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Posted on: January 24th 2018

U17 Hockey v Havant College U18

U17 Hockey v Havant College U18
2 - 2
Report by Miss Eames

Another day and another match for the Chichester High School U16 squad.

There were additions to the squad, with Juste Balkyte and Alex Pendle available to play in this home fixture. Havant fielded a good representation of club players, but this didn’t daunt the Chichester team who now have a lot of confidence in their ability.

Use

Note: picture from a November game.

The game started slowly with many of the boys nursing aching muscles from the tournament yesterday. Havant enjoyed some early pressure, which resulted in a short corner. They executed this well and put the ball just inside the post, beating the outstretched Luke Denyer and Josh Parker on the line. At 1-0 down the boys rallied themselves and worked their way into the game. Cameron McManus and Jack Jones worked well on the left to thwart Havant’s attacks down the right wing. Juste Balkyte (our lone female player) was a welcome addition to the side and took on the opposition up-front. There were a couple of scoring opportunities for both sides, but some fine saves from both keepers ensured there was no change to the score.

In the second third, Chichester enjoyed the greater possession and were able to create many penetrating runs into the D. Theo Batchelor, Cameron Smith and Jack Angell combined well and Chichester were able to have their first short corner attempt. Alex Pendle came close to scoring, but was being tightly marked by at least two players, making it difficult for him to create space for himself. He finally opened the scoring for Chichester when he drove through the defence to the baseline and squeezed a reverse stick strike between the keeper and the post. At 1-1 the game was end-to-end and both teams had chances to add to the score line. Freddie White played like a true hockey player and was distributing the ball well, creating scoring chances for Tom Seve and Ollie Summerill. However, the deadlock couldn’t be broken.

In the final third, both teams continued as they had left off and Havant were the first to capitalise on the pressure they created. After an unsuccessful break, Chichester were left exposed at the back. Luke Denyer found himself facing three Havant players and made a very fine initial save to give his defence time to get back in support. A goal mouth scramble ensued and Rachel Trent (ex CHS student) scored a close-range goal that took Havant into the lead. Josh Farrier showed how he is developing as a player as he made some excellent tackles in midfield. He persistently put the opposition under pressure, giving them little time to settle on the ball. This persistence from all the Chichester players resulted in confusion in the Havant team. Alex Pendle took advantage of this and released a perfectly placed pass into the path of Callum Peyman, who found himself in space. He took one touch and neatly slotted home with a reverse strike, giving the team a well deserved equaliser. Both teams went looking for a third goal to seal a win. Callum Ayling and the Henson twins made some solid tackles and passes, but the game played out to a draw.

Havant were a lovely opposition to play against, with lots of skilful players who were polite and courteous. It was a very nice atmosphere on the pitch, with all players clearly enjoying the game, despite the horrendous weather conditions.

Chichester team: Luke Denyer, Josh Parker, Callum Peyman, Alex Pendle, Freddie White, Ollie Summerill, Callum Ayling, Jack Jones, Jack Angell, Cameron McManus, Cameron Smith, Theo Batchelor, Oscar Henson, Harvey Henson, Juste Balkyte, Tom Seve, Josh Farrier.

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