Men's 5th XI Development
Matches
Sat 02 Nov 2019  ·  MBBO Open League - Division 8 West
Henley 4
0
3
South Berkshire Hockey Club
Men's 5th XI Development
D Harvey (37'), B Neave (50'), A Jennings (60')
Terrific Terriers Triumph Against Table Toppers

Terrific Terriers Triumph Against Table Toppers

Paul Harvey2 Nov 2019 - 21:24
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Fireworks from Terriers As They Put On Outstanding Display Of Hockey

South Berkshire Terriers moved back to joint 3rd with an accomplished display of hockey against previously unbeaten league leaders Henley 4s. The 3-0 victory on another grey and wet afternoon of hockey was fully deserved and reflected a polished performance from the Terriers who rarely put a foot wrong in one of their strongest displays in many years.

The Terriers welcomed back the experience of Alex Fox-Harvey and Julian Chapman, and alongside the controlling displays of Ash Stratton and Tony Heaver in central midfield, the additional experience enabled the youngsters spread throughout the side to play with confidence. From the start, the Terriers threatened as Dominic Harvey and Austin Jennings combined to give the Henley defence an idea of what lay in-store for the afternoon.

In midfield, Monty Neave was set for another game of composed attacking flair, whilst on the right-wing Jack Barker’s trickery was again proving too much for his marker. Behind him, Alexander O’Keeffe had possibly his strongest game yet for Terriers – faultless in defence, and a constant menace on the front foot as he got numerous moves started on the right-hand side, and also proved a lurking threat as he moved forward late to give the midfield an outlet option.

Henley were certainly no pushover, but as the half progressed, the Terriers continued to threaten. Austin Jennings was unlucky when he rounded the keeper 1 on 1, only to see his shot slide wide. Shortly after, a goalmouth scrabble after a penalty corner looked a certainty for the Terriers to take the lead, but again Austin Jennings was foiled as the frantic Henley defending saw the ball scooped away.

0-0 at half time, but a simple message from captain Neil Badley to give it more of the same in the 2nd half and the breakthrough would come. However, even Neil wouldn’t have expected the first goal to arrive so quickly, as barely two minutes had passed when Austin Jennings drove into the D on the right-hand side, before hitting a hard ball back towards goal. The ball took a deflection off the keeper to fall to Dominic Harvey, who calmly hit a squeeze shot off his backfoot to chip the ball over the keeper and in.

The game was far from one sided, and Henley came back fighting, seeing a goal ruled out after it struck an attacker’s foot before being slotted into the goal, and also calling the Terriers defensive penalty corner routine into action.

With a goal to the good, the Terriers continued to press forward in attack, and midway through the half a well deserved second was theirs. Dominic Harvey turned to send a bobbling ball in from the top of the D, and as it flicked up off a defender’s stick, Byron Neave was on hand to volley the ball home with a confident smash.

By this stage, Henley were increasingly finding themselves pinned back in their own half, with clearances unerringly ending up on a Terriers stick, where the attacking pressure was quickly applied. The final goal was a fine solo effort from Austin Jennings, who was delighted to rediscover his goal scoring touch as he picked the ball up outside the D, spun and drove to the right before firing a venomous shot across the keeper and into the far corner.

An almost faultless display from the Terriers, who looked serene in central defence as Neil Badley and Julian Chapman proved unflappable when called upon, and to a man, put together one of the most assured attacking displays of recent years. Simple, quick triangles of hockey, quick passes to attack down the flanks, and a forward line who worked tremendously to create space through the out game. It was a great performance and there can be few complaints from a Henley team who will clearly be in the mix at the end of the season, but who today had no answer to the Terriers blend of experienced play and youthful panache.

Match details

Match date

Sat 02 Nov 2019

Kickoff

15:00

Meet time

14:15

Competition

MBBO Open League - Division 8 West

League position

2
Henley 4
6
South Berkshire [5] Terriers
Team overview
Further reading

Team Sponsors

Hockey equipment - Grace Hockey sponsorhip