Fri 05-Mar-10
Issue 19
Match Reports | End Of Season Dinner
This week, the results for THD were better than last week. The Men's 3s continue their sparkling run, maintaining their unbeaten run since Christmas.
The Men's 1s drew with Brighton & Hove, while the Men's 2s broke an unbeaten streak losing 2-1 to Oxford University 2s. The Tornados continue their quest for a playoff place, while the Royals and Saracens both lost to the top teams in their group.
The Women's 1s are now unbeaten in their last two. They look to finish the season strongly, but their toughest opponents are yet to come. The Women's 2s drew 1-1 with Woking 2s to stop a losing streak. They too have three games remaining, and a few points from the remaining games should see them to safety.
The Women's 4s are undoubtedly the form team this half of the season. They have now made it 4 wins in 4. If they get lucky with other results in their group, they are looking at promotion! The Women's 6s have now won back-to-back games too, pulling away from their relegation zone. The Women's 3s and 5s lost their games.
Let's have a strong finish to the season! Club Dinner is on 20th March.
Ramana Thirumoorthy - Editor
[Special Notice] - Ceelect Sports have a stick sale on where all THD members are able to get an additional 10% off for being part of the club! Check out the prices here.
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20-Mar-10
End Of Season Annual Club Dinner 2010
The preparations are complete and THE event of the season is now taking bookings. Celebration or commisseration... all are welcome to the EoS Dinner.
Three course meal, including wine - followed by dancing until the small hours. Friends and partners very welcome so get your tickets early! |
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This weeks match reports from the THD Teams in action.
Reports by: Will Pigden, Mike Killen, Charles Krasun, Mark Annear, Ian Townsend, Sarah Cook, Emily Cadman, Elenid Price, Olivia Murphy
Mens Section
Mens 1s vs. Brighton & Hove: Drew 4-4
"It was the best of times, it was the worst of times,
it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness,
it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity,
it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness,
it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair,
we had everything before us, we had nothing before us,
we were all going direct to Heaven, we were all going direct the other way - in short."
~ C Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
In short, Mr Dickens was a confused man. Either that or he was having his very own Nostradamus moment: turning his hand to amateur sports reporting and providing as eloquent and succinct a summary of the events of the afternoon of Saturday, 27th February as you could hope to read. That he felt compelled to secrete his musings within a fictitious account of the French Revolution and that said account would go on to become the most printed original English book of all time only serves to make his own, personal contribution to the world of clairvoyance all the more noteworthy.
Or, perhaps, we should in future make a point of choosing more wholly positive works of fiction as the reading material for the Men's 1s Book Club; The Life of Pi, for example. Or The Little Engine That Could. At the very least, it would seem advisable not to attempt to enact a literal representation of the chosen book's opening gambit in a convenient seventy minute window that had hitherto been set aside for "hockey".
Whatever the explanation for the similarities (coincidence, I suspect), it should be pointed out that for the vast majority of the match, we were very, very good. Indeed, it truly was the age of wisdom, the epoch of belief and the spring of hope as we raced into a 4 - 1 lead whilst playing some of the best hockey that we have for a number of years. Had we turned the corner? Not quite. Alas, the pressure began to tell and we were to succumb to the age of foolishness, the epoch of incredulity and the winter of despair, turning, as we did, a three goal cushion into a 4 - 4 draw in the final five minutes of the game.
And so, in conclusion, though a result that definitely felt more like two points lost than one point gained, we must be sure to remember the best of times. We have five games to play and that's more than enough time to turn this season from Darkness to Light. (MWP)
Next week: Great Expectations.at Staines.
Squad: M Pigden, M Hopkins, M Hann, M White, J Huntley, J Lyes, R Banwell, R Heath, A Brown, A Jarratt, C Smith, T Alford, S Broadway.
Scorers: M White, R Heath (2), S Broadway.
MOTM: T Alford - virtuoso defensive display.
TFC: M Pigden - cock; not a team player; sulk.
Next match: Away vs. Staines
Mens 2s vs. Oxford University 2s: Lost 1-2
The evening started with a 6:30pm meet in the hotel bar, well for most of
us... Two of our number had been consigned to the Cotswold House B+B
whilst the rest of us lapped up the luxurious surroundings of the Cotswold
Lodge Hotel due to an administrative error. As we waited for Butty and Gav to
make their way from the outer reaches of Oxford to our conveniently
situated dwelling, our thoughts turned to the night ahead. It was widely
agreed that food was necessary but a fierce debate ensued, polarising the
usually united squad. Despite the protestations of the anti-curry lobby,
whose vigorous arguments that a curry can be an evening-ender as a gutful
of Poppadoms, Naan bread and Lamb Dhansak inhibits the further consumption
of ale, a vote was taken and it was decided that we would indeed go for a
curry.
So we walked into town and went to a pizza joint.
The lighting in this restaurant allowed us for the first time to fully
appreciate Gav's knitwear. A very snug crimson number with beautiful
turquoise diamonds, hilariously accessorised with a turquoise belt and
turquoise boxer shorts. It became clear that Gav was granted permission to
stay over for the evening only under the condition that his fiancée was
allowed to dress him. Being a fair bunch though, we asked a couple of 40-year old women on the adjacent table what they thought of Gav sartorially.
'He looks like a tubby Tobey Maguire'.
Most of us had picked ourselves up from the floor by the time the food
arrived and it was generally agreed that it was of very high quality.
Coleman and Sheldon were particularly pleased with the Texan - a pizza
complete with two steaks on top. In fact Sheldon had not looked so
satisfied since he ate a kilogram of fruit and nut at lunchtime. My New
York was sublime and the Canberra also looked pretty damn tasty. There are
always those that complain however and Dr. Lash really started to throw his
toys out of the pram over the phallic nature of his London pizza. It was
pointed out to him that if he didn't want a full English on a pizza base
then he shouldn't have ordered it. 'But Nick told me to'. He thoroughly
deserved his manky dinner. Ginge's Sloppy Giuseppe also provided much
amusement.
We settled the bill and settled Sheldon down - he was not at all happy that
they hadn't brought his starter. The night was now to start in earnest. 'I
know Oxford' declared a confident Snowy. We then spent 20 minutes walking
in big circle. The troops were not happy and like a true leader Guy stepped
in and declared we would enter then next building that served alcohol - and
that is how we ended up in the most soulless pub in Oxford. Half the team
walked out in disgust, then re-entered sheepishly as they'd realised that
the Whip had not followed them. A ten-minute time limit was put on our stay
and no-one had a problem with that. We necked our drinks and set off in
search of the famous Turf Tavern, for some reason still believing that
Snowy really did 'know Oxford'.
We waved at the waitress in the pizza joint as we walked by for the third
time. Then we passed the Bodleian Library and Nick revealed with much pride
that despite all the time he has spent in Oxford he had never stepped foot
inside. I wonder if Snowy has?
Finally we arrived at the Turf Tavern, a 13th Century Ale House famous for
it's wide range of bitters. We ordered tequilas. At this stage it became
clear that the alcohol was having quite an effect on our keeper but to be
fair he disappeared down an alleyway and returned to declare that he had
been granted permission to stay in Oxford until 1am. For the second time in
a day he was hailed a hero.
Despite our environs being from a bygone era, time was in fact flying by
and it was time to plan our assault on a club. It was rightly agreed that
we should split into Small Mobile Units to ensure entry into one of
Oxford's premier Nite Spots, 'The Bridge'. The SMUs parted ways and agreed
on the rendezvous - then we all arrived at the door of the club together
and for the first time in history a bouncer allowed 11 drunk men into a
club unhindered. It must have been our good looks and Tubby's jumper, but
actually when we went up the stairs we realised that we were in fact just
the first 11 people to arrive.
High jinks ensued. There were shiny-faced schoolgirls, Jaeger Bombers, and
repeated calls for Tobey to turn into Spidey. At some point we reformed the
SMUs, my unit opting for a kebab. Other units allegedly opted for a free
24-hour bar (aided by surveillance-deactivation techniques straight from
Spooks), loads and loads of Bobsleigh (I'm really not sure if that is slang
for something or whether the coverage from Vancouver was really that
exciting), and some headbutting (Tobey on Ginge, who then retaliated with a
better effort). Neither party recalls the circumstances of the altercation
and it is unclear why Spidey chose this form of attack rather than one of
his super powers.
I woke up at 11am and went to check out. 'You look as bad as the rest of
them, at least you made it to bed though. I hope they are not driving?' I
handed over my key. 'There's just one of you left now.' I enquired as to
who this was. 'The gentleman on his own'. So I collected Ginge and we
headed back to London.
Note: Earlier in the day there was a hockey match. We lost 2-1. Snowy and Sheldon were brilliant though.(MK)
Squad: Sheldon, Matt, Coleman, Robby, Guy, Snowy, Mike, Tubby, Butty, Dr. Lash, Nick, Ginge, Timmy, Darren.
Scorers: Timmy
MOTM: Snowy (closely followed by Sheldon)
TFC: Mike. Hotel booking shocker.
Next match: Home vs. East Grinstead 3s, 1100hrs, JAGS
Mens 3s vs. Teddington Saplings: Won 5-1
No match report.
Next match: 6 March, Home vs. Old Loughtonians 3s (Foresters), 1100hrs, JAGS
Tornados vs. Old Loughtonians Gunners: Drew 2-2
The bouncy water-based Old Loughts pitch unfortunately hadn't been struck by the same problems that caused the closure of the adjacent Spurs training ground and the unpleasant Essex scallies were out in force. For a team packed with some quick, direct, skillful players, OLG are extraordinarily committed to the dark arts.
We started shakily but settled after 5 mins and drew blood with a well-worked, calm short corner routine that saw Pully crash home. We played fairly enthusiastically but slightly aimlessly and found ourselves level after an inexplicable 'hole-in-the-hand' moment from Bailey. Half time came and we thought we could push on.
But they came out confident too and scored from a fortuitous break that saw the ball fall to Pat who swept it home from a yard out. We came back and a really good move saw Big Fish sweep home at the far post.
No one likes going to Chigwell and we're back there in a fortnight, so the less said, the better. A decent point, but, again, could do better. (CK)
Squad: Bailey, Tom, Aido, Wilsh, Pully, Charlie, Bristles (eventually), Fents, Big Fish, Little Fish, MJ, JC.
Scorers: Pully, Big Fish
MOTM: For the third week running, difficult to pick someone out.
Umpires: Theirs
Next match: Home vs. Richmond Lions, 1230hrs, JAGS
Diamonds: No match.
Next match: Away vs. Richmond Stags
Royals vs. Southgate Goblets: Lost 1-3
Considering that, in the previous fixture, we had lost to these youngsters 7-0 in Southgate, you might call this an improvement. Certainly, the overall impression was that we had avoided humiliation in defeat. On reflection though, this should be chalked down as another of those missed opportunities.
We had our fair share of attack; we battled hard and held firm in defence for long periods; we kept possession and inflicted frustration on their desperate forwards. But on the flip side, we failed to make the most of our attempts on goal; we conceded two poorly-gifted opportunities; we failed to make the most of the possession and free hits we had.
Given though the desperation we felt at the same fixture away in mid-December, this side is not unbeatable. Had they not scored first, the frustration we could see building in the youngsters' wildly-swung and mistimed attempts to tackle might have imploded their team fabric. After all, we had seen and heard of it done before.
But alas, 2-1 down at the interval through two softly-spoken goals and a reply from Sparky, though we tried hard to break them down and draw level, having a mature head at centre back evidently assists the Giblets. Perhaps we had the better of the second half - but in holding that possession we failed to maintain the composure which had served us well in our more famous victories.(MA)
Squad: Mark Annear (c), Adam Bond, Oli Carruthers, James de Saint Quirin, Robbie Fleck, James Fuller, Stephen Ireton, Adrian Leung, James Perrott, Ben Slater, Tim Smith, Ed Taylor Jones, Ashley Woods (13)
Scorers: James de Saint Quirin
MOTM: Adam, Tim (for a very well taken goal, across the keeper and into the bottom left corner), Ben, James Fuller, your correspondent and Sparky (for a goal that actually counted in our favour) all won votes, but the winners were (jointly) our left- and right- backs Robbie (fuelled on Lucozade) and Westlife.
Special Moments of the Day: Numerous votes here: Stephen (not passing), James Fuller (leaving the match still with a hangover), Ashley (playing out of position), JP (playing out of position), Oli Carruthers (playing out of position), your correspondent (not correcting where his team were supposed to be playing), Adam (revealing a vote in the secret ballot) and our supporter Laura Ratcliffe (nepotistic voting) all were remembered. But the true winners were Ben (playing so far out of position he was able to clear the D on far too many occasions), and Tim (for the own goal and the attempts at vote fixing).
Umpires: Charles Norris and their coach
Next match: Away vs. Hampstead & Westminster Thirsts, 1030hrs, Paddington Rec
Saracens vs. Spencer Spitfires: Lost 1-7
A full squad of Saracens legends turned out on Saturday lunchtime in SW London to take on league toppers Spencer Spitfires. With a strong start and some great passages of play where Spencer seemed to be in disarray, we took it to them but were overwhelmed a few times and ended up succumbing to a 7-1 defeat.
Plenty of positives, not least we (and, improbably, I) managed to score against Spencer for the first time this season, and the enthusiasm in the squad continues unabated (despite some dodgy team pre-match talk by your captain!). (IT)
Squad: Gavin L (GK), Mark H, Michael S, Niteen S, Ben Salsbury (from Diamonds/Men's 5s), Ali B, James S, Oli C, Colin L, Ben L, Ian T, Duncan C, James Taylor
Neil H, Colin W-J, Miguel L
Scorers: Ian Townsend
MOTM: Duncan/Me with 3 each (with Ben L, Ali B and Colin WJ all scoring two apiece)
TFC: A strong performance for 'no-one/not applicable' with 4, with a few people scoring just one each
Next match: Home vs. Indian Gymkhana 4s, 1030hrs, CPB
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Womens Section
Womens 1s vs. Sunbury: Drew 1-1
No match report.
Next match: Away vs. Wimbledon 1s
Womens 2s vs. Woking 2s: Drew 1-1
After an epic journey down to Goldsworth Park for most of the team, the first half of the game panned out well for the 2s, despite some initial scoring struggles.
Woking had a couple of chances at a goal, which were impressively saved by Olivia, but towards the end of the first half we got our goal-scoring act together: Jo Walford had a clean strike at goal from the top of the D, leaving Helen to grab a nifty deflection, putting us 1-0 up
Although we were clearly dominating possession in the second half, we missed several goal opportunities and frustratingly, about 5 minutes before the end of the match, Woking got a break and scored a goal after some scrabbling in our D.
We narrowly missed out on regaining the lead with an excellent short corner strike from Kato, but the high-quality goal-keeping from Woking kept the final score at a 1-1 draw. (SC)
Squad Olivia, Kate, Ellie, Rach, Muldoon, Biba, Jeavs, Fowlie, Tash, Jo, Helen, Sunny
Scorers: Helen
MOTM: Jeavs
Umpires: Lou Campbell
Next match: Home vs. Guildford 2s, 1130hrs, DC
Womens 3s vs. Spencer 3s: Lost 0-4
No match report.
Next match: Home vs. Surbiton 3s, 1330hrs, CPB
Womens 4s vs. Surbiton 5: Won 4-0
This weekend saw a strong performance from the 4s against our nearest rival this season to record a hard fought win. The Surbiton team was packed with a dangerous mix of ex-top flight players, and 15 year olds a lot fitter and faster than us!
Since our previous meeting before Christmas saw us concede three goals in the first 10 minutes, the pre-match chat focused on a quick recap on marking - stand on their toes not 20 metres away.
With good discipline from the defence, THD started to take control towards the middle of the first half, and capitalised with a great short corner strike from Vicky, and a well-worked goal from Ash.
Going into half time we felt confident, but Surbiton came out fighting in the second half with a few players who hadn't been on the pitch in the first half. They struck back quickly from a short corner, but we managed to stretch our lead with two more goals in open play, including a great solo run from Abi.
Things started to feel a little stretched towards the end, but we hung onto our two goal advantage. The 4s are now sitting third in the table, but unfortunately we don't stand too much chance of catching the leaders. Still, fingers crossed for a league reshuffle! (EC)
Squad: Emily C, Abi, Hattie, Rachel, Cat, Helen F, Ash, Kath (c), Mary, Vicki, Helen F, Susannah, Emily
Scorers: Vicky (2), Ash, Abi
MOTM: Hattie
Next match: Home vs. Camberley and Farnborough 2s, 1200hrs, CPB
Womens 5s vs. Woking 2As: Lost 1-5
Early alarms for a mid morning start in Woking, heavy rain upon arrival, and no goal keeper..... the pressure was on!
We outlined our main aim: to make sure Woking didn't get any opportunities within our 25. Mark everyone out of the game! And don't stand on the ball!
The first half proved this was actually harder than we thought. Although no one stood on the ball, Woking did score 4 goals. This however didn't scare us away, and with some tactical changes, clean passing, and Emily in the perfect position we managed to get one back.
The second half saw only one goal from Woking, Clare M preventing a few others with some nifty stops in front of the goal line.
Great movement up the right, a short shower to cool us down, and a slightly worn out opposition wasn't quite enough to better the scoreline, and instead we settled with some near misses, a few falls and a confused Woking forward not knowing where to place the ball for a short.... 'RIGHT!'
I only wish we'd started the first half as strong as we played in the second. The scoreline wasn't a correct reflection on the match (considering we were short a GK). If we play like we did in the second half + a few more goals, this Saturday against Croydon could be something worth celebrating! (LP)
Squad: Katie S, Khalida, Audrey, Erica, Emily E, Heidi, Sarah W, Laura, Kate, Flo, Clare, Lucy, Len.
Scorers: Emily E
MOTM: Laura
Next match: Home vs. Croydon 2s, 1000hrs, Dulwich College
Womens 6s vs. Cranleigh 2s: Won 3-1
It was early one day that we met,
Quite glad the weather wasn't wet.
But Cranleigh were late,
So we decided we'd wait.
Warm up, get shooting, get set.
The first half went at a pace,
1-0, we were leading the race.
Then a goal by Ellie,
Who gave it some welly,
Left us feeling really quite ace.
Then Lizzy had a small stumble,
But twas fine, she didn't grumble.
We turned around,
She was flat on the ground.
But, free hit, so we didn't mumble. .
2-0, our second conversion,
To give it greater assertion.
Charlotte made a great save,
But a goal we gave.
Put simply, it was their consolation.
Pressure was put on their end,
Leaving them just to defend.
In went a third,
Fly-ing like a bird.
Goals were becoming the trend.
Into the final few seconds,
Or so the umpires reckoned.
Could we get one more?
Up our score?
But no, time out had beckoned.
(OM)
Squad: Bridget, Claire, Charlotte, Kate, Katie, Gemma, Zoe, Jenna, Ellie, Alison, Lizzy, Olivia
Scorers: Zoe (2) Ellie (1)
MOTM: Ellie and Lizzy
Next match: Away vs. Reigate Priory 4s
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Mixed Section
Dragons: No match.
Next match: 13 March, Home vs. Spencer Mixed, 1230hrs, Battersea Park
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