HHC NEWS
WEEKLY UPDATE – Week 16
Dear Members, Ex-Members and Friends of HHC
This Week
Played 11Won 6Drew 2Lost 3
SeniorsScored 30Conceded 25
Men’s 1st XI
Bishops Stortford II 1-3 Hertford
Scorer: Ben Van Rooyen 3
Hertford maintained their unbeaten start to 2017, seeing off an in-form Bishop Stortford 2s by three goals to one, thanks to a hat-trick from South African Ben van Rooyen.
James Rollins was called up in midfield for his third league appearance of the season, replacing the absent Greg Page, with Luke Kennedy reassuming a role up front.
Stortford had won four out of their last five games and had home advantage on a newly laid and bouncy surface at Hockerill College, but it was the visitors who started the stronger, moving the ball with good pace on the slick pitch and building play well, utilising the advancing full-backs.
After a few promising forays forward Hertford took the lead. Ian Dunnett took a free hit in the attacking third, playing a one-two on the left with Alec Short. Dunnett wrong footed the defender on the edge of the circle and crossed with a reverse stick strike to the back post. Hertford's strikers were queuing up in anticipation, and it was van Rooyen who got there first, deftly deflecting the ball onto the backboard from five yards out.
The hosts' tactics were clear and consistent from the start. They left a large gap between the midfield and forwards, trying to get the ball high quickly and leave Hertford's defenders isolated, however, the pairing of Simon Halfacre and Ben Tootell were keeping the Stortford attackers wide and away from danger.
Some training-ground interplay was having good effect on the pitch for Hertford, weaving their way down the right-flank and feeding the leads of the forwards.
One such move earned Hertford a short corner where they doubled their lead. As Hertford got to the top of the circle play was broken down, but Rollins was quickest to react, taking a self-pass on the edge of the D and circling round to pull back for Archie Akers to find a Stortford foot. Van Rooyen made no mistake from the routine, dispatching his shot onto the sideboard with perhaps a suggestion of a deflection from the number one runner.
Just before half time Hertford were reduced to just one substitute, as Ciaran Begg picked up a foot injury, getting struck hard by the ball when closing down a defender, and was unable to make any further contribution, but despite the set-back Hertford went into the break 0-2 to the good.
In an attempt to get back into the game Stortford pushed four men high in the second half, dragging back Hertford's deep-lying central midfielder. This made for an open game, and a good spectacle, with plenty of space in midfield and chances created by both teams.
Stortford earned a couple of short corners but failed to trouble Max Capaldi in the Hertford net, but their emphasis on attack left inevitable gaps and it was Hertford who got the crucial first goal of the second half.
A short corner earned by a good cross by Elliot Barling at right back, was well defended and cleared for a long corner. Nick Downer fed van Rooyen whose neat lifted skill bisected the home defence, and when the narrow angle looked more favourable for a cross than a shot, van Rooyen surprised the net-minder with a thunderous tomahawk strike to complete his third hat-trick of the season, the ball fizzing through the keeper's legs before he could react.
With nothing to lose, the home side continued to press forwards and did find a consolation as an attempted clearance in the D was picked up by a Stortford forwards who finished well into the bottom corner, but Tootell's mix of distribution was beating the host's press to prevent any further real chances on goal.
The win keeps Hertford in second place, with a five point gap to third as rivals Letchworth 2nds narrowly lost out 2-1 at Harpenden, but with Letchworth having played a game less.
Hertford: Max Capaldi; Elliot Barling, Simon Halfacre, Ben Tootell, Mike Branford; Ian Dunnett, Nick Downer, Alec Short; Luke Kennedy, Ben van Rooyen, Ciaran Begg. Subs: James Rollins, Archie Akers
DIVISION 3SWBerkhamsted 1 / 14 / 12 / 2 / 0 / 66 / 20 / 46 / 38
Hertford 1 / 15 / 11 / 2 / 2 / 55 / 22 / 33 / 35
Letchworth 2 / 14 / 10 / 0 / 4 / 54 / 27 / 27 / 30
WGC 1 / 15 / 9 / 2 / 4 / 42 / 31 / 11 / 29
Harpenden 1 / 15 / 7 / 5 / 3 / 35 / 22 / 13 / 26
W Hill & Enfield 1 / 15 / 7 / 1 / 7 / 59 / 49 / 10 / 22
Bedford 3 / 15 / 5 / 3 / 7 / 56 / 52 / 4 / 18
Stevenage 1 / 16 / 6 / 0 / 10 / 45 / 52 / -7 / 18
Luton Town 1 / 14 / 4 / 1 / 9 / 37 / 40 / -3 / 13
Bishops Stortford 2 / 15 / 4 / 0 / 11 / 34 / 55 / -21 / 12
St Albans 4 / 14 / 3 / 0 / 11 / 21 / 47 / -26 / 9
Southgate Adelaide 1 / 14 / 2 / 0 / 12 / 24 / 111 / -87 / 3 / -3
Ladies 1st XI
Bishops Stortford 7-1 Hertford
Scorers: Liz Berry
DIVISION 2SWBishops Stortford 1 / 16 / 12 / 3 / 1 / 60 / 19 / 41 / 39
Old Loughts 2 / 16 / 11 / 4 / 1 / 46 / 23 / 23 / 37
Blueharts 1 / 16 / 9 / 4 / 3 / 52 / 29 / 23 / 31
St Albans 3 / 14 / 8 / 2 / 4 / 28 / 22 / 6 / 26
Stevenage 1 / 15 / 6 / 4 / 5 / 26 / 22 / 4 / 22
Harpenden 1 / 15 / 6 / 2 / 7 / 23 / 26 / -3 / 20
Brentwood 1 / 14 / 5 / 4 / 5 / 16 / 18 / -2 / 19
Shefford & Sandy 1 / 14 / 4 / 4 / 6 / 26 / 38 / -12 / 16
Letchworth 1 / 15 / 4 / 4 / 7 / 23 / 38 / -15 / 16
WGC 1 / 15 / 3 / 1 / 11 / 17 / 39 / -22 / 10
West Herts 2 / 14 / 2 / 3 / 9 / 18 / 30 / -12 / 9
Hertford 1 / 14 / 0 / 3 / 11 / 13 / 44 / -31 / 3
Men’s 2st XI
Hertford II 4-2 Harpenden II
Scorers: Luke Rawlinson, Darren Norman, Simon Moore & Marcus Stirling
DIVISION 4SWCheshunt 1 / 16 / 16 / 0 / 0 / 93 / 29 / 64 / 48
Broxbourne 2 / 16 / 13 / 1 / 2 / 75 / 21 / 54 / 40
Hertford 2 / 15 / 8 / 1 / 6 / 39 / 34 / 5 / 25
Broxbourne 3 / 16 / 8 / 1 / 7 / 49 / 48 / 1 / 25
West Herts 4 / 14 / 7 / 3 / 4 / 42 / 31 / 11 / 24
Berkhamsted 2 / 15 / 7 / 0 / 8 / 38 / 36 / 2 / 21
Blueharts 3 / 15 / 6 / 2 / 7 / 58 / 50 / 8 / 20
Rickmansworth 1 / 14 / 5 / 3 / 6 / 41 / 54 / -13 / 18
Vauxhall 1 / 14 / 4 / 4 / 6 / 41 / 41 / 0 / 16
Harpenden 2 / 15 / 4 / 2 / 9 / 34 / 53 / -19 / 14
Luton Town 2 / 15 / 1 / 2 / 12 / 18 / 74 / -56 / 5
W Hill & Enfield 2 / 15 / 1 / 1 / 13 / 24 / 81 / -57 / 1 / -3
Ladies 2nd XI
Letchworth III 1-1 Hertford II
Scorers: Molly Hobson
Men’s 3rd XI
Luton Vagrants 1-9 Hertford III
Scorers: Matt Horsley 4, Rich Wills 2, Clive Insole 2, Jason Munns
DIVISION 6SWHertford 3 / 16 / 12 / 1 / 3 / 67 / 24 / 43 / 37
Cheshunt 2 / 15 / 10 / 1 / 4 / 43 / 25 / 18 / 31
West Herts 5 / 14 / 10 / 0 / 4 / 42 / 24 / 18 / 30
St Albans 6 / 14 / 8 / 3 / 3 / 39 / 27 / 12 / 27
Potters Bar 3 / 14 / 8 / 3 / 3 / 45 / 34 / 11 / 27
WGC 2 / 15 / 8 / 2 / 5 / 49 / 41 / 8 / 26
Bedford 4 / 14 / 7 / 1 / 6 / 36 / 24 / 12 / 22
WGC 3 / 15 / 5 / 2 / 8 / 28 / 41 / -13 / 17
St Albans 7 / 15 / 4 / 2 / 9 / 22 / 38 / -16 / 14
Bishops Stortford 4 / 15 / 4 / 1 / 10 / 37 / 54 / -17 / 13
Rickmansworth 2 / 14 / 2 / 4 / 8 / 18 / 40 / -22 / 10
Luton Vagrants 1 / 15 / 0 / 0 / 15 / 18 / 72 / -54 / -3 / -3
Ladies 3rd XI
Hertford III 3-2 Stevenage IV
Scorers: Liz Moore, Ella Pizzey, Becki Quiddington
Men’s 4thXI
Hertford IV 1-6 Bedford Vets
Scorers: Andre Langeveld
DIVISION 7SWShefford & Sandy 3 / 14 / 12 / 2 / 0 / 34 / 12 / 22 / 38
Broxbourne 4 / 15 / 11 / 0 / 4 / 48 / 28 / 20 / 33
Berkhamsted 4 / 15 / 8 / 3 / 4 / 37 / 27 / 10 / 27
Letchworth 4 / 15 / 8 / 1 / 6 / 36 / 30 / 6 / 25
Hertford 4 / 16 / 7 / 2 / 7 / 43 / 34 / 9 / 23
West Herts 6 / 14 / 7 / 1 / 6 / 40 / 27 / 13 / 22
Stevenage 4 / 15 / 5 / 2 / 8 / 28 / 34 / -6 / 17
MBDA 1 / 15 / 4 / 5 / 6 / 38 / 45 / -7 / 17
St Albans 8 / 14 / 4 / 5 / 5 / 21 / 32 / -11 / 17
Royston 2 / 16 / 5 / 1 / 10 / 24 / 38 / -14 / 16
Bedford Vets / 15 / 3 / 3 / 9 / 28 / 41 / -13 / 12
Cheshunt 3 / 14 / 2 / 1 / 11 / 14 / 43 / -29 / 7
Ladies 4th XI
Hertford IV 3-1 Welwyn III
Scorers:
Men’s Academy XI
Hertford Academy 0-2 Royston III
We could get used to winning.....the academy squad ground out a victory - although we had most of the possession & chances we left it late to sneak the victory.
We started strong within fluid passing movement that led to Ewen touching the ball in; the academy players working well, lots of effort, great passing up through the field - possible a few to many passes around the D before getting it in the danger area. Frustratingly Southgate scored with virtually there one chance of the first half & we went in 1:1
The second half was closer - Southgate started to break down our play & we were fortunate to survive a number of penalty corners (a few too many given away by me for dropping my stick - note to self, taken!).
Despite the pressure the team kept up the fight & again the passing game undid the opposition with Joshua scoring our second.
Superb to have clinched the victory - well done all.
As promised, I thought I should mention Archie, whos determination & effort you cannot fault, however tackling from the wrong side like a footballer will eventually end up with a yellow card!
It was a close call regarding Man of the Match, but nudging ahead, the reason we didn't concede more goals was another great performance by Geoff - well done
DIVISION 8SWBlueharts 6 / 14 / 14 / 0 / 0 / 88 / 17 / 71 / 42
Southgate Pitchers / 15 / 12 / 1 / 2 / 59 / 13 / 46 / 37
Royston 3 / 14 / 11 / 0 / 3 / 49 / 26 / 23 / 30 / -3
Bedford 5 / 15 / 8 / 1 / 6 / 34 / 27 / 7 / 25
Harpenden 4 / 14 / 8 / 0 / 6 / 42 / 26 / 16 / 24
Hertford 5 / 16 / 7 / 1 / 8 / 31 / 31 / 0 / 22
Potters Bar 4 / 15 / 4 / 3 / 8 / 32 / 36 / -4 / 15
Rickmansworth 3 / 16 / 4 / 3 / 9 / 27 / 48 / -21 / 15
Luton Town 3 / 15 / 4 / 3 / 8 / 36 / 51 / -15 / 12 / -3
Broxbourne 5 / 14 / 3 / 2 / 9 / 16 / 48 / -32 / 11
Southgate Adelaide 2 / 15 / 3 / 1 / 11 / 23 / 62 / -39 / 10
Shefford & Sandy 4 / 15 / 2 / 3 / 10 / 18 / 70 / -52 / 3 / -6
Ladies Academy
Blueharts V 1-4 Hertford Academy
Scorers: Kathryn Rollins, Emily Parry, Emily Palmer & Leah Hawkins
Men’s 6th XI
Berkhamsted V 1-1 Hertford IV
Scorers: Chris Duncan
We managed to whittle down the squad to 14 as Ian and Adam pulled out unfit on Friday and Chris Dean moved up to help the 5s out. With a bit of improvisation to staff midfield (Graham White and myself spending a bit of time higher up the pitch) and a rather creative substitution rota we enjoyed a gently paced game in pleasant sunshine on our first visit to the RAF Halton ground.
We didn't hit the standards we achieved last week, but were just about good for a 1 - 0 half time lead, Chris Duncan striking again after Daryl chased down a long ball to the byline and pulled it back. We had other chances, mostly working through the right and down the middle, but were never quite on top at the back, giving the ball away regularly and being thankful for some rather weak finishing from Berkhamsted.
We really should have wrapped it up in the 3rd quarter as we finally noticed the space Aodhan was finding on the left and began to press them down all three channels and make use of both corners. However (how often do I say this) far too many of the crosses went flat across the goalmouth and we never found the final touch. Berkhamsted rallied in the last quarter and the inevitable happened when we missed several chances to clear our D and they levelled with 7 minutes left. We bust a gut trying to get one last break, but time ran out on us.
YOUTH
U8 Mixed
Herts League – Letchworth
An excellent series of games at a chilly and foggy Letchworth. It was great to be able to take two teams so everyone got lots of pitch-time and run themselves into the ground! The Hertford teams were labelled as 'A' and 'B', but the teams were selected to be equally strong.
The 'A's started well, putting defending well against Blueharts before Hal seized the initiative to score two breakaway goals.They moved up a couple of gears to beat Southgate 5-0, with Cate 2, Hal 2 and Aaron all scoring. The goal of the day was a quickly taken side- line by Aaron who found Cate in acres of space and she calmly slotted home. They then went on to draw against Letchworth 0-0 and were unlucky to lose 2-1 to Blueharts, with Hal scoring. Team: Anya, Aaron, Cate, Hal, Alex,Sabrina
The 'B's beat Southgate 2-0 in a strong performance with Emily's determination and tenacity resulting in her goal and William scored the second. In another tenacious performance, William scored a great goal from the top of the D and Emily poached a second. Somehow the team managed to draw 1-1 against Harpenden, with Isaac scoring, but Hertford totally dominated the game and found numerous methods of not scoring! The team bounced back with William, Charlie and Emily scoring in a 3-0 win against Royston, and finished with a 1-1 draw against Letchworth, with Charlie rewarded with a fine goal after another mazy run.
Team: Lois, Mariella, Isaac, William, Charlie, Emily.
Both teams impressed with real tenacity and commitment, and I was delighted with the skills showed and the development the players are showing. The scorers are mentioned above, but the attacking play was based on excellent defence and midfield play and I hope all the players are proud of their great performances today.
Moment of the day: Charlie's 'worm' celebration - masterful!
U10 Boys
Herts League – Blueharts
The Boys made the trip to Hitchin Boys Grammar School to compete in the latest Herts League Competition with 3 sides and Elliot Mari making his debut in goal for the B and C teams.
The A team failed to take their changes in their first game and drew 1-1 with Broxbourne. The followed this up with a win against Blueharts 1-0 and against our B Team 3-0 to win the group. In the final they won 4-0 against group B winners Royston.
The B team started off with a 1-1 draw with Blueharts B and then a 1-0 win against Broxbourne and finished off with defeat against our A Team. They finished third in their group and played our C team from Group B and won 3-0 in the final game.
The C team were caught cold in their first game and were beaten 4-1 by Royston. But they put in two excellent performances in their final two games to beat Blueharts C 1-0 and draw with Harpenden 2-2. Special mention for James Willoughby who scored 3 of the 4 goals and worked well with Frankie Benson
It was an excellent day for all teams and we look forward to our next set of fixtures at Bishops Stortford and Letchworth
Team A: Jack Bentley, Tom Weller, David James, Chris & Wyatt Boquiren, Jasper Skillett, Peter Sharman and Zac Henderson-Lea
Team B: Elliot Mari, Jamie Ker, Isaac Oldham, Ed Winstanley, Oliver Gilmartin-Smith, Cormac Green and Sam Bond
Team C: Elliot Mari, James Willoughby, Frankie Benson, Kai Chantler, Kieron Dixon, Toby Bateman, Isaac Handley and Lewis Rawlinson.
U10 Girls
Herts League - Hertford
After the storms that were predicted, Sunday matches were played in nice calm, pleasant (albeit quite cold) conditions, and the girls put in some fantastic performances. There's a lovely spirit amongst the girls, and this was exemplified byGrace Brownwho willingly played for Harpenden Cs when they were a person short. Credit goes to Grace for doing this without a lot of fuss and playing all their matches as their star player! Thank you Grace! As this was a Home match, and a couple of other teams pulled out, we were fortunate to be able to select 4 teams which meant everyone got a chance to play. Apart from the A Team, the other teams were a mixture of experience and ability and all teams displayed quality and put in a lot of hard work.
In the first matches of the day, there was a great battle between the Hertford Leopards and Jaguar Teams for supremacy in the Tier 3 competition. The Leopards scored a great goal to go 1-0 up and then protected that scoreline with an incredible goal line stop when it looked a certain goal. Both myself and Matt looked at each other and said 'how did that not go in!?' Anyway, the Leopards held on to win and top the group having won all 4 of their matches without conceding a goal! They started with a 3-0 against Harpenden, then three consecutive 1-0 victories, well done! The Jaguars started with a convincing 4-0 win against Harpenden with some great goals, including one starting with a tackle on the half way line, winning the ball and then running past the Harpenden defenders to score a lovely goal. This was followed with a 0-0 against Royston, which was probably a fair result. The Jaguars were then very unfortunate not to beat Blueharts after peppering their goal for most of the match but it ended 1-1. Lots of competitive matches, and strong performances with the two Hertford teams finishing 1st & 2nd in the group.
In the Tier 2 competition, the Hertford Bobcats had a couple of late call offs due to injury and illness which stretched the squad a bit, and they narrowly lost the 1st match 0-1 against Blueharts. The game could have gone either way. Following a 0-0 against Harpenden, they faced a strong Royston side who had just beaten Blueharts 6-0! Again, a very closely fought match with Hertford narrowly losing 2-1 to a couple of excellent goals following some good wing play by Royston. The Bobcats ended on a high with a much deserved win against WGC 2-1. Royston set the benchmark in this particular round of competition winning all their 4 matches, so watch out next time Royston!
In the Tier 1 competition, Hertford As started with a convincing 4-0 win against Broxbourne, continuing the excellent form they have shown all season sweeping everyone aside. The girls were playing some wonderful hockey and followed this up with an even more convincing 6-0 win against Harpenden! In the usual battle with Blueharts, unfortunately Blueharts managed to win this particular one 2-0 in a closely contested match.
Overall, the Hertford Teams performed well, and contested every game to the max showing great determination. Many of the parents commented on how well the girls are developing so great credit must go to Matt, Nick and Mike for their fantastic training sessions which the girls seem to love!
U12 Boys
Herts League – Welwyn Garden City
The U12B entered two teams this week, a more experienced team and a development team. The development team had two draws and one defeat, coming third out of their group of four. The more experienced team won two and drew one, coming top of the top tier (having scored more goals and conceded fewer than any other team….…including Blueharts A!).
Special mentions to:
Matt Attfield and James Furse for their fantastic performance in defence for the development team.
Declan Griffin who played excellently in goal in all 6 matches.
Alex Archer, Wills Aisbitt, Ronan Hawes and Gabriel Thornton for their goal scoring and assists in the experienced team.