Badgers Vs Solihull Blossomfield

Solihull Blossomfield   0 v 0   Yardley Hockey Club Badgers

Yardley had four very late cry offs on the morning of the game, so instantly Yardley contacted the opposition Captain. Solihull Blossomfield in the interest of competitive hockey graciously said they will loan us players and allow three adults to play.

The game started very evenly and both teams got into the “D”. The home team had more support players when in the “D” thus getting more dangerous attacks at goal. The three adults of Yardley cleared these dangerous situations in the first half. The Yardley team in midfield played great expansive hockey which included great tackling and applied pressure thwarting many advances by the home team. In possession these same midfielders looked to pass the ball to team mates and moved the ball sweetly around the bustling central areas. The whole team played a compact formation, which meant the group defended together then attacked together advancing on goal as a group.

As the game wore on the home team began to get more possession. In the second half Yardley began to get fatigue as the high work rate was taking its toll. The Yardley keeper was called in to make lots of saves. Yardley just couldn’t get off the back foot and conceded many penalty corners. To the credit of all the team, they defended the penalty corners with great skill and stopped every shot at goal before the keeper had to.

One of our players sustained a clumsy challenge and fell awkwardly causing play to be halted for several minutes. Fortunately, he was able to continue and this revitalised the whole team with infused vigour. The team got in some strong challenges of their own, tackling fairly but strongly. The midfield again started to get hold of the game and Yardley’s best effort on goal came in the final ten minutes. As in the first half it began with good build up play and compact formation. This led to a group attacking the “D”. With plenty of support a pass fell to Ayran who tried to “meg” the keeper, but was millimetres from slipping under his legs but all saves count and the chances from the rebound scrambles went wide.

With five minutes to go Yardley had to defend deep as the home team pushed for the victory. The Yardley Captain decided to call everyone back to defend deep to get something from the away game. Our sole forward dropped deep, alongside the midfield and kept the constant barrage away for long periods. The visitors cleared their lines, but the ball just kept coming back as the whole team was deep. This five-minute period seemed to go on forever, with the pressure building and the shots getting closer. At this time the keeper was making several saves, keen on keeping his “clean sheet”. As the one-minute signal came from the umpires the whole Yardley team dug deep to find some last gasp energy. When any tackle was won a clearance was looked for by either hitting it long to the far corner or dribbling the ball wide out of the danger area. On the final whistle the Captain was relieved but also proud of the group’s endeavour.

Yardley started the second half with ten Yardley players and we must thank Solihull Blossomfield for loaning us two players in the first half and allowing the extra adult throughout the game. The game was very balanced for 85% of the game and Yardley’s squad was severely tested in the final third of the game. The Yardley team all got involved throughout the game, their tired bodies testament to their efforts. The tackling in midfield and putting pressure on opponent’s driving forward was a big positive in the game for all the midfield players.