Regular readers of the match reports throughout this team’s season will know that I am prone to ruining it for everybody by always finding fault with a team performance. Well, not this time! This was quite simply one of the best days of hockey that I have ever been involved with and I will never forget the moment when the hooter sounded to crown Repton U14s as National Champions.
Although we were completely dominant in the final we fell behind to a controversial goal early in the second half and to all but the most optimistic amongst us it looked as though we were heading for a runners-up medal. However, with Erica Sanders in the team anything is possible, and in the space of the final five minutes she scored twice and set up Camilla Chantler for another. Obviously we needed every one of our fourteen players to win this title but I can’t believe there will have been a more significant contribution from one player in the competition’s nine year history.
We didn’t start brilliantly and looked nervous and uncharacteristically slow to the ball. In fact had it not been for the brilliance of Lizzie Bowen-West in goal we might have lost to King’s Canterbury. However, a goal from Zoe Buckland was enough to earn a point. We then beat QES Kirby Lonsdale comfortably thanks to a hatrick from Sanders. I was delighted to see Stephanie Fearn play a half in this game as for a few weeks it was doubtful whether or not she would recover from injury in time. It was in this game that we started to look like the team that had played such entertaining hockey throughout the Michaelmas term, with Fay Burn and Natalie Mansfield dominant in the heart of the defence and Georgia Renshaw-Smith and Jessica Czink looking calm and composed alongside them.
In the last group game, as it turned out, a draw was enough for us to top the group and sneak into the final on goal difference. A Lauren Potter goal was enough to clinch this for us but as the full-time whistle sounded I had forgotten that I had told the girls that we needed a win to get to the final so was a little surprised by their rather subdued reaction in the team meeting afterwards!
The changing room before the final was like a scene from Casualty with girls who had played almost every minute of the group games icing injured knees, grazes from the pitch and various head wounds. It was essential that we were able to get the likes of Laura Donaldson and Emily Gerard-Pearse available for the final as both were having a tremendous day; ironically on a day when our leading goal-getter didn’t score I thought she was at her most influential.
I would also like to mention the contribution made by the two substitutes; both Millie Wright and Freya Harkus did brilliantly and we would definitely not have won this without them.
We knew immediately in week one of the academic year that we had some talented hockey players, but didn't know at the time how hard they would be willing to work, or how good a team they were going to become. I've not always given this impression to them (and would rather not admit it) but working with this group of girls has been an absolute pleaseure, and I am looking forward to seeing them progress through the school to become a great 1st XI. Even then, however, I will constantly remind them of the day they made me, MLJ and the huge army of parents and supporters very proud indeed.
Full Results
Group Stages
Repton 1 - 1 Kings Canterbury
Repton 3 - 0 QES Kirby Lonsdale
Repton 1 - 1 St Georges College
Final
Repton 3 - 1 Arnold School
REPTON ARE NATIONAL CHAMPIONS!
Posted on
Fri, March 4, 2011
by SJC