Saturday 5th December 2009

Mens 1sts

Back at their home pitch at Halton, Aylesbury Men's 1st XI were looking for a good result against high-flyers Eastcote. With the chilly conditions Aylesbury looked to start strongly and put Eastcote on the backfoot, and with Greenlee and Gregory in the centre of midfield things looked promising. With Spencer and Usherwood seemingly wherever they needed to be to break down any Eastcote threat, this fast tempo game promised to be one to remember for the watching crowd. With Quinn returning at the back, alongside Pridgeon, the rock that is Smythe in his current form, and the barnstorming Penson on the right, Aylesbury also looked solid at the back.

The abilities of a strong Eastcote team though soon starting to cause Aylesbury trouble and despite taking an early lead through super-sub Hill, Aylesbury were soon 2-1 down after some strong attacking play. A steely will has developed in this team though that mixes the youth and experience into a blend that only needed time to click, and today it clicked. With Patterson in fiery form again, alongside Hignell upfront, Aylesbury managed to equalise going into half-time through a fine Greenlee finish.

The second half started with both sides trading further goals, with Aylesbury veteran Usherwood finishing well, and coach Cootes being banished to the stands by the umpire leaving fitness coach Trotter in charge of the bench. As the game reached its final stages, and both sides pushed for a winner, the crowd waited with baited breath to see which way this encounter would swing. And as if scripted, it was skipper Gregory, playing the game of his season so far, that snatched a fourth goal for Aylesbury, who then hung on for the final 10 minutes under constant nerve wracking pressure for a famous 4-3 victory.

Next week Aylesbury travel to Mill Hill for their final game before the Xmas break, and at the moment having climbed out of the bottom 3 for the first time this season, as their performances deserve.

Men's 5th XI

Despite a rather disjointed performance Aylesbury's 5th XI were good enough to claim a valuable 1-nil win against Eastcote. At times the hockey from both sides was excellent making it an exciting game for players and spectators; too often however poor passing and positioning meant some attacking play broke down unnecessarily. Aylesbury's winner came from the best move of the game, midway through the first half, but with their forwards unable to add a second and Eastcote becoming more enterprising in the second period Aylesbury couldn't be sure of the victory until the final whistle.