Thame Boys U14 V Berkhamsted U14

U14B v Berkhamsted U14 (Friendly) 6-1W
We took the opportunity to play a friendly against Berkhamsted today as we had a no-game week in the league. Berkhamsted (sadly for them) only have a squad of 9 or 10 U14, so this gave 6 of our boys the opportunity to allow them to field a team by playing for them.
We started the first 20’ ¼ with a strong team and it was apparent that we had the measure of our opponents – We were 3-0 up really quickly. We changed things to suit the event.
The middle 2 ¼ sessions were a lot more balanced – we drew 0-0 in both. Barney made some superb saves and kept 3 out of 4 clean sheets. Credit to Max, Ben, Andrew, William and Lucas (Captain) who kept good shape in defence. Leo, Hugo, Theo, Jasper and Tijmen did so well in their wide positions creating a lot of pressure on our visitors too. Also, big mention to Adam who made the transition from tennis to hockey in April and scored his first goal for the club today – big steps made.
Thanks to the boys who all represented Berko and all players who played out of their normal position to allow us to see how we would perform with different systems and situations – A credit to their flexibility and thought processes while under pressure – Chaos is cool in hockey after all.
We still have a 100% record fo the season but aim to improve on our communication when defending, tracking back to create a Thame-wall plus maintain our width (which was good) but for the full length of the match.
Goals: Louie (2), Charlie (1), Olly (1), Ben (1), Adam (1)
Thanks to Robert Broadhurst and Julia Sharpe for umpiring 4 x 20’ quarters – they kept the game flowing nicely and managed the boys. Thanks to Nanette Dart for the photos and to the parents who could all stand a little closer to enjoy the hockey on show and catch up a little. Thanks for your support as always.
One special mention this week is to the 4 boys who received notifications from Oxfordshire that they will represent our county at U15 (Charlie) and U14 (Ben, Olly and Barney) level this season – We wish them well – Proud of Lucas, Louie and Leo who made it to the final stage – small squad punching above its weight!