Saturday 28th November 2009

Ladies 1sts

Aylesbury Ladies 1st XI had a fantastic game against Windsor this weekend, breaking the opposition's three year record of not losing at home since 2007. Aylesbury were fully motivated and there were some excellent passes from the solid defence up to Aylesbury's attackers, who used both speed and skill to score four fantastic goals. Tash James scored the first goal from a penalty corner with a hard strike at the left hand side. Shortly after, Josie Hassall received the ball from Tash, and flicked it to the back of the net past the goal keeper. Aylesbury continued to force penalty corners and kept Windsor well away, with a third goal from Tash James. Maz Hassall and daughter Josie worked well together passing the ball through to the attackers, who once again forced a short corner. Eliza Frith made a great decision to take the strike at the left post, leaving the score at a well deserved 4-0. Aylesbury played some of their best hockey this season, keeping possession throughout and rarely making any mistakes. Next week Aylesbury face a tough match at South Bucks. Aylesbury will be looking to continue their good form to sustain pressure on Wokingham who have gained poll position in the league, keeping Aylesbury at bay on goal difference.

Aylesbury 2nds

The Ladies 2nd XI played Berkhamstead & Hemel's 1st team at home and came away with a fine win to boost their confidence. A good all-round team performance resulted in a 2-1 win. Steph Thomas, voted Player of the Match, played in goal and made a number of saves to keep Aylesbury in the running. But a fantastic reverse stick shot on goal by Becky Kiely, which saw the ball fly over the keeper into the corner of the goal, and a second goal from Liz Brooks made sure of the win.

Next week the 2nd XI face third placed Welwyn, but with points from their last three matches against opposition towards the top of the table, the team will be looking for nothing less than three points.

Aylesbury 3rds

The Ladies 3rd XI travelled to Reading expecting a tough game against Phoenix and Ranelagh, who are placed just above them in the league. With a number of players moving up from the 4th team, Aylesbury started off strong, troubling the opposition's defence. Aylesbury were awarded a number of penalty corners but they failed to convert them. Captain Kelly Marsh came close with a number of chances. Aylesbury attacked down the right with the partnership of Poppy Fitzwalter and Izzy Dyckhoff connecting well with Molly Walker on the wing but Aylesbury lacked the final finish to get the ball in the back of the goal. Aylesbury were solid at the back with the keeper Simone James marshalling the backline defence of Lynsey Blas and Ann Davies. At half-time the score was nil-nil and Aylesbury were feeling positive they could come away with 3 points.

The second half was a completely different game. With the umpires playing advantage, the game's fast pace started to take its toll on some of the experienced Aylesbury midfield players. Phoenix and Ranelagh's attacks resulted in them being awarded short corners and unfortunately Aylesbury could not keep them at bay. Aylesbury suddenly found themselves 2-nil down. As Aylesbury tried to push forward, they got caught out with a quick break down the right which was crossed to their centre forward who swept the ball into the corner of the goal. Keeper James stood no chance of stopping it. Aylesbury continued to battle to the end, with some great work by the defence and youngsters, Dyckhoff and Walker up front.

Aylesbury's players of the match were Simone James and Lynsey Blas. Although the final score was 3-0, Aylesbury didn't feel it reflected the game and came away disappointed with the loss. However, the 3rd XI will need to pick themselves up again for another tough match against top of table team, Oxford Hawks, next week.

Ladies 4ths

On paper Aylesbury Ladies 4th XI and Amersham and Chalfont were evenly matched so the team were looking forward to a good game. Aylesbury had first push back and were on the attack from the moment the whistle sounded. Aylesbury were soon awarded a short corner. An excellent strike from Lauren Thomson grazed the post and Aylesbury were unlucky not to deflect it in. Amersham & Chalfont put up a strong counter attack and were soon rewarded with a goal. Aylesbury immediately fought back and their efforts were rewarded with a long corner. This resulted in a shot on goal by Clare Heale which was successfully converted by Emily Smith, a textbook long corner routine. At half time it was still all to play for at 1-1.

Both teams came out raring for the next goal. Aylesbury launched attack after attack and Steph Kiely, Heale and Thomson were unlucky not to get onto the scoresheet. Milly Ellis played fantastically in midfield, thwarting the Amersham attacks, and passing the ball wide to captain Katie Welsh and Meghan Howitt. The team played brilliantly together, working to switch sides and pushing forwards. Unfortunately, just minutes from the end Amersham broke through the Aylesbury defence to score their second goal and although Aylesbury continued with one last attack, the final whistle sounded just as they had another shot on goal. The 3rd XI were unlucky to have not come away with a point but a fantastic and enjoyable effort by all the team.

LADIES HOCKEY VASE

Aylesbury Ladies hockey team took part in hockey's equivalent of the FA cup this Sunday. Hosting last year's winners and the top team from the Sussex Premier League, Aylesbury would have been happy with a replay.

Although there were a number of unavailable and injured players resulting in the team consisting of a combination of 1st and 2nd XI players, Aylesbury kept East Grinstead at bay for the first quarter. Becky Kiely was in goal for Aylesbury and made a number of fantastic saves but the defence finally caved in with East Grinstead finding the back of the goal on three occasions before half time.

But that remained the final score as Aylesbury's midfield and defence tightened up and stood solid. The midfield partnership of Charly Smith, Angela Dickson and Ria Symmonds worked hard to feed the ball to striker Tash James but East Grinstead soaked up the pressure without conceding. Aylesbury should be proud to have kept a clean sheet in the second half and the Vase match was a great experience for all the players involved.

Aylesbury went down 3-0 in the end.

The Vase is a knockout competition for those 1st XI sides in the lower levels of Regional Leagues. Click here (Word Doc) to download a pyramid which shows the eligibility for this competition.

Any club affiliated to England Hockey who does not participate in a Regional League is eligible to participate in either the Trophy or the Vase as directed by the England Hockey Competitions Committee.

The Women's Vase has been running since the 2000/01 season. The Vase has had seven different winners with no team winning it more than once.