Amelie Morris worked hard with the wingers Izzy Huxley and Holly Gilbert to try and break the Deeside defence. However, no matter how well Whitchurch worked together as a team, unfortunately this did not stop seven goals being scored by Deeside in the first half.

After regrouping at half time, Whitchurch went out very determined to reduce the number of goals Deeside scored in the second half and try and score some goals themselves! Deeside had some excellent set group pieces and were very difficult to break down for Whitchurch. It had turned into a very fast game and again Deeside seemed to score goals relentlessly!

Although, not as many as in the first half, so Whitchurch took some consolation from this fact! The final score was 12 – 0 to Deeside. The relatively new Whitchurch team will definitely gain from this experience and most importantly, they thoroughly enjoyed the match! Man of the match went to captain, Kate Goodwin.

 

Warrington ladies 2s 2 Whitchurch ladies 1s 1

The game started with very even possession of the ball from both teams who had some chances to score with none of these converted. Towards the end of the first half, Whitchurch ladies 1s were dominant and very unlucky not to score, particularly from a cracking short corner strike by Grace Berry.

Shortly after the second half was underway, Warrington were awarded a harsh penalty flick which was strongly converted by them. Not long after this, a lapse of concentration led to a second Warrington goal by their high pressing attacking line.

With around ten minutes remaining, a wonderfully worked team goal scored by Holly Jepson gave Whitchurch a life line back into the match. Even with many fierce attacks down the wings by Whitchurch, we were unable to break through the Warrington defence especially their impressive goalkeeper.

 

Whitchurch ladies 2s 0 Sandbach ladies 1s 0

Whitchurch Ladies 2s welcomed local rivals Sandbach Ladies 1s to Sir John Talbots on Saturday 13th January.  Both teams had been promoted from division 6 the previous season and were sitting joint 3rd in division 5.

Whitchurch knew this would be a hard match especially as Sandbach was travelling with 15 players and Whitchurch only had the one sub.

Whitchurch won the toss and took the ball straight to Sandbach’s defence, who dealt with it effectively, delivering the ball straight back up the pitch.  This was really the way the match followed for the full 70 minutes.  Both team fought hard for the ball, defending well and attacking through strong quick breaks up the side of the pitch.

Sarah Latham, Whitchurch’s substitute goalkeeper, ensured Sandbach attacks never made an impact on the score.  Unfortunately, Sandbach’s defence had the same impact at the other end of the pitch.  Whitchurch had a number of opportunities, one being saved on the line by a Sandbach defender, this was the closest to a goal Whitchurch has all match.

Towards the end of the first half, frustrations started to rise in both teams and raised balls and loose play resulted in a number of injuries, including a ball straight into the forehead of Tracy Tolhurst, which disrupted Whitchurch attack.  The halftime talk concentrated on refocusing the team, calming tempers and putting frustrations into the game, we didn’t want to lose this one.

Both teams entered the second half with a fighting spirit, focused on the goal.  However, both teams also defended extremely well, the halves and forwards running from end to end in support of the defence.  Whitchurch attacking short and long corners were a huge improvement on last weeks.  Whitchurch was well aware of the aerial threat from Sandbach in their attacking short corners, but Martha Teggin and Natasha Foster guaranteed the Sandbach attack never had an opportunity to lift the ball in the D.

After 70 minutes the score remained 0 all, both teams played fantastic hockey and remain in joint 3rd position.  Sarah Latham deservedly received Player of the Match.

 

Sunday 14 January 2018 – Re-arranged game

Whitchurch 3s 1 Bebbington 2s 8

The match got off to a fast start with a goal quickly scored by the opposition. Whitchurch ladies made a smart comeback soon after with a fantastic goal by Emily Vernon scoring the only goal of the match for Whitchurch 3s. At the start of the second half, Whitchurch moved in with a strong attack, but sadly didn’t last, with the final score being 1-8. The team made a great effort with Ellie McEvoy getting the well deserved title of Man of the Match.

 

Wednesday January 16^th 2018 – Re-arranged game

Whitchurch ladies 1s 4 Triton ladies 2s 1

Whitchurch entertained Triton on a snowy cold January evening. The teams watched the snow falling as they warmed up with half wanting it to go ahead and the other wanting to back in the warm.

As the snow eased the game commenced and within a minute Whitchurch passed the ball around quickly and Sue Read tapped in the ball. Triton had a strong midfield and always looked likely to get a goal with a big hit up the middle, through the Whitchurch defence and wasn’t long before Gwyneth Thomas-Rees was called into action in the Whitchurch goal.

Whitchurch struggled to contain the Triton free hits but there were glimpses of their passing game coming back and when it did they caused the Triton defence all sorts of issues.

Hebe Dixon at the heart of all Whitchurch’s plays picked out Ellie Windsor who drove down the right and who crossed into the dee for Laura Workman to tap in Whitchurch’s second.

Whitchurch rode their luck as Triton pushed forward but eventually Triton were rewarded and pulled one back.

Whitchurch continued to rotate their players more to keep everyone warm than for a break and Grace Berry scored a wonderful individual effort as she broke from midfield and flicked over the advancing keeper.

The halftime break was kept to a minimum as the temperature continued to drop and the snow again started.

Triton started to take control of the game and created a number of chances but the defence of Catherine Reece-Gresty, Claire Fitzgerald, Helen Machin and Jess Kimberley kept breaking down the Triton attacks.

The Whitchurch breaks were few and far between but the tireless work in midfield by Millie Edwards and captain Catherine Winter-Gresty continued to frustrate Triton.

Millie Edwards drove down the right and crossed and as the ball bounced around in the Triton dee Sue Read reacted fastest and poked in the ball for her second.

The final whistle could not have come soon enough for both sides but Whitchurch were glad for the victory and an important three points.