Ladies 1
Matches
Sat 17 Oct 2020
Fareham Hockey Club
Ladies 1
4
1
Bournemouth Ladies 1
A Winning Boost

A Winning Boost

Stephen Morse18 Oct 2020 - 20:45
Share via
FacebookTwitter
https://www.farehamhockey.co.u

Fareham fight back after conceding early goal to overcome Bournemouth 4-1 and register their first win of the season.

Fareham Ladies' 1s came into Saturday's match on the back of a harsh 3-0 defeat at Teddington with the knowledge that a repeat of their second half performance in that game would give them a great chance of beating a Bournemouth side who began the match one place above them in the league table and also eager to notch a first victory.

The game could not have started worse for Fareham as the visiting captain put Bournemouth ahead in the second minute. Amy Hill found herself in space at a penalty coner and her shot bobbled sufficiently to evade the Fareham defenders on the line.

Bournemouth were well on top for the first 15 minutes. Jilly Tovey pulled off some excellent saves as the home team had to survive an onslaught but some determined defending ensured that the lead was not doubled. Fareham generally struggled to pose any significant threat to the visitor's goal with the main exception of a threatening run and shot from Vicky Field which was thwarted by the keeper.

Moments later Fareham drew level in the 16th minute against the run of play. A quickly taken sideline hit found Rebecca Reavell who threaded a pass to Vicky Field as she ran into the circle. This time she was not to be denied, tucking the ball past the keeper to make it 1-1.

Despite conceding an equalizer Bournemouth still had the better of the remainder of the half although Fareham eventually looked more composed and began to string together some good passes in the last five minutes. Nevertheless, whilst the feeling was that Bournemouth were there to be beaten, it was clear that we would need to play much better.

After the restart Fareham took the lead from the first dangerous move of the second half in the 39th minute. Hannah Ward burst clear on a quick break and although the run was halted Sian Edwards was first to the ball and found Poppy Roddis with a quick pass. With a very composed finish 14 year old Poppy slotted a first time shot past the advancing keeper and into the far corner to score her first league goal and give her side a 2-1 advantage.

With half an hour still to play it was an uneasy lead and Bournemouth had several chances to equalize but were denied as Fareham saw out the next quarter of an hour The pivotal moment in the game came in the 55th minute. A Bournemouth attack down the right finished with a cross to an unmarked player near the far post and her goal bound shot struck a Fareham foot on the line. It was a clear cut decision and a penalty stroke was awarded. In the opening few matches of the season Jilly Tovey, in goal, has been our best player with a string of saves. Facing the penalty she capped another outstanding 'man of the match' performance with an instinctive stick save to her right hand side.

No one knows how the game would have ended had the visitors scored at this point but the save gave Fareham a huge boost and slowly the belief started to show through that this could be their day. We still needed another goal to ease the nerves and it duly arrived in the 62nd minute from a penalty corner. The goalmouth was packed but Vicky Field used her strength to create just enough space to have a reverse shot on goal. What it might have lacked in pace it made up for in accuracy as it found its way past the Bournemouth defenders and into the goal.

At 3-1 the confidence finally started to show and although we have sometimes struggled to manage the closing stages of a game well when in front this was not to be one of those days as we did a good job of keeping possession and breaking up Bournemouth attacks in the closing minutes.

There was still time for Sian Edwards to add a fourth goal in the 69th minute with an emphatic strike from a penalty corner which was hit with such power that I doubt the keeper even saw it.

The game ended with Fareham 4-1 winners. We have undoubtedly played better for spells in our previous matches without it being rewarded and the three goal margin probably flattered us but the same could be said for Teddington last week and maybe this was a deserved change of fortune.

After four games we now lie in 7th place and with only three points separating the teams from 3rd to 11th it is clear that most teams are well matched. We know we will need to play better than this to add further victories but this will have been a big boost to our confidence and belief as we approach some tougher challenges. The first of those will be next Saturday when we have an away trip to East Grinstead 2s (11.00). They are the first team this season that we have previously met in a league game and we know they will be difficult opponents.

Match details

Match date

Sat 17 Oct 2020

Kickoff

11:45

Meet time

10:45
Team overview
Further reading

Team Sponsors

Kit Sponsor - IP Technology
L1's Shirt Sponsor  - 23.5 Degrees
M1's Charity Partnership - Royal Navy & Royal Marines Charity
Kit Sponsor - Onestream
Kit Sponsor - CGI
Player Sponsor - Southern Self Drive
Player Sponsor - HOPE Physiotherapy Clinic
Player Sponsor - Parhams