2nd XI break their duck

The 2nd XI scored their first win of the season with a 2-1 victory at London Edwardians, while the 1st XI maintained their unbeaten record with a routine 5-1 defeat of bottom side Epsom. The Ladies cruised to one of their biggest wins in recent years as they overcame Cheam 6-0, while the 3rd battled to an entertaining 1-1 draw with Epsom. The only setback came at the bottom end where the 4th XI slumped to 1-5 loss at Old Reigatians. Epsom are saved by the crossbar
Click here for this week's match photos

1st XI 5-1 Epsom
After last week's average performance by our standards it was crucial that with Yateley next up we put in a solid performance against Epsom 2s who were propping up the table. Traditionally Epsom are a hard nut to crack and they would be the first to admit that they would relish the opportunity of putting one across our first XI.

As it was we had the perfect start with a good flowing move in the first minute ending with Gavin on hand to slot home and this should have been the platform for a routine and convincing win. However we did make hard work of the next 20 minutes, trying to force the pace and game instead of playing our own style with the pitch in perfect condition to do so. Once we played a short patient game with great off the ball movement we scored our second, a result of an interchange of 20 or more passes, a top run by Gavin that enabled Knapp to go through a huge hole in the middle of the Epsom defence and score our second. Hunter hit the bar with our second short that would have put us in cruise mode had it gone in with our corner team being asleep when failing to pop home the rebound.

Parts of the first half performance were disjointed due to our not boxing clever and to an extent the start of the second half repeated this failing allowing Epsom to score from their first corner, our not effectively clearing the first shot and giving Epsom the chance to score from the top of the D albeit aided by a deflection at the post. In previous seasons we may have at this juncture allowed the game to slip away but with Poulson and Hunter dominating in the midfield when they were not by passed Rory slapped home a far post pass to make it three and Gavin was on hand to nudge home his second of the game and sixth in five games to kill off the contest. With 2 minutes left on the clock our last short corner was converted, Nick Wood on hand to deflect home the ball going wide of the left post to give us a comfortable 5 - 1 win.

Our problems today were caused by having too much time and pressing too quickly and by passing the midfield. All our goals came from a patient build up and when slowing down the game. Massive game on the 7th November against Yateley who deservedly beat us in the play offs three years ago. David Knapp

London Edwardians 1-2 2nd XI
After a promising draw last week against the league leaders, there were many positives to be taken from a deserved 2-1 victory over London Edwardians this weekend; our first win following last year’s promotion, two fine goals, a wealth of attractive attacking hockey and a side bolstered by the inclusion of no fewer than 7 old school boys. And yet there were no major celebrations post-match and all 13 players involved knew that there is still a lot of room for improvement. In all honesty, we should have scored more goals and closed the game out early in the second half. As it was, we went into our shell and nearly conspired to throw away a two goal advantage.

The first half started brightly and it was clear from the off that the opposition lacked the pace and dynamism that we had seen a week earlier with Old Whits. When we passed the ball around, showed patience and switched the point of attack, we were in full control. Our frustration was largely aimed at ourselves as we were unable to make the final pass count. On one such occasion Chris Porter singled himself out as the guilty party calling himself a, “stupid *******, ****”. It’s unusual for Ports’ comments to be met with unanimous agreement from the side but on this occasion everyone agreed, particularly when the umpire brandished a green card! Cue a ‘conversation’ with the umpire which proved to be every bit as entertaining. The umpire pointed out that there were people watching and that the fruity language was inappropriate. Chris pointed out that it was, “hardly the ******* San Siro” with four people on the sidelines including two of our subs!

When the game resumed, Chris O’Neil Dunne was very solid at the back and marshalled the Old Eds attackers well alongside the ever-reliable Jon Heard. Rob Merry may not be the fastest forward in the league but his patience and control on the ball was influential throughout and we were able to make a number of bright attacks. It was half way through the period that one such attack led to a short corner and James Bents was on hand to cleanly sweep the ball into the net following a neat move. The remainder of the first half was largely uneventful and we were comfortable in attack and only really looked vulnerable when caught dozing once or twice on the break.

Going into half time in front is something of a novelty this season (!) but it was clear that to take the maximum points away, we would need to score first after the break. It was fantastic to have Cookie in the side and he showed that there is no substitute for pace on the right wing, showing up his opposite number time and again. Having started brightly, some tidy inter-play from Rob Merry resulted in an attack up the left side. Neil Grimes picked up the ball outside the circle and showed that the studio class of old is still there, beating at least three players before calmly slotting the ball home. It really was a fine piece of finishing and allowed us to get two clear early on. We continued to dominate the game for the remainder but in addition to some fine flowing attacking hockey, we conspired to play our worst hockey of the season in patches. Our press, which had been so dominant in the first half, was suddenly vulnerable and Old Eds scored an opportunist but well-worked goal on the break to take it to 2-1.

Having been on the wrong end of a clear infringement which was not blown up, Neil did a ‘Porter’ and made every effort to stop the opposition player from passing (stick in stomach, leg in crotch, hand in face!). Unsatisfied with simply impersonating Chris in the challenge, he also did a ‘Porter’ follow up, immediately self-passing and setting off claiming the free our way (the sign of a guilty man). The umpire wasn’t convinced at all and pulled his yellow card out.

We started to panic a little and the calm passing of the first 50 minutes was replaced by too many long balls and a reluctance to hold onto the ball. For some unknown reason, the umpire kept Neil off the pitch for 15 minutes which didn’t help the cause and the end result was some nervous final moments. We were able to hold on and a relieved skipper called the ‘three cheers’ at the end. Again our keeper, Ross, made some fantastic saves in goal and everyone showed some real guts to grind the result out. Looking back on the final 20 minutes, it’s clear that we can’t afford to throw the ball away as often as that again but if we can re-create the attacking guile shown in the coming weeks, there is no reason why we cannot make our way up the table. All in all, it was a great relief to get our first victory of the campaign. Thanks to all the boys for a tremendous effort on the day - let’s keep this momentum up! Tom Merry


3rd XI 1-1 Epsom
We turned out late on Saturday afternoon against an Epsom side who were currently residing a few places in front of us in the league. It started off and you could see that Epsom were an experienced well drilled side. Unfortunately we seemed to have a bit of a hangover from our grass experience of the previous week and were still playing as if we were on it.

The game was pretty much end to end but not a lot of chances were being experienced from either side. James debuting for us in goal was only kept busy vocally marshalling his defence of Jock, Stuey, Armo and Tim. We were looking pretty strong at the back and despite a couple of early mild scares didn’t look like we would be penetrated. With a couple of players back with us up front, Bruce and Andy, we seemed to take a while to get our flow with this only really occurring in the second half. The midfield of Chaz (whose comments about his level of touch are unprintable) Abs, Dunx and Tissy held strong and seemed to get better as the match went on. The fact that we went into halftime 1-0 down was only down to what seemed like a fluky goal. Whether the Epsom attacker intended to carry out a multi juggle with the ball in dinking it over James is debatable but is was enough to give them the lead.

The halftime talk consisted mainly of trying to ensuring that we improved our ball retention and stopped giving away cheap ball. This was duly performed and it did not take long for us to pull level with a finely executed goal by Andy which left the Epsom Goalie with little chance. We definitely had the better of the second half and were unfortunate not to have achieved a winner. With Ed coming off the bench in place of the injured Andy he was unlucky not to slot one past the Epsom keeper despite some good runs into the box. Furthermore we were unlucky not to get the winner when a well worked move ended with a 3 on 1 chance which could just not be converted. James had a relatively quiet 2nd half but was called into action for one good save. The match ended with the 1-1 result which leaves us still in 5th in the league but only 2 points off 2nd place. If we can emulate the performance of the 2nd half there is no reason that we can’t get somewhere in this league. Thanks go to Martin for umpiring us once again but I thought it was a bit early for the Haloween mask. Nigel Hawes

Ladies XI 6-0 Cheam
With an early start and mild conditions meant that we had to compose ourselves and get motivated as soon as the first whistle was blown.

Early into the game Vikki Mottram scored our first goal, a ball which almost apologised as it crept into the goal through a sea of gawping defenders, motivating us and setting the pace for the rest of the match. We continued positively, remained composed and kept our focus which lead to our second goal, which came off one of Cheam’s defenders. With a determined Cheam we had to push ourselves to keep possession. With excellent team work and some superb passing we scored our third and fourth before half time.

The second half Cheam pushed harder to break through, however with our high motivation to raise our goal difference we gave as good as we got, scoring twice more. We just had to win by as many goals as we could! It was the great work and excellent marking of the defence that left Cheam barely able to break for a goal opportunity, leaving Julia almost completely redundant throughout the seventy minutes. Cheam seemed to crack physically under the pressure - losing defender when struck by her own player and another soon after in a collision - as injury time became a regular occurrence.

It seemed to be really humid but with our determination we showed everyone what we are capable of and with Old Georgians next weekend we need to work together like we did on Saturday and come back to TD with another three points in the bag! Rewa Gonzalez-Granda

Old Reigatians 5-1 4th XI
Report to follow.

Ladies show how to tour

Last Friday afternoon the OC Ladies hit Dublin. Quite literally. Sarah Mann reports on a weekend which few will forget (actually, which even fewer are likely to remember anything about
Click here for the tour photos

Just as planned we all met at 3.30pm for a few beverages at the airport before the flight. Well... nearly all. Charli doing the classic, arriving last minute, and promptly downing two double G & T’s and a shot of baileys to catch and overtake the other girls. Poor Martin, the Irish gent who didn’t know what he had in store!

Arriving at Dublin slightly later than planned we piled in two taxis with several comments of “What is the time over here?” The accommodation was simple but perfect, especially the plastic covered duvets... "just in case"! Five in each dorm, each with a bathroom and breakfast included, and of course a blue and orange colour scheme! What more do you need?!

After a quick freshening up we headed out in our tour shirts - handcrafted by Snoops (thank you) - to Milanos, the Irish version of Pizza Express and had a lovely meal that hit the spot (and lined the stomach). Stuffed and content, off we went and found ourselves in The George - the biggest gay bar in Dublin, Lots of drink, and a major battle for the dance floor with the dancing queens! We had quite a fan club by the end of the night!

It was clear that this weekend was not going to be cheap; A Smirnoff Ice/or pint over £5 and a Vodka and orange a grand total of £9.10. Oh and be warned prices go up through the night!

On Saturday morning we nursed our hangovers and went for a wander around Dublin. At lunch we headed off to the train station all kitted out and ready to go, not doing a head count though and leaving Nikki at the hostel. Whoops! Lucy was awarded first dick of the day. With an awful hangover all ready for the big game a tactical chunder (or two) was in order followed by the comments “I feel much better”.

At Sutton train station we were met by some of the Irish girls who drove us to the pitch. We borrowed a nutty keeper called Leanne who did some fantastic saves. The game was evenly matched but sorry goalie we were not quite on form. Think we were playing in slow motion in the first half (despite a very good warm up of course!) The Irish ladies took an early lead, followed by a second shortly after from a well-drilled short corner. We definitely showed up for the second half however. A sweet short corner brought us back in the game at 1-2. We held possession well and kept our structure, using the new rules to get a quick ball through to Emma, who finished it off with a brilliant touch to score her first goal for OCs - the first of many I hope. The whistle blew at 2-2. It was a fair result.

Unsurprisingly I became the next dick of the day, and quite rightly for trying to remove one of our players heads on the hockey pitch. Sorry May! And was promptly issued with the Irish boxer shorts and Lepricorn hat.

After the match we were taken to The Bloody Scream in Howth on the sea front, of course the drinking started again as we all started topping up from the night before. The train journey back consisted of several members of the team attempting to poll-dance to the entertainment of the locals including the train security guard who was fully kitted with stab vest and baton. Where had Rosie taken us?

Tired and all needing a sleep we got back to the hostel and made ourselves beautiful. Two bottles of vodka and many games of SPOONS! later we were ready and left the hostel for some music and Irish dancing. Charli made the most of the microphone, many extra hits on the website yet Charli? How do you spell Tantric again?

From there I can’t remember where we went apart from saying it was a club of some variety - an annoying Aussie in tow - we headed off for more dancing, the Conga making an appearance with the whole club joining in, and a bit of dancing on the table after some turbo shandys of course! Unfortunately the story of the night was missed by many and with no photographic evidence ... I think what goes on tour stays on tour with that one!

I have to say well done to May, what a trooper, because even though her face was swollen and she had a cracking headache she battled on and was out into the small hours of the morning and not the first to leave!

On Sunday morning we were an absolute sight, hangovers galore and lost voices - the extra hour had been well used. We packed our bags and left our rooms. A bit of time left for a walk into town for some, who managed to be brought lunch by a very handsome American! The other half of us headed to the Guinness factory - for yes more alcohol!

Caz’s grandad’s uncle sister brother met us for a final pint at the airport, and then onto the flight we went, Charli and May catching the plane by the skin of their teeth. Snoozing for most and arriving on time, it was a great end to the weekend!
All in all a superb weekend, thank you Rosie from all of us. Munich here we come!

Winning messy

The 1st XI returned to winning ways after two draws with a 3-2 win at Old Midwhitgiftians in a game David Knapp admitted was “our worst performance of the season”. The 2nd XI turned the form book on its head with a battling 2-2 draw against league leaders Old Whitgiftians, our first points of the season. The 3rd XI overcame the almost forgotten fun of playing on grass to beat bottom side Spencer 1-0, the side’s first back-to-back wins in more than two years. The 4th XI beat Leatherhead 3-0 with all the goals coming in the first 20 minutes. The Vets beat Cheam 2-0.A diving Chris Porter nets our first goal in the 2nd XI's 2-2 draw with league leaders Old Whitgiftians
Click here for this week's match photos

Old Midwhitgiftians 2-3 1st XI
Our worst performance of the season but three valuable points against OMW's who have always made life difficult for us.

A few shuffles of the pack gave us our starting line up and as with the last few weeks we played well for 20 minutes, poorly for the next 20 and then regained our momentum for the last 15. Two goals to the good early on courtesy of two sharp finishes from man of the match Gavin should have been the platfrom for a convincing win and but for one smart save Trickster had nothing to do in the first half where we had been pegged back to 2-1 following a crisp strike from the OMW's only short of the half and indeed the match.

In essence we lost our pattern and played the ball long instead of keeping it short and sharp as we had done when on top. The home side also pressed more having gained considerable confidence from their strike. We missed chances to wrap up the game and paid the penalty when a stroke was conceded and the scores were level, Trickster unlucky to see the ball dribble home after guessing right.

Fortunately Dan P was on hand to nudge the ball home with 15 to go and although hanging on at times again, had bags of chances to kill of the game but making bad choices and suffering as a result of some bad basics. A couple of professional tackles went unpunished by the umpires in our ranks although Rippers took a yellow for the team late on and we came away with three valuable points to put us right back in the mix.

Excellent game from Gavin and another good performance from both CV and Dan which will make selction interesting with CB, Cato, James W ood and Jonny H back next week. David Knapp

2nd XI 2-2 Old Whitgiftians
This week's match photos
Yet again we found ourselves playing the league leaders – that’s 3 times out of our first 4 games (and before they picked up points against us!!). We welcomed back our old friends Old Whitgiftians. They moved up the 2 leagues with us and last year saw 2 epic games against them – coming back to gain a draw after being 3-0 down after 15 mins at home and then beating them by a couple of goals at their place later in the season.

We had the advantage this week of a reasonably settled side (by our standards anyway) – not that you would have known it in the first 10 minutes when we invited them to repeatedly pour down our right hand side. The pressure eventually led to a well struck short corner which the skipper missed on the post. 1-0 down after 10 minutes was not the start we had hoped for. This did seem to galvanise us though and we started to string some passages of good hockey together. JP Davidson replaced Rob Merry to play in his favoured position of right back and did a fine job throughout. We played some good hockey but once again gave the ball away too much in their half and rarely entered the d – which continues to put us under unnecessary pressure. It has to be said that they were putting in some fairly average tackling which they were lucky to get away with (more of that later). A quick transfer round the back (probably for the first time in the game) provided some space down the left. Several quick, precise passes cut them apart and Porter did the rest.

Half time at 1-1 and things were looking good. Unfortunately we got the second half of to a disastrous start – Jon Heard, who up until that point had had a fairly faultless game, had a wobble to many in the middle and their striker duly accepted a very kind gift – the result a three-on-one and ultimately a goal. At this point our heads could have dropped but encouragingly we picked up the pace a bit and started to attack more. Austin Vowles, a late replacement for Bruce who had been pinched by the 1st XI, working hard to create something. A rare trip to the d led to a short corner and Rob Merry, who had come on up front, was on hand to blast the rebound in from the penalty spot – 2-2.

What followed was a real battle, reminiscent of our tussles with Old Whits last year. A bad tackle or nine too many from them led to the first yellow for them. We failed to really take advantage of this and almost inevitably started to put in some bad challenges ourselves – leading to a yellow for Chris Porter. The backs worked hard – Chris O’Neil-Dunne making an excellent save on the line form a short corner and Ross Kingsnorth making several other fine saves. When we did pick up the pace and really attack them we looked dangerous. A long run up the left and through the middle from Rob Merry drew a foul just in front of the D – nothing much but then it had been one of four committed in the same passage of play. The result was a short corner and another card to their player – perhaps a little harsh but consistent.

Even with a man down they continued to press. We still looked dangerous on the break but lacked the penetration to get into their d much. A clash of sticks in an otherwise good tackle by James Bents meant he saw yellow with about five minutes to go, the result of us once again needlessly loosing the ball in their half. So we had to play out the last three minutes a man down. Unfortunately we conspired to concede a short corner with a minute to go but Ross made another fine save. The whistle was in truth probably a blessing for both sides and certainly the umpires!

2-2 was probably a fair reflection of the game – resulting in Old Whits dropping their first points of the season and us winning our first points of the season! The next four weeks see us play three out of the four bottom sides – which have become must-win games for us, even at this early stage of the season. With decent availability and hopefully a player or two from the 1st XI we should be ok and hopefully we will be able to provide some players to the 3rd XI to aid their important quest for promotion. Rob Merry

Spencer Harlequins 0-1 3rd XI
Congratulations to us all on grinding out another win by managing to beat Spencer Harlequins 1-0. This may not sound the most amazing win, but to take any result where we score more than the opposition whilst playing on grass is good enough for me. The game this weekend felt as much of a lottery even though I feel we would have wiped the floor with them on Astro.

Our Third win of the season has taken us up to the heady heights of 5th in the league. Congratulations to new recruit Ed Brown for scoring the all-important goal. Nigel Hawes

4th XI 3-0 Leatherhead
The prodigious 4’s turned up to a cold & damn OC ground somewhat down on the numbers readied for battle on Friday evening, (various dubious reasons ensued!) Thanks go to stalwarts Andy “the Duracell Bunny” Eve and Howard “the Interceptor” Cruthers for stepping in to boost the squad.
Tactics were set as we studied an oppo with only three goals conceded in four games, whilst they sat in third place with us in fourth.

Play started on a slick & greasy surface with some good pressure and fast runs from Leatherhead for the first ten minutes. There somewhat immovable king-pin hogging the top of the D, looking to provide some deft touches to fast young oppo running in from deep. A strong defensive line from Kevin “the Power Tackle” Smith, Robin “Longarms” Crumby and “I’m not Nasty” Nick Aston, quelled most of the early pressure.

In a break from our 16, an irrepressible Grant “Dodgy Chicken Legs” Archer carried the ball quickly with James “Slick” Bish to bash the Oppo D. Eventually the ball was passed from the right, for Archie to finish neatly across the keeper at the right post. Whether this galvanised us even more, or Leatherhead head’s had dropped who knows, but we continued the pressure with some fantastic running up our right flanks from Dom “Skin’em Gonzales” Tucker!! Perseverance was rewarded as we set up for a shortie which ran right to Dom who slotted it deftly into the corner. 2-0.

As the oppo rallied slightly, moving on by him there was a loud memorable guttural sqawk as jetsetter Stevie “Ohhh Nick Griffin!! I will NOT be beaten like that,” Harmer sped earnestly back across the pitch in a resplendent effort to get the ball! He did. More resilient pressure in Leatherhead's D saw an Archie nutmeg go just wide. Another shortie resulted in a foot stopping save, and a P flick was duly awarded. Step forward Chris “I did miss my breakfast with my delightful conquest from Friday nights night out” Bents to power home a delightful stroke to the top of the net! Some post goal sloppiness saw the Oppo in our D for a shortie, strongly blocked by Power Tackles. Four or five first half attacks were stopped dead due to the new rules not quite sinking in just yet.

The second half resumed with the oppo applying good pressure, but perhaps they had a little more wind as we struggled to regain the control we had for the last 20 minutes of the first half. Great link up on the right with Chris, Andy & Dom to set us up for another shortie, but alas we could not convert. A nose-bleeding run from Longarms Crumby, linking up with Gonzales and Nick “Ever-ready & Roaring” Jocelyn saw a decision of question, as a possible shortie transpired to be an Oppo 16?
It must have been correct though as Martin “I’ll only umpire if you bring me cakes!” Williamson took his legendary firm control!

The last ten minutes of the game saw a fairly even match, with our last action coming as we took another shortie, which found Chicken Legs heady with excitement as he struck for the left corner, but forgetting to move his right foot, yelped in sheer pain as a his calf spasmed in anger with all that running forward. Or maybe it was just cramp!

An excellent team performance providing solid midfield link-ups, strong rearguard defence and superb speedy attacks. Monday Stats see the OC4’s sitting second.
Smithers. Nigel Cakeman Smith


Veterans XI 2-0 Cheam
So we are at TD on a very mild, overcast afternoon to take on a good Cheam side. Tommy sets up the side as a fairly rigid 442. Cheam start well, maintaining possession without really hurting our stout defence (can use any interpretation here). Cheam did however create a number of short corners but these were well defended (more of this later). We finished the 1st half with a few good moves and half-time came along with a scintillating 0-0 score-line, fairly reflecting the play.

The sun came out during the half-time chat and Tommy/Andy correctly assessed we lacked width in attack and were consequently playing to Cheam’s strengths - so they changed the formation by playing two left-halves. I know this sounds rather strange but it worked – Cheam’s most effective attacker was their ‘right-wing’ playing high up – so the 1st left half man-marked this player while the second maintained width. I think we ended up with a sort of 352 which would sometimes be 3142 or 361 or 3241, Benitez et al - eat your heart out.

The result of this tactical masterstroke enabled us to take more control of the midfield and put together some nice passages of play. This was assisted by Myles being able to find space and get on the ball to hurt Cheam as second forward with the tireless Judge Sleeman

To cut an already long story short – we managed to score two goals from open play by picking up loose balls in the ‘D’ and firing home – Myles & Clive – the best of pals. Apart from everyone putting in a good shift, we should not forget the passage of play where being 2-0 up, we decided to run the clock down by conceding a number of short corners in succession – all of which were ‘run down’ by the amazing Jon Gray– in total he must have done 10 sprints to the top of the circle – outstanding effort.

However, there was one champagne moment when the Cheam striker having again been ‘run down’ by John hit an absolute screamer past the excellent Shanks – going at shoulder height into the net when Matt produced an amazing save by upper-cutting the shot over the bar.

This led to the main debating point in the bar – the decision by TC was a 16 – due to this being the first shot, there is an argument that the striker had attempted to get a form of shot away which was stopped by Jon and also - due to the defence having touched the ball in the ‘D’ – first shot rule is eliminated? As you can see the writer hasn’t a clue and would like clarification.

To sum up at last – an enjoyable game against a good opposition played in good spirit where I suppose the result could have gone every which way. And a final note of admiration for two fine demonstrations of CF play where late on, the Judge ran ~ 50 yds on two occasions to beat the Cheam full-back and get shots in. Andy Eve

Goals at the bottom end, draws at the top

The 1st XI were held 2-2 by Southampton in a cracking game, while the Ladies also held Purley by the same scoreline. There were goals galore at the bottom end of the club - the 3rd XI had the novel experience of handing out a drubbing as they thrashed Teddington 6-1, while the 4th XI made it 13 goals in two weeks with a 7-1 rout at Old Georgians. The Vets beat HAC 5-02, but the 2nd XI's woes continued as they went down 0-5 to the same opposition.


1st XI 2-2 Southampton 1
The hard work to achieve promotion and regenerate our first team was made all worth while when playing in games like that against Southampton on Saturday. We knew that they are going to be the side to beat this year being a young and efficient team and a large club. Indeed it was Southampton who condemned us to the drop 5 years ago and from all accounts were unlucky not to be in the A division of the league at the end of last season.

As with last week we came out of the traps fast but unlike last week Southampton were intent on playing a similar free and fast running game. We shaded the first 15 or so minutes and were rewarded with a Gavin Adair goal with his touching home a superb ball in from Eds, continued to press but found the opposition keeper in inspired form, making 3 or 4 top class saves.By half time we were 2 - 1 down with Southampton deserving their lead. 2 well finished goals follwoing a period of intense pressure. We could have been furtehr behind but a couple of chances went begging.

As the second half progressed our squad, well marshalled by David Cresswell dominated and it was no surprise when man ofthe match CV finished off one of the moves of a number of seasons that invloved most of our team and saw 3 crisp transfers of the ball from side to side. From here on it seemd as if there would only be one winner as we retained the ball well and snuffed out Southampton's midfield domination that had caused us problems in the first half. Not to be denied though, Southampton looked very dangerous on the break, forced a number of short corners and created chances that they could not take. Trickster made 2 good saves but it was the Southampton keeper who saved the away side a point and denied us 2 more. Perhaps we should have made more of the chances we had and there was a feeling of 2 points lost rather than one gained.

The match ended in controversy but respect to Sean who later held his hand up.

The biggest disappointment of the day was the lack of urgency on some occasions when Cressers called the subs which are called for a reason and at the correct time. The positive side was a good solid performance by new guy Dan Poulson, the Woods and Cato with Nick L putting in an excellent second half after being under pressure in the first and a strong OC second half performance with us taking the game to Southampton.

Arguably we could have nine points out of nine but equally Southampton may have an argument that had they taken a two-goal lead into the second half by converting one of their chances after their second goal they could have gone down the A3 with all three points. David Knapp

Purley Walcountians 2-2 Ladies XI
These days you hear so much about how motivational talks by coaches and managers before a game can inspire a team. With a tricky away game against an unbeaten Purley team everyone waited to hear what words would be used to get us ready - and were promptly told by goalie that he had “no faith” in us (sure we believe you when you claim you just got your words a bit mixed up...).

The opposition were full of fast young players and they used that to their advantage early on to score a breakaway goal. However, instead of letting our heads drop within two minutes we were level, some excellent play down the left-hand side saw the ball eventually break free to Katie in the area who coolly slotted the ball away. From then on we took the game to Purley and put them under immense pressure especially when we used the self-hit rule so effectively getting attacks moving whilst they were still getting organised. Jax was unlucky to hit the post with a shot. Eventually we were rewarded for our hard work a strong drive down the right and into the D by Snoops who crossed for Sarah Mann to score. As Purley looked to get back into the game they worked a quick 1-2 from a short corner and were back level prior to half time.

The second half was close, with both teams having chances, but neither managing to convert them. As the game went on more of the decisions favoured the home team, but everyone shrugged it off and got on with playing their own game. If it hadn't been for an excellent save from the Purley keeper we would have gone ahead. At the back the defensive line of Hels, Rosie, Lucy and Rewa dealt well with a number of Purley short corners which ensured they never got a clear chance from any of them.

Everyone played well and on another day we'd have got all 3 points, but to be truthful a draw was a fair result. Julia Dann


3rd XI 6-2 Teddington Oaks
With an early start to the game and only 11 on the pitch the first five minutes looked as if we had not yet woken up and we were lucky to keep it at 0-0. Nevertheless as the first half progressed we seemed to settle and started putting greater and greater pressure on our very young opposition. This pressure finally paid off with Louis Strover scoring a goal with his normal precision after about 15 minutes. This was quickly followed up by a second scored by Jamal to give us a 2-0 lead. We had our tails up and were really starting to play some great hockey. There were brilliant performances all over the pitch with the defence having a strong performance … with Jock Vickers moving back to sweeper where he is probably most suited, a big welcome back to Abs Janmohamed who really gave us a solidity which we had been missing, CD who seems to have made right back his position after today’s performance and Ollie who had got his focus back having his best game of the season so far. Unfortunately Ollie managed to pull a hamstring midway through the first half, but with the possibility of going down to 10 men he soldiered on. Towards the end of the half Teddington managed to pull a goal back with a slick move that had the defence and myself scratching our heads as to where it had come from. But on the upside we went into halftime with a lead of 2-1 and a confidence that we could go on and achieve our second win of the season.

At halftime we changed our structure to push Ollie up front up in order to protect his hamstring. The second half started well with the midfield staying really strong… Ross also had probably his best game this season, Dougie definitely proved that he is getting back to his very best, Preston despite being out of position made a big difference in the middle as the conduit between defence and attack actually existed today. We were able to put a lot of pressure on the Teddington defence even though their 11 year old keeper was doing some good work (yes I did say 11 year old !!!), They could not hold out forever and our latest makeshift attacker Ollie was able to take our lead up to 3-1. We did experience a number of scares and Teddington did get the score back to 3-2 with a well taken short corner. At this point Teddington did push hard and caught us out a couple of times but with a combination of well timed tackles by various members of the defence and a couple of saves from myself (even if I do say so!) we were able to maintain our lead. However eventually Louis was able to craft a 4th for us and at 4-2 we didn’t really look back. Before the end Jamal was able to add his second and Preston was able to slot a well deserved goal to make our tally 6. It has to be said that this was a great all round team effort as we concentrated on playing our game and used our experience to get the better of a very young, fit and skilful Teddington. I am extremely chuffed as, even whilst I don’t wish to admit this, having captained the side for a year and this being the start of my second season it was the first time that the team had won while I was playing. I personally blame the keeper!!! Hopefully we won’t have to wait so long for the second. Nigel "At Last A Winner" Hawes

Old Georgians 1-7 4th XI
This week, Mrs Amy Oxo provided the team with OC orange cup cakes after their match against the Old Georgians. The cup cake, like the 4th team, is having a bit of a resurgence. Back in the 80s they were very cool, but they have been overlooked for the last couple of decades. In 2009 they are definitely back.

The cup cake is sometimes known as a fairy cake. But there were no fairies on the pitch in Weybridge this week ... well other than the ever camp Harmer (maverick) and Archer (iceman). Both of whom had been caught singing to Girls Aloud on the journey to the pitch (Boyzone had been taken from the cd player out of respect).

The cup cake is made of flour, sugar and butter. The solid formation of the cupcake is provided by the flour. The central formation of the 4th team, Smith, Crumby and Harmer, Shakir started the game on a strong foot. With driving runs through the middle, one of which lead to a trademark roof breaker by Jemal to open up the scoring. It all goes it bit hazy after this point, I know Shakir got another 2, Bishop 1 and Dom 1, the others I forget.... - at half time it was 6-1

Any chef will tell you, if you want to make anything taste better, just add a bit more butter. And this is what the OCs did during the second half. By adding another goal to the tally from.....again I forget. With the Old Georgians rallying, it nearly felt as if they had more players on the pitch.

The sweetness of the cupcake is provided by the sugar. Our sugar daddies of Kevin, Crumby and Archer stood strong through the second half where Old Georgians started to make a number of attacks. Particular mention should go to Kevin for some fantastic tackles when he was the last man standing.

The final score stood at 7-1 and we move into a strong fourth position in the league. During post-match chat our captain this week, Grant Archer was overheard making reference to Diego Maradona's foul mouth tirade this week. "Today we are in the 4th place in the league, with help from nobody but with honour. To all of you who did not believe in us, and I apologise to all the women here, you can eat my cup cake and keep on eating." Mark Oxbrough Harmer, you're fired


HAC 2-5 Veterans
OC Vets followed up the glory of their "never-say-die" victory at Tring last week with an emphatic win away to HAC on an enjoyable afternoon played in great spirit in leafy Dulwich. This performance probably lacked the ‘derring-do / Guns of Navarone’ quality of the Tring triumph but was probably a more impressive overall performance. The outcome was never seriously in doubt and each time that HAC threatened to climb back into the match OCs found another gear and, more importantly, another goal. The 5-2 scoreline1 did not flatter the away side and this against a decent HAC side.

Graced by the classy and tireless Howie and the ever-menacing and powerful Gavin Rowlands this Vets performance was built around a strong midfield performance, the ball moving well through the middle of the pitch courtesy of another impressive display from Tommy ‘what-no-hat-trick-this-week’ Trinder. As ever the most effective passing proved to be the short ball in and out of the flanks and Jon Gray once again proved his worth, ever-dangerous down the right. At half-time OCs led 2-0, the second being a classic ‘fox-in-the-box’ effort from the sparkling Stuart Slemen following the all-important first goal, a short-range thwack by Tony Jones created by a neat pass from the aforesaid Slemen, surely a classic case of ‘poacher turned goal-maker’. . Jury service is clearly agreeing with him!

Half-time was interesting. Wade Pollard umpiring clearly had a plane to catch because he reduced the interval to just a few seconds. The shortened break proved long enough however for the HAC to neck a bottle of champagne between them – a magnificent moment and one that perhaps contributed to a level playing field given that a number of the OC team, having arrived rather earlier than expected, had ‘warmed up’ for the big occasion by getting comfy over a pint!

The second half was a roller-coaster. A powerful penalty corner strike from Andy Loates was deflected by Gavin to extend the lead, HAC nicked one back only for Andy Loates to touch a pass in after we had moved the ball around with four passes from a short corner to restore the three-goal cushion with a well taken goal. The team was served well at the back by Loates and Speers and Matt Olley in goal didn’t put a foot wrong notwithstanding the lack of clean sheet. In truth HAC’s second goal was the pick of the match, a Maradona style run half the pitch from their centre forward before a crisp finish that left our keeper no chance. We went immediately down the other end to seal the match with our 5th when Gavin Rowlands scored his second from a well worked short corner involving wall passes off defenders shins. Messrs Butcher and Eve meanwhile patrolled the left hand side to great effect. We even had the luxury of Osborn came off the bench in the second half to dazzle and help rub salt into HAC wounds.

We left the match in good spirits but with insufficient time for most of us to enjoy a post-match beer at the Greyhound, the lure of the evening Quins Toulouse game accounting for much of the team, another victory for an away side, but this one an unwanted result and no doubt reduced the OC Quins contingent to a bout of beer-based consolation! And anyway we can all reflect on a very satisfying afternoon’s hockey. It is official, OC Vets are now an a winning streak. David Burles

Frustration and elation

Wanderers 2-2 1st XI
How important will the 2 points dropped against our nemesis Wanderers be in 6 months time ?

The last five games against Wanderers have seen us draw three times, 2-2, and lose 3-2 and 2-1. Having had a heavy loss last week and a number of players down from last year this seemed an ideal opportunity to gain revenge over the home side. The first 20 minutes were played in the Wanderers half and but for some poor final choices we should have been three or four up and in clear water. As it was the only short corner we forced in the first half on 20 minutes was powerfully flicked home by Johnny Hunter to give us the lead. By half time Wanderers were even with one of their first attacks producing a soft goal just before the break. Our defensive problems were caused by a loss of shape and failing to attack down the flanks that we had done so well in the first part of the match and our intense full press breaking down at their 16 yard hits.

The second half saw Wanderers dominate with their full press being very effective and causing us difficulties in releasing the ball out of the back. However our second short produced our second goal with Johnny Hunter picking up a loose ball and rifling it home. We should have held out but did not, allowing Wanderers to force a number of short corners and although missing some gilt edge chances equalised with a soft corner finding its way home three minutes from time. Indeed, we could have lost it with an open goal being missed and then in the last minute our failing to convert a good chance that would have given us all three points.

Chris Valentine was the pick of our players with a simple and effective performance at right midfield and Dan Poulson fitted in well in his first game albeit slightly out of position.

Southampton 1 next week at home with our needing to fire a little better than we did this week if we are going to take the three points. David Knapp

Ladies XI 1-0 Epsom
After a disappointing result last week against Surbiton, we were determined to take nothing less than three points from our second league fixture. With Epsom yet to be beaten in the new season, we started as we meant to go on, linking up well to create some good chances early on. The first half was played at quite high tempo, using the new rules generally to good effect, and we probably just edged the best of the possession. Some great periods of play including successfully 'sagging' in to place to defend efficiently and effectively, keeping the ball out of our defensive half and pushing forward as much as possible. A few silly mistakes at the end of the half contributed to some good chances for Epsom, but the first half ended goalless.

The second half was again close and quite even. We maintained our form, however unfortunately conceding a few shorts, and a number of free hits outside the 'D'; All were defended well, and we produced some great counter attacks, and generally used the space of the pitch well. The persistent pressure won us a number of chances and attacking shorts. Six minutes from time, and with another shortie - the push out from Rewa and an excellent move between May and Sarah Mann resulted in (what looked like) a textbook goal. The last few minutes were played defensively, but we managed to hold on and get the whole three points.

So many good performances on Saturday that are so encouraging and exciting for the rest of the season: Hulio with some absolutely fantastic saves, and a noteable performance from Lucy in defence meant we kept a clean sheet. Jax and Hels as always completely solid on the left and Jerry also had a great start to her life as an OC with some awesome balls through to link up midfield and attack.

All in all a great performance, including by the coach - who was as passionate as the players on the side line there, lets hope it's onwards and upwards from here girls! Rosie Marriott


2nd XI 1-3 Wanderers II
Our second match saw us take on the league leaders (albeit after one game!) at home. Tom Merry who was awarded the dubious privilege of recruitment secretary at the committee meeting last week, proved his pedigree straight away by finding three new players, all of whom proved to be very useful. We also welcomed back Christopher O'Neil-Dunne, an ex-studio player who has been abroad honing his skills. This provided us the luxury of 13 players and on a hot day made a great difference.


The game started extremely brightly with us playing a very controlled brand of hockey and zipping around the back four with ease. However we were unfortunately the first to concede – a good finish after our first real defensive lapse. 0-1 but we still looked to be slightly ahead on playing terms and so it remained at half time. Our new crop of players all played an important part in this – Chris looked composed at sweeper, made several key tackles and pinged the ball around; Sam Blackmore was industrious in the middle and linked well with Andy Selby and James Bents; Nick Phillips was feisty down the left and gave several killer passes to the guys up front; Tom Quy had several deft touches and linked very well with the other forward. We were patient in attack and we looked much better in defence, with our full press putting pressure on them throughout.

Almost straight away in the second half a quick break down the middle lead to a short corner. With Jon Heard at the top of the d everyone expecting a crashed strike. The first wobble was a shock the second shimmy unheard of. At that point the umpire was shocked into blowing for a foul as Jon slotted it home. Rolf had had an excellent game and apologised straight away to the crest fallen Jon. Fortunately the damage was short lived as we scored immediately from a further short. Tom Quy was surprised not to find someone to help him on the P spot, following a break down in communication. Surprise quickly turned to despair but he calmly stuck it away to get his first OC goal.

At this point we really looked like we might well snatch the points. They were lucky that one of their players was not yellowed, having been shown a green just before for a similarly poor challenge. Both sides had chances and we were saved a few times by excellent tackling by the ever dependable Dodie Kurshid and Jon Heard, and by more first class keeping by Ross Kingsnorth who made a number of extraordinary saves. We were then guilty of being slightly naive. As their player dribbled it off the back by the near post we all stopped and he calmly passed it to his team mate who slotted it home – neither umpire was really in a position to see either way and we went 1-2 down, despite our protests. As fitness told, despite having 13, we then conceded another goal after some sloppy defending.

The game ended 1-3, despite us playing arguably the best hockey we have played over the last two years. We should really have held on when we equalised, but we have proved once again that we are capable of playing at the higher level and in three or four weeks once a relatively new side has settled we should be a force to be reckoned with.

Our thanks once again to everyone who made themselves available to play. The umpiring was once again excellent – our thanks to Rolf and Shaun. It was also extremely pleasing to see most of the guys sticking around for a beer after the game and several of us supporting the OC rugby after that. We have been traditionally poor at this but the first two games have been very encouraging in this aspect, long may it continue!

Next week a trip to H.A.C. sees the return of a number of players and hopefully winning ways... Tom Merry

Oxted 6-3 3rd XI
Unfortunately a disappointing result at the weekend in going down 6-3 after being 2-0 up in the early stages especially after winning the previous week. I think we all have our views on where we might have gone wrong but at the same time Oxted were a pretty well drilled side with some skillful, fast and fit youngsters. We just need to pick ourselves up and try and ensure that we get the results going in right direction again. Nigel Hawes

4th XI 6-1 NPL
Fresh from our bi-annual bruising encounter bashing the high-flyers Barnes Beavers in a hard-fought 2-2 draw, this week saw the turn of fellow promotees NPL Bees. After a week of autumn drizzle and grey skies, the sun finally came out and with it the buzz of the Bees: who had proved a fiery bunch in previous encounters meaning scores to settle. But with Mrs Crumby’s finest chocolate brownies waiting for the winners (and double helpings for the losers) and Steve "They’ll never take our freedom" Harmer’s pre-match eulogies (so long they left little time for warm-up) still ringing in our ears, battle commenced.

Despite some crisp passing and fancy stick-work from Oxo, Dom and Howie, it was NPL who struck first against the run of play. But we rallied and quickly evened the score with Dom finding space and time for some trade-mark Banana runs down the right and the grabbing a well-deserved lead by half time.

The next ten minutes were to prove crucial with the Bees looking more than capable of scoring and coming close several times, but for the valiant defensive efforts of Messers Archer, Aston, Smith and Crumby. With no Louis this week, hopes rested on our super-signing ‘Jekyl and Hyde’ Jamal to put the result beyond doubt. But before he had a chance, the ever watchful Martin intervened and sin-binned him for a moment of madness that saw us reorganise and consolidate.

Despite being down to ten men, we extended our lead and with Jamal back on, we went into overdrive with Jamal hitting a succession of sweet strikes that found the roof of the net to finish the game 6-1, but not before goal-hanger Harmer stole forward and joined the party with a scuffed shot.

So, the 4ths cruise up to mid-table with one of each, a loss, a draw and a win and with win-less Old Georgians next up, a top 5 spot beckons. The spirit of Bance is alive and well. Long live Jamal. Robin Crumby

Tring Vets 3-4 Vets XI

Eleven good men and true turned up at Tring on Saturday and with only one forward in the team, our annual beating from them looked on the cards. But oh what a bit of anger and injustice can do for motivation. Having one goal scored against you when there was blatant interference by the footballer in the D before hand who trapped the ball wonderfully well with his foot before playing the ball in the net was bad enough. Given the opportunity to admit his guilt by that practiced court-room expert Dave Burles the culprit skulked away hiding his head in shame. Oh no things got worse. Matt Spears made a fantastic goal line stop with his stick marginally above his shoulder and Tring were awarded a penalty flick for dangerous play – which they converted. So we found ourselves unjustly down 2–0 at the break.

Changing tactics for the second half with the midfield five all pushing forward to support our excellent and tireless centre forward – Miles, we were able to score a well worked goal via Andy Eve which really sparked the motivation. There followed the sweetest quick fire hat trick from self publicist Tommy T, with two short corners and a penalty flick to secure the win which the efforts of the team deserved despite a consolation goal at the end of the game to make the score 4-3, a win secured by a fine penalty save in the second half by our rock at the back Pete Shanks. And by the way the questionable umpiring came from the Tring umpire - who otherwise was very good - not our fantastic umpire Mr Tim Cook who, thanks to the help of a number of Tring players, now knows the new rule that you can’t hit a ball straight in to the D from a free hit inside the 25 without the ball first moving five yards! Tommy Trinder

Kit, socials, subs and festivals

The following was agreed at a committee meeting of the club held at the OC Club, Thames Ditton on October 7, 2009

Subscriptions
It was agreed that the Club subscription should be maintained at £375 for the 2009-10 season, with a concessionary rate of £175 for students, unemployed and goalkeepers. These rates would be reduced to £275 and £135 respectively, if paid by the end of October 2009. The subscription is inclusive of all match fees and summer league fees. Any member not paying their subscription by the 30 November 2009 will be not allowed to play for the Club until the subscription is paid.

Socials
Nick Lewis proposed that there should be three socials during the season and an end of season dinner. As regards the three socials, it was thought this would consist of a Bonfire Night Fireworks evening on 7 November 2009; a race night on 12 December 2009 and a repeat of the hugely successful curry and quiz night on 6 February 2010. It was noted that the Rugby Club and UCL Academicals should be invited to attend these socials. Tickets for the socials will be on sale individually, but a ticket for all three purchased in advance would be discounted to £20 from a total of £27.50.

Kit
The Club colours are: blue and orange (home) or white (away) shirts, white shorts, blue socks with orange and white rings. Every player is required to play in the Club colours and the new style blue and white shirts in particular.

Kit enquiries are to be addressed to Helen Hawes. Helen advised that there were good stocks of most items available, although she would be ordering more blue shirts. She is also looking into the feasibility of ordering Club tacksuit bottoms.

Matches against the School
Matches against the School would be taking place again this year, it was thought on 9 January 2010.

Mixed Hockey Festival 2010
The committee expressed its thanks to Jon Heard, who has organised a mixed hockey festival which is to take place at TD on the weekend of 2 to 4 July 2010.

Summer Leagues 2010
The Committee also expressed its thanks to Jackie Waite who has kindly agreed to organise the ladies, men’s and mixed summer leagues in 2010.

Insurance
It was agreed in principle that it would be a good idea for the club to be insured, subject to cost considerations. Details to follow.

Discipline
Discipline in general over the last few seasons has been good. This is to be encouraged again this season. The Club will not tolerate bad language or abusive behaviour towards umpires or anyone else. Transgressions will be reported to the Committee, as will any yellow or red cards.

A yellow card for dissent will be punished by a requiring the player to umpire a further game during the season for one of the other sides in the Club. Subsequent yellow cards for dissent will be punished in the same way plus a £10 fine.

As regards the end of season dinner, it was proposed that this should be held at an outside venue of some distinction, in order to attract players and partners from across the Club. Tickets would be subsidised by the Club. The likely date for the dinner is 16 May 2010.

A mixed bag

The 1st XI got their new league campaign off to a winning start with a fairly routine 3-0 victory over City of Portsmouth, but the 2nd XI went down 1-5 at Bank of England. The 3rd XI already have as many wins this season as they managed throughout last with a heartening 3-1 defeat of Merton, while the 4th XI put last week's heavy loss behind them with a 2-2 draw against Barnes Beavers. This week's match photos



1st XI 3-0 City of Portsmouth
Our first league game in the new league against a City of Portsmouth team who a few seasons ago were four leagues above us ended with far more positives than negatives including three important points. Not dissimilar to ourselves C of P had slipped down the leagues in recent years and so we expected a tough match against a club who are no doubt intent on arresting their descent.

The first 45 minutes saw us play our best hockey of the season, take a three-goal lead and kill off the game. Rory had his best game as well, being rewarded with the first two goals of our league campaign in a stirring first half. The early exchanges were slightly in our favour but C of P did have 2 very good chances on the break and would have been disappointed not to threaten our goal. As it was our first goal came when a strong Gavin Adair run in from the left set up Rory who had the simplest of tasks to poke the ball home, just... The second goal came on the stroke of half time when Rory finished off an excellent move, again down our left, cracking the ball home. In between times we had not made the most of three or four good chances but the second goal on the stroke of half time gave us some breathing space.

Jonny Hunter clipped home our this early in the second half having been set up by Matt Cook and the game was over. Arguably better teams would have profited from our lack lustre last 25 minutes with fitness proving to be the key issue and we have to recognise that we will be under pressure if we do not increase our fitness levels. We do have to play a slightly different type of hockey in a better league as some our basics were poor and we were found out in places.

Wanderers next week which will doubtless be a stern test. David Knapp

Bank of England 5-1 2nd XI
Bank of England 1s away as our first game was always going to be a difficult task, as demonstrated by our 1st XI struggling away to them over the previous seasons. Our job was made harder by a depleted squad, due to injury and holidays. As it was we ended up with just 11 to their 14.

Never the less, we started brightly – running an effective half press and playing simple hockey. Their newly laid pitch was bumping but very true and it was this that assisted a BoE ball through the middle that caused us our real first difficulty. After a good save by Ross, who despite the scoreline actually had an excellent game, the subsequent shot deflected off Alfie’s stick and unfortunately on to his leg in front of goal. The umpire showed no hesitation in pointing to the spot. BoE made no mistake with the flick and therefore they went 1-0 up.


To our credit we bounced back straight away, forcing our way round the flank and creating a short corner. A good save from the keeper to an excellent flick from Jade saw the ball land at Preston’s feet. He had no hesitation in hammering it home. 1-1. Unfortunately BoE then took the lead too via a clinical strike but we held on to the break at 2-1 down.


The second half saw BoE press their advantage and when Jade was rightly given a yellow for a poor challenge our lack of substitutes was really highlighted. BoE were able to score a further 3 goals. It could have been more were it not for the post and cross bar saving us at least five times and some first rate keeping from Ross on debut.


There were plenty of positive signs, not least that we never gave up despite being up against it at times. When we played simple hockey we looked very good and we showed that we have adapted well to the new rules. Unfortunately things don’t get any easier for us as we take on 1st placed Wanderers 2s but with 14 at fortress TD where we were unbeaten last season we stand a good chance. Rob Merry

Barnes Beavers 2-2 4th XI
Both sides took to the duck pond wondering about what could have been. An apple and blackberry cake with no less than 2kg of butter was left agonisingly close to Dom’s front door, but not close enough. Seemingly the final straw, Grant Archer (fat cake eater) snapped "I don’t like wet, I don’t like sand, and I don’t like wind", brilliant; the conditions were wet, windy and sandy. Meanwhile, the Beavers frontline arrived (5th year running) having once again missed out on the X-Factor bootcamp (For an idea of what Rob Crumby and Steve Harmer faced today watch this).

Brad Surf-Dude-Crocodile-Hunter-Ah-Yeah-Throw-Another-Shrimp-On-The-Barbie-Davis-Oxbrough (nee Oxo) had a great game at left half, and was matched by Nick Jocelyn at right half. Both were at the heart of our attacking midfield play, linking well with Louis, and building the pressure which led to Jamal firing high into the net mid-way through the first half (0-1).

On any other day we would have added to this with three short corners going agonisingly wide of the post. Beavers kept to their direct game plan, which often turned the game into a tough end-to-end encounter in which fitness was going to be key. Matt “seriously, I’m absolutely terrible in goal” Olley made some sharp saves to betray his pre-match modesty but was helpless to prevent a well struck shot from just inside the area. (1-1). Only one handbag came out all match, with offending beaver being quickly told-off by the brilliantly named Umpire Justice. Half Time.

In the second half, beavers scored an early goal to take the lead (2-1) but the tiring 4s battled on to score an invaluable late equaliser. A good, tough game of hockey that should show its’ benefits in the coming weeks. Dom Tucker

Duff and Steele get engaged ... not to each other

Two engagements to announce. Earlier this week Andy Duff got engage to Kate Bartley and we learn through sources (Martin's daughter who has the misfortune to be taught by him) that Stuey Steele has also gone down that route with Liz Barrett, a fellow teacher at Danes Hill. Congratulations to both.