Slazenger Hockey Club

Lincoln

Report: 24-01-2015 – Mens 1st’s (4) vs. (2) Lincoln 1st’s

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Slazengers men’s 1st traveled away to Lincoln and picked up a good three points, even thought their performance was not at their usual high tempo.

Slazengers took a 2 goal lead from good interlink play where Richard Tuddenham made 2 good assists (Yes – I said assists!) from the usually greedy forward to Daniel Perry who finished very well in front of goal. As Slazengers were feeling comfortable with a 2 goal lead, Lincoln dominated play and equalised with 2 goals before the break.

Slazengers came out the blocks in the 2nd and scored a quick goal from Richard Tuddenham who took advantage of a short corner. As the game progressed Lincoln looked strong but Slazengers with some good defending from the backs and Ralph Toon making some outstanding stops kept Lincoln out. The team cemented their result with a short corner, where Tuddenham sealed the the three points with a good strike.

Ralph Toon the keeper was the worthy winner of the man of the match award.

Report: 24-01-2015 – Mens 5th’s (2) vs. (2) Lincoln 5th’s

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After a long trip to Lincoln we went one down in the first half despite a lot of possession.

The second half saw the team come out determined to enjoy their hockey and applied lots of pressure in the opposition D. Great wide play by all and passing caused enough pressure for a short corner converted to a goal with a drag flick by Matty Chilton. More pressure, team work and possession saw a well worked goal taken by Tristan Whittle.

Unfortunately despite all the ball we got caught on the break to draw 2-2. Great team progress and effort by ALL.

Report: 20-09-2014 – Mens 1st’s (3) vs. (1) Lincoln 1st’s

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Slazenger Mens 1st’s started the 2014 season with a win over a very strong Lincoln side.

The 1st goal came in the 10th minute with a well worked well set piece which Isaac fisher finished under pressure. Two goals before half time from Dan Perry and Richard Tuddenham put Slaz in the driving seat.

Slazengers conceded just after the 2nd half restart but regained their strong possession of the ball. Isaac Fisher; man of the match and Adam Drake put in a strong performance and were able to hold on for a great win.

Report: 14-12-2013 – Mens 3rd’s (3) vs. (5) Lincoln 2nd’s

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Slazenger 3’s last game of 2013 saw them play a Lincoln Roses team lying second in the league and it was soon apparent to the Horbury side why they are so high in the table. The opposition were very quick and skillful on the counter attack. They were naturally full of confidence and played with great freedom. Slazengers looked sluggish in comparison and were slow to get going.

The home side were lucky not to conceded very early in the game as Lincoln tore through the opposition several times. That said the better chances did fall to Slazengers as the half progressed but the Lincoln keeper proved up to the task. Just as the Horbury side looked like they were getting to grips with the situation they conceded 2 late goals to go into the interval behind.

Second half Slazengers responded, people began to take responsibility and got their due rewards when Man of the Match Luke Gueli deflected a direct strike into the goalmouth past the keeper.

It was game on when continued pressure yielded a further goal to midfielder Jack Mumford from close rang. This was now the crucial period of the game, it was evenly matched and Lincoln for the first time during the afternoon could not be sure of the victory. So it was particularly frustrating when the opposition were gifted a soft goal after some poor team defending.

Slazenger heads did not drop and they immediately looked to level the game once again. In an increasingly open game Luke Gueli deftly brought his side back into the match with another deflected goal.

However, Slazengers failed to consolidate as previously and allowed the opposition to put their noses in front once again. It was unfortunate that the Horbury side conceded a further goal very late in the match whilst going all out for the draw. Final score 5-3 to Lincoln.

Report: 23-11-2013 – Mens 3rd’s (3) vs. (5) Lincoln 2nd’s

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Slazengers latest match against strong opponents Lincoln was a tough, feisty encounter, with both sides keen to win. After a fairly even opening 10 minutes Slazengers did start to gain the upper hand with Jack Mumford and Rob Whawell working hard in midfield to close the opposition down and deny them time on the ball.

Slazengers created several scoring chances but failed to capitalise on these opportunities. So it was particularly frustrating when collective poor defending resulted in Lincoln taking the lead from an innocuous looking attack.

Fortunately Slazengers maintained their composure and it wasn’t long before winger Ian Hedges well executed reverse stick shot was tapped in by captain Byron Dean for the equaliser. Once again Slazengers continued to press without success and once again, against the run of play Lincoln took the lead.

After a bit of reorganisation in the team shape, Slazengers went about looking for an equaliser. Simon Taylor caused chaos down the right flank when time and again he powered his way into the opposition penalty area setting up some great chances for Slazengers to score. The equaliser finally came when Luke Gueli dragged a low flick into the bottom left hand corner, from a penalty corner.

It was time for deja vu once again when Lincoln were allowed to retake the lead after yet more defensive mistakes.

It wasn’t until the final quarter of the match that the Horbury team finally got the game by the scruff of the neck. First Jack Mumford’s well drilled shot found the back of the net. Then Mark Kitchen gave the home side the lead for the first time, from another converted penalty corner. Finally Luke Gueli sealed the points with his second of the day after some intricate passing at a good fast tempo allowed him to slip the ball under the diving keeper. He was unlucky not to get his hat-trick when after another good passing move, he was through on goal and his shot smashed into the keepers helmet, The keeper didn’t know too much about it as the power of the shot nearly lifted the helmet off his head.

Final score was a hard fought 5-3 against traditionally tough opponents.