The first game of the season is always going to be a challenging one, especially when more than 50% of the team has never played a full game on a full pitch before! The boys rose to the challenge though, and played some really good team-focussed hockey.

The score-line didn't reflect the performance overall (as even the Salisbury coach was magnanimous enough to admit), and a couple of luck chances were all that really made the difference. Some solid goalkeeping at the back from Oscar, with some relentless defensive play during the rest of the match set up some great, exciting breaks across the pitch, with some impressive speed and connective passing through the midfield. Ethan Mal scored our goal, but was well set up by the rest of the forwards too.

Well done boys, a really solid start to your season; don't be disheartened by the score, I think there is a lot of good hockey to come from you all!

Match details

Match date

Sun 29 Sep 2019

Kickoff

11:15

Meet time

10:45

Location

Andover HC (John Hanson School)

Instructions

We will meet at the JHS pitch at 1045 sharp please - so that we have time for a decent warm up before the game starts. I will be there from 1030 to get things sorted if you want to be there early to get training.

Burgundy AHC tops (I have spare if you don't have your own yet, don't worry) but you also need navy blue shorts and burgundy socks too please - it really helps the players identify who is around them when they are playing, and also makes the boys look well prepared. You can get them cheaply from Sports Direct in the Chantry centre if they haven't already got some.

Shin Pads and mouthguards are really important too - the latter need to be well moulded and stay in place over the top teeth when the mouth is open. It can be a faff, but is very important to get them right!

Sheela will be collecting £4 match fees on the day from each player, please don't forget to bring some cash.

Team overview