- Harleston May Day Tournament – Ladies Lift Plate
Newmarket Hockey Club travelled to the home of the Harleston Magpies to compete in their annual May bank holiday tournament. The squad, which was predominantly made up of ladies 1′s and a couple of ladies 2′s knew not what to expect as this was their first entry into this particular event.
Their first game took place on grass, apparently this was all the rage 30 years ago but then again so were VHS recorders. Lowestoft proved worthy opponents and opened up the scoring, play was end to end but Newmarket couldn’t find the back of the net until all the hard work by Beth Wombwell, who looked quite at home playing on grass, eventually paid off. A ball was fed into the D that bore resemblance to something that had been dropped by 617 squadron and as it bounced, Wombwell made a clean connection and fired the ball across the line to pull off a well earned draw.
The second match, again on grass, was against Diss, this match wasn’t quite so end to end, mostly due to the rugged surface of the playing pitch. The match ended nil nil.
Newmarket’s next 2 games were on the Water Based astro, comparatively speaking, a bit like trading in your Reliant Robin for a Porsche 911 C4S. An excellent game prevailed but neither side could find the back board and for the second game in a row, a scoreless result was recorded.
To reach the Cup play off, Newmarket needed to beat their next opponents and although Beth Wombwell got her second goal of the day, they could only secure a one all draw which meant Newmarket would go through to the play offs where they would compete for the plate.
Newmarket had a bye in the quarter finals and the and a semi final against the hosts, Harleston Magpies was set to push back at 4pm. Newmarket remained true to form and by the end of the match were locked at a draw, penalty flicks were going to be how the game would be decided, coach Chris Evans selected the five to take the flicks. Newmarket missed the first and the magpies went one up. The next six flicks were we’re thoroughly in Newmarket’s favour, with Jade Atkinson, the Newmarket Goalkeeper, saving all of the Magpies efforts, whilst Newmarket through Angel Fayers, Lydia Evans and Beth Wombwell scored all three of theirs meant Newmarket had secured a place in the plate final.
The final was played on grass but by now Newmarket were buzzing, the opposition didn’t actually get into Newmarket’s half. They came out one nil winners after an excellent deflected goal by April Atkinson earned them the victory they so deserved. A great day was had by all and Lou Milner and Verity MacMahon, both 2nd team players had exceptional matched and certainly proved their worth. April Atkinson won the player of the final. To top the day off, the Men’s team, won the cup final in a thrilling game that ended 2-0 to the boys
- 3′s End Promising Season With A Few Grazes
Newmarket had an early start for their last match of the season and were hoping to go out on a win but within minutes of the match starting it became clear that they were not all up to their usual form. Wisbech pushed strongly for a goal which they eventually won with a great strike from the edge of the D. Towards the end of the first half Newmarket started to get things together and move towards the Wisbech goal but silly errors on the Newmarket side meant that Wisbech gained possession before the got to the D. A half time reshuffle brought Nikki Cole in to the action and away from the wings but just as she was starting to make a difference a well executed penalty corner meant that Wisbech won themselves another goal. Newmarket buckled down to try and score themselves but despite some excellent play by player of the match Jade Atkinson linking up with centre forward Donna Keates. A last ditch attempt at a goal in the final minutes ended up with Donna Keates finding herself underneath the goal keeper giving herself a few grazes as a memento of the season. The game ended 0 – 2.
12 March 2012- Fantastic Game For The 3′s
After a run of defeats, Newmarket were expecting a heavy loss against top of the table Peterborough, who have never lost a game and had only 2 draws. The squad decided to honour the fixture and prepared themselves for a tough match. From the start Peterborough were quick to press forward and it wasn’t too long before they were at the edge of the D. Keeper Helen Atkinson, familiar with the high shooting skill of the Peterborough players decided to take on the player rather than wait for the shot a tactic that prevented the first of many of Peterborough’s goals. Play was end to end with both sides pushing for a goal but at half time the score was 0-0 and Newmarket were very pleased with themselves. The second half started at a similar pace to the first but Newmarket eventually broke the deadlock with Rachel Bullingham managing to sweep the ball in during a penalty corner. Peterborough faced with the first possible lost of the season upped the anti and came straight back with a goal, but then play resumed as before and the game finished at 1-1. Player of the match was awarded to the keeper Helen Atkinson.
27 February 2012- Rutland Give 3′s Rough Ride
Newmarket ladies 3’s v Rutland: 7-0 win to Rutland.
Newmarket faced a very young but competent team this week, with a much reduced squad of only eleven players, some of whom had to play out of their normal positions. Rutland managed three goals in the first five minutes while Newmarket found their feet, and before they then started looking for their scoring opportunities.
Some re-organisation of their back four when defending short corners resulted in Newmarket finding they had a talented ‘runner one’ in the form of Fiona Middleton. Defender Anna Cole also adapted to her new position well and put a halt to many of Rutland’s Attacks.
At Half Time despite the bad start the score was still 0 – 3. Rutland changed their formation in the second half and their older players pushed themselves further up the pitch, to increase the pressure of their attack. Play was more end to end but Newmarket kept up with the pace despite having no subs. Several battles were had by the goal line and although not all were lost, Rutland did manage four more goals through the course of the second half, making the final score 7-0 to Rutland.
30 January 2012- Ladies 3′s Beaten By Strong Strikers
Ladies 3′s vs. St Neots:
Despite being delayed by traffic and going to the wrong venue the whole team eventually arrived at the correct pitch and play began immediately. It was anticipated that was to be a tough match to the team that are currently 2nd to top in the league.
It soon became clear which player on the opposition was the greatest threat to Newmarket, when the first goal was belted in from the top of the D. Newmarket worked hard to keep possession and spent at lot of time threatening the opposition but couldn’t match St Neots striking ability when on top of the goal. The first half finished 3-0 to St Neots. St Neots struck home again shortly after the second half begun, but this time Newmarket came back with a goal of their own, Newmarket’s Donna Keates managed to pick up the rebound from her first shot and drove it home. Despite Newmarket being more confident of further goals their ambitions were not met and the final score was 1-7.
12 December 2011- Frosty Reception At Spalding
Ladies 3′s:
Newmarket travelled to Spalding for a cup match on saturday and were met with slippery conditions, however the game continued. The team was missing several of its regular key players, but the game was an opportunity for other players in the team to show what they could do. The match had a promising start and Newmarket seemed to have the edge with many excellent stops by player of the match Maddie Rule keeping play to their advantage. Halfway through the first half Spalding scored after an excellent strike on a short corner which, although intercepted by defender Emma Clarke, was struck with such force that it continued into the air and into the back of the goal. Newmarket immediately retaliated by winning their own short corner and battled the ball into Spalding’s goal with the final touch coming from Donna Keats making the score 1-1. Newmarket started the second half hoping to secure a win but it soon became apparent that Spalding’s stronger players were pushing forward determined to get a win for themselves and the tiring Newmarket players found themselves failing to close them down leaving the final score at 4-1 to Spalding.
28 November 2011- Davenport and Evans Score To Help 3′s Win
Newmarket 3′s had a well deserved win on Saturday with a very one sided game. Possession was maintained at their attacking end by the use of short accurate passes, but Wisbech’s defence had the goal well covered. Whenever Wisbech tried to make a break for Newmarket’s goal the defence quickly regained possession leaving their goal keeper with nothing to do. In the second half Newmarket started to get the goals in, the first was skillfully woven around the defence by Grace Evans and the second was well fought out with the goalie by Loren Davenport. Player of the match was Grace Evans.
21 November 2011- Second Time Unlucky for the 3′s
Ladies 3′s v Peterborough:
Newmarket faced Peterborough again this week and the team were determined to get a better result after last week’s controversy. At half time the team were 1 goal down and three of their defenders had suffered injuries. Newmarket’s attackers had frequently taken the ball towards the oppositions goal but Peterborough kept regaining possession before any shot on goal could be made. Newmarket made a strong start to the second half attempting to level the score line but Peterborough remained strong, although they had less chances at a goal themselves. An error towards the end of the second half provided Peterborough with a breakaway attack and a second goal and although newmarket had lost again this was an improvement on last weeks 0-4. Holly Woods was named player of match for her determined performance, and she was also one of this weeks key players together with Loren Davenport, Maddie Rule, and April Atkinson.
14 November 2011- Tough Game For the 3′s
Ladies 3′s v’s Peterborough: Newmarket travelled to Peterborough to meet with this seasons top of the table team and despite a few injuries by half time we were only losing by 2-0. Peterboroughs defending of spaces rather than players was working well for them. An incident in the second half when Holly Woods was hit in the chest with a hockey stick meant a goal went in while her team rallied around here. Towards the end of the match as Peterborough’s mens team gathered for their next game, their taunting of Newmarket’s players and interfering with them umpiring meant that Keeper Sue Buillimore was no able to keep her cool and left the pitch. Defender Anna Parker picked up the Keepers Helmet and became a kicking back, but was unable to stop Peterborough’s final goal making the score 4-0 to Peterborough.
7 November 2011- Ladies 3′s work hard for a win
A well deserved win for the ladies 3′s! The team pressed well throughout the first half and had many shots on goal keeping Huntingdon’s keeper and defence busy, but at half time the score was still 0-0. In the second half a deflection into the goal from Peri Green via Verity Macmahon broke the deadlock. Soon the lead was increased to 2 when a slightly wide shot from Grace Evans was given a helping hand in the right direction by Amy Robertson, her first goal for Newmarket hockey club. In the last quarter Huntingdon did reduce this by gaining a goal, but this didn’t spoil the good mood of the team who are looking forward to taking what they have learnt to Peterbrough next week.
