Thirsk’s U14A Boys’ kicked off their Yorkshire Youth Hockey League season on Sunday 19th Oct, playing in Div 1 at Doncaster. Photo shows the team of:
Back row: Michael, Tom B., Tom M., Jonathan, Alex, Will (umpire),
Second row: George, Ben (Capt.), James H., Paddy, Summer, Guy,
Front row: Tom W., Hugo, Connor, Chris (GK),
Lying down: Sean.
With a good majority of the U14A squad coming from last year’s U14B Boys’ and then, a good number again with only one YYHL season’s worth of hockey playing experience under their belt, there was some visible apprehension at the thought of playing against teams in the top flight.
With this being a Div 1 fixture, and the squad missing two very experienced players, plus knowing that a few of the U14As were known to be carrying painful injuries and/or recovering from a sickness bug, when it was not possible for some U14B team members to move up, U14A Girls' squad player, and experienced defender, Summer, was asked at short notice on Sat afternoon to join the U14A match day squad, with Guy asked if he could go on for a few minutes, when required, to allow one or two players to catch their breath.
The first match against Doncaster was very impressive and Thirsk had the upper hand for large periods, keeping Doncaster out of Thirsk’s defence and midfield area. Thirsk setup some great attacking play and had a number of shots against goal which unfortunately missed their target. When Doncaster scored their first goal and Thirsk conceded an own goal, it was clearly against the run of play and on another day, where injuries were not a constraint, Thirsk would have beaten Doncaster.
The second match against Wakefield was always going to be tough due to the dominance of 2 very specific players on the Wakefield team who had been instrumental in playing against York and achieving a high goal score. Although Thirsk lost this match 5-0, Tom B gave a master class to all who were involved, and who were watching, on how to mark a highly skilled player out of the game; Wakefield were clearly frustrated at the effectiveness of Tom’s technique. Again, the final score does not reflect how equal both teams were and how many shots at the Wakefield goal Thirsk had had. Wakefield would have been relieved to have got the score they did as Thirsk gave a very good account.
The final match against York was a must-win in order to stay in Div 1 and the team, albeit quite tired, all played magnificently to ensure that they could stay in Div 1. Great defending and midfield work ensured the attacking players had many opportunities and sure enough, this was translated into two goals from Thirsk with Jonathan and Hugo getting one a piece.
A great result from the first YYHL outing of the season with staying in Div 1, and some useful gameplay experience to take into the next round on 2nd Nov, when hopefully having a full available squad with no sickness/injury concerns, will be to an advantage.
Every player should be proud of their performance and a good number will have probably surprised themselves as to how effective they can be in playing in various positions.
What was especially pleasing was the demonstration of skills that had been learnt/practised in training, being deployed in high pressure game scenarios by those who are only in their second season of YYHL hockey.
All in all, just a few areas to work on, and a great indication now to all squad members of the high tempo at which Div 1 matches are played; fitness will be a key factor to how successful the season will be for the U14As, as will, the ability to maintain and build upon, a robust strong team-working ethos.
Thanks to:
- Summer and Guy as stated above;
- Will for acting as Thirsk's umpire;
- Connor for stepping in to play for York in their first match when they were a player short, and;
- the parents for their support to the team.
Players’ Player: Paddy
Manager’s Player: Alex