3rds just manage to lose…

On a day where the autumnal weather was changing to a north-westerly, SVHC 3s set out across the valley for a friendly match at Marden. SVHC had a few availability issues with several regular 3s players being either injured, carrying injury or being nagged by their better half to do the Christmas shopping as this one was not a League game. Selection was finally sorted by Friday evening for this game and so the match.

SVHC arrived a little late to the venue, it’s a short distance from SVHC to Marden but a few players were curtained by slow tractors and the last of the apple picking. With a late change Andrew Wishart stepped into play keeper, Mark Whitmill taking ownership of the side with Phil Morris offering support as vice-captain for the day and due to lateness of the last arriving SVHC players, Marden kindly offered a few quality players to SVHC. Something they were going to possibly regret later in the game.

SVHC started in the normal way, some great passing, moving the ball and ensuring that the majority of the play was in the Marden half. Marden demonstrated that they had a quick counter attack using their junior players well to drive down the wings with increased frequency. Both sides had short corners but after 25 mins the game was still 0-0. Wishart, Whitmill, Sandberg and Morris were playing well in the defence and prevented several short corners as well as a fine save using his keepers stick by Wishart of a floated ball toward the right-hand side of goal, even the opposition were impressed.

Marden’s goal came from an attack where the first strike on goal was an air shot , and to everyone’s surprise , we played on , second attempt was saved was by the keeper’s boot, then he had a strike on his pads, then the ball was sent past the keeper to strike the left hand goal post, spun along the line behind the keeper with its spin taking it over the goal line.

First half complete SVHC 0-1 Marden

Now the second half was really all SVHC , in typical style we pushed higher and higher putting more pressure on Marden, whereby the short corner count in the second half was close to double figures. Sadly between a now very gingerly walking D. Thompson and his strike partners of Sheldon and Wilmott and all these opportunities to practice short corners in the game failed to gift them an opportunity to convert any short corners. Bravo, to the Marden Keeper as it was mainly due to his very good u16 performance that kept the ball out at all costs. Hope he got their MoM.

Fulltime, Marden 1 - 0 SVHC with both teams enjoying the Marden Clubhouse and an excellent tea ( Sausages, Beans and buttered white bread )

Umpire - Rupert Humphrey

Report by Andrew Wishart