1st girls' hockey v mowden hall

                                 Belhaven 3    Mowden Hall   2

This was never going to be an easy match and when we found ourselves two goals down after five minutes, due to some excellent play by Mowden, my thoughts were confirmed.

As soon as the whistle blew Mowden showed that they meant business. With one outstanding skilful and strong player our defence was caught on the back foot as she blasted through into the circle with some very impressive play helping to give Mowden that all important lead. However Ness Riley was about to upset her day. In true captain style she lead from the front and showed the Mowden team that this was not going to be a simple walk in the park. Ness commanded play from the centre feeding the ball to the forwards, clearing the ball from the circle and halting Mowden when they were on the attack. It was certainly a battle of wills between Ness and the Mowden player and it was a real treat to watch the standard of hockey both girls displayed. Lydia Dalrymple was once again the backbone of the team. Her grit and determination coupled with her skill and confidence with the ball resulted in a performance that many a player aspires to achieve. Her perseverance to never give up even when she was injured in the dying seconds of the match showed the strength of Lydia's character and her committment to the team. Kitty Single lead our attack. She showed great strength up front as she powered her way through the Mowden defence unleashing ball after ball at the Mowden goalie. Her understanding of play up front and team work annoyed the other team and turned our attack into a very strong force that was hard to deal with. Daisy Greville Williams and Eritrea Willoughby supported Kitty up front and both played an immense part in us breaking through Mowden's defence. Daisy and Trea both kept out wide to receive the ball, tracked back to defend when needed and provided text book crosses across the circle from the right to keep the play interesting. Both kept the goalie busy and were not going to give up until the ball was in the goal. Their determination in front of goal particularly against the goalie in the last few minutes of the match was rewarded as the ball crossed the Mowden line. However, goals are never any good unless you a have strong defence team to keep oppostion goals out. Francesca Younger was cool, calm and collected as a back. She did not let the first five minutes of the match unsettle her or anyone phase her in anyway. She made so many crucial tackles and clearances that it soon became obvious that Franny was meaning business. Iona Brooks supported Franny as back and as the match progressed Iona's confidence and command at the back grew. She was not afraid to take the Mowden girls on one on one and did not panic when defending became very crucial at the end. However, what did make our defence work was the understanding and communication that Franny and Iona have built up between them making them a very strong barrier to pass. Lydia McCallum was a completely different goalie in this match. Her confidence was noticeable. Many a goalie would have kept their head low as the first two goals went in but not Lydia. She commanded the team from the back shouting encouragement and advice, she made save after save keeping our hopes alive and her clearances were strong and direct. Lydia seemed relaxed in goal and to the naked eye looked as if she was enjoying being bombarded by Mowden's attack and maybe she was as she was helping her team to secure a very deserved victory as a result of every girl giving their absolute all.

It was certainly a match that I will not forget for a long time and a match where every girl showed their strength of character and love of the game of hockey.

Eritrea Willoughby - 2

Vanessa Riley - 1

Man of the Match: Ness Riley