Sutton Valence welcomed bottom of the table Holcombe for the return fixture, conscious that whilst they won the away match, Holcombe were a good, well organised side, so knew the match would be no formality.
Valence started with a strong 12, including two 14-year olds making early appearances in men’s hockey. The youthful pace is something this side has missed, so the team all eagerly looked forward to having to do a little less running.
Match started with Valence quickly on the ascendancy, resulting in a number of short corners being won in quick succession. Valence tried mixing things up, but to no avail. Eventually, Tom Willson received the injection and calmly placed the ball into the far corner. 1-0 Valence.
The first half continued in the same vein, with Valence attacking and controlling things well, and Duncan Field enjoying acres of space down the right, but Holcs had a very strong midfield, and continued to try to engineer opportunities. Despite their best endeavours, the Valence defence cleared everything out, with ‘Sweeper’ Young clearing out any loose balls.
Half time came and went, and the message was to continue as they were; force more play down the flanks and score more goals.
Following an inspired substitution from captain Nick Hall, Duncan Wills came off the bench and immediately picked a lovely ball passed by Tom Willson and slotted through the keeper’s legs for 2-0. Valence continued to attack Holcombe well, but a combination of stubborn defence and unlucky shooting, meant Valence only scored one more goal, through good a good injection from the right by Duncan Field, and a deft touch by Tom Willson to nick the ball past the keeper. One final attack from Holcs resulted in Phil Morris deflecting a cross towards the bottom of the Valence goal, which was agilely saved by Stewart Young. This was the only real shot that Young had to save.
The match finished at 3-0, and the notable contributions were from Jack Walsh & Jack Sheldon, both 14 and both playing their first and second men’s games respectively. They both have taken to men’s hockey exceptionally well and deserve a joint MOM award.

MOM: Jack Sheldon & Jack Walsh
Goals: Tom Willson (2); Duncan Wills

Team: Stewart Young (gk), Phil Morris, Nick Hall (C), Rob Harrison, Tom Willson, Jack Sheldon, Chris Jackson, Darren Thompson, Duncan Field, Duncan Wills, Rob Cockayne, Jack Walsh
Umpire: Rupert Humphrey

Match Report by Nick Hall.

Next week the 3rd Xl are away against Canterbury Friars, currently in 5th position in the League, but who surprisingly won the home tie in the first half of the season.