Match Reports Compiled By:- Paul Graham Junior hockey match reports - Halifax Hockey Club 08/01/12 Goal Difference! Halifax v Hull After their second promotion of Halifax’s hockey campaign, the second division matches started with ‘a baptism of fire’. Halifax had the difficult scenario of raising their game again to a higher standard, playing on much wider and slicker pitch than previous tournament matches. Halifax‘s first opponents were a very talented Hull team. Halifax conceded an early goal from a Hull shot which would have been deemed dangerous play in earlier competitions. This was compounded with some woeful defending which led to 2 further goals. Halifax had goalkeeper David Garside to thank as he kept them in the match with some great saves. Halifax started to make a game of it with some good interplay. Jacob Orley and Andy Macdonald worked hard in midfield trying to carve out opportunities; Halifax could not gather any momentum to take advantage of their chances created. Halifax conceded 2 further goals before a strong team spirit sparked Halifax into life. Marcus Burge rounded a couple of players before slamming the ball into the net. Marcus then combined with Andy Macdonald as George English Burns latched on to a pass to smash the ball home. Halifax‘s late rally was not enough as the final whistle blew condemning them to a 5-2 opening loss. 12/12/11 Congratulations to the following players who were selected to represent calderdale at recent West yorkshire trials U12 boys - Tom Brady U13 boys - Andrew MacDonald, Jacob Orley, William Kirby, George English-Burns and Davide Garside U14 boys - Marcus Burge, Max Frost, Oliver Stokes and Harry Greenwood. These players now await to see if any were successfull and selected to attend West Yorkshir JAC assessment and development sessions in the new year. Paul Graham 04/12/11 Promotion Again!!! On a cold and wet Sunday morning, Halifax Under 12’s played their 3rd round games in division 3 at the Leeds Carnegie hockey facilities. Game 1 Halifax had to wait through 3 matches, until they had their first game against Sheffield. Andy Macdonald and Jacob Orley orchestrated the game from midfield, whilst the wing partnerships of Tom Brady; William Kirby and George English-Burns continually stretched the back line of the Sheffield team with their pace, skill and movement. Marcus Burge coolly finished off 2 slide rule passes by Jacob Orley in midfield to give Halifax a 2-0 score line. Max Frost continued to frustrate Sheffield’s attackers with some great defence supported by the ‘clean sheet king’ goalkeeper Dave Garside. The 3rd goal came; when Andy Macdonald’s superb individual stick work got him into Sheffield’s danger zone. Sheffield’s defence struggled to clear their lines, only to find Jacob Orley firing a well-executed shot, giving Halifax a 3-0 opening win. Game 2 Pocklington were the next team to suffer a rampant Halifax team. Great work from the defence of Max Frost, allowed the centre partnership of Jacob Orley and Andy Macdonald to thrive in their rolls. This gave Tom Brady the opportunity to cut in from his left wing to pass to Marcus Burge who smashed the ball home. Marcus later scored again, to give him 4 from 2 in the tournament. The speed and movement of both George English-Burns and William Kirby proved too much for the Pocklington’s defence. After fighting for a loose ball, Jacob Orley’s tenacious stick work secured Halifax’s 3rd goal. The 4th goal came when Tom Brady’s great tackle and pass set up George English-Burns for another well executed finish. Pocklington had no answer to the pace and skill of the Halifax all round team performance as Halifax defeated them 4-0. Game 3 The next team to play Halifax was Bridlington and after more rain, the teams started to feel the cold, except for Dave Garside who had been warming up nicely with some super saves, whilst keeping goal for a Sheffield team who did not have a goalkeeper for the tournament. The game was played in a tight midfield, Halifax tried to make chances from some well-rehearsed corners but the only real opportunity was from Tom Brady, who again came in from his wing, to see his carefully placed shot hit the outside of the post. The game ended 0-0. Game 4 The weather and promotion nerves started to creep into the team. Division 2 relegated side Ben Rydding were their next opponents. The nerves were banished as Halifax zipped up the pitch via great interplay allowing George English Burns a simple tap in. The second again was delightfully finished by the outstretched stick of George English Burns. As Halifax dropped down the gears, Ben Rydding took advantage of some sloppy play to make the score 2-1. The nerves were short lived as Andy Macdonald, Jacob Orley and Tom Brady moved Halifax up the field with some good stick work to find Marcus Burge and with his back to goal turned to fire the 3rd and final goal of the game. Promotion was now a reality. Game 5 Halifax’s final opponents were a buoyant Doncaster team who had the opportunity to join Halifax in promotion to Division 2. A complete formation change for Halifax allowed a hungry Doncaster team time on the ball to move up the field with little resistance. A 3 on 1 opportunity gave Doncaster their first goal. Halifax replied with another goal for Marcus Burge to level the score. Halifax continued to look lethargic allowing Doncaster another chance to cut through and score again. This was uncharacteristic of Halifax who had only conceded 1 goal in four matches. Halifax’s only other opportunity was in the final minute when Marcus Burge shot wide. Halifax finished top of the table giving them a well-deserved promotion to Division 2. 20 November 2011 Halifax U16 Boys enjoyed an excellent morning in the fog at their Park Lane base yesterday winning 3 and drawing 1 in their 4 matches. These results are likely to mean they will be in the top Yorkshire division of 3 in their next set of games. game 1 V Sheffield was a frustrating start with total dominance going unrewarded for most of the game, several players came close to scoring but some how managed to miss the target. Fotunately Josh Sutcliffe and Matthew Bairstow found the net late in the game to secure a 2-0 win. game 2 saw the team find their scoring touch as they outplayed a weak wakefield B team to win 8-0. goals were scored at will with Bairstowgetting a hatrick, Josh Sutcliffe 2, Kristian mayland 1, Connor Sutcliffe 1 and a 1st goal for new player Daniel Sorice. game 3 was another dominant performance against Leeds who put up more resitance. Oliver Stokes ran with the ball well and set up some good attacking moves down t he right hand side with Josh Greaves in his 1st games for the team making some good tackles. cameron Hellowell, Mayland and Josh Sutcliffe were the scorers but the team were well served by both peter Garside and casey Marshall who marked well and denied the leeds forwards and decent possession. 3- 0 win. Game 4 was a little more competive against a Bradford side happy to defend and catch the halifax lads on the break. This was proving effective as the halifax forwards were unable to score despite lots of possession and then Bradford took the lead on a breakaway. The defence were for once caught napping with Owen Waites unable to stop a very good flicked goal (annoying for the keeper in his 1st games as he wanted to keep a clean sheet. matthew Ward was moving forward from right defence to try and add some venim to the attack and the team battered the Bradford goal (the Bradford keeper was in inspired form). Eventually a moment of great skill from bairstow saw him beat 2 defenders and find enough space to unleash an unstoppable shot into the net. the t eam could't find a winner but a good mornings work, non the less. Halifax U16 Boys Hockey Team win the Yorkshire Cup It was a great day for the lads and the club to have a Yorkshire cup winning team-well done to them all. The top 8 teams from the league came together on Sunday April 10th to contest the play o ffs at the double astro facility at Park Lane (home of Halifax HC). There were 2 bpools of 4 teams each playing each other.The top 2 teams in each pool would then contest a vsemi final then a final. Halifax were drawn against Doncaster, Sheffield and Huddersfield. The 1st game was against Sheffield and was an even contest with the Halifax lads coming out on top 3-1 with better finishing being the key. The very talented Benedict Barron scoring all 3 after superb work min midfield by Sam Spencer, Matthew Bairstow and Josh Sutcliffe. The 2nd game against Huddersfield was dominated by the Halifax Lads but several chances were missed and unlike the 1st game Barron, Sutcliffe, Spencer and winger Kristian Mayland just couldn’t hit the target. Finally Matthew Ward made a great run overlapping from the Left back position to beat the cover defence and flick the ball into the back of the net. The Huddersfield goalkeeper continued to make some great saves to deny Halifax and from a rare attack Huddersfield equalised when a shot was deflected into his own net by Ward. Halifax finally beat the Huddersfield keeper to win the game with another excellent Barron shot from a tight angle. The 3rd game against Doncaster was a very feisty affair despite both teams knowing they had qualified for the semi finals with 2 wins. Barron was fouled while in the act of shooting but he missed the resultant penalty stroke. This seemed to spur Doncaster on and they pressed hard but Fred Owens in the Halifax goal was having a good day and Arron Charlton showed what an excellent defender he is with good tackling and reading of the game. Just when a draw looked likely Doncaster scored. Halifax tried to respond with Barron setting up Cameron Hellowell but his shot struck the post and rebounded to safety. A 1-0 defeat The semi final was against the winners of the other pool (Wakefield) who had won all their 3 games. The Halifax lads were under pressure from the start but Connor Sutcliffe and Peter Garside marshalled their defence well and restricted Wakefield to only i/2 chances which Owens dealt with comfortably. Barron was always a threat on the break as was Mayland. Matthew Walker came really close to scoring when he ghosted in on the far post only to see his shot go narrowly wide. With only minutes left Spencer fed Barron who went round his marker and the keeper to score an excellent goal which proved to be the winner. The final was against Rotherham and it started controversially when Mayland seemed to have open the scoring for Halifax but his flicked goal was deemed to have been illegal! The game was an end to end affair with Josh Sutcliffe bossing the midfield and young Bairstow working hard to support him. Max Tingle also showed some good touches to help his team maintain possession. Halifax took the lead when Josh Sutcliffe made a good run from midfield and with good vision found Mayland coming in from the right wing. Mayland had a great 1st touch and superb strike to beat the Rotherham keeper. Rotherham then put the Halifax lads under pressure and from a wicked cross, the skilful Rotherham centre forward beat Owens to equalise. The 2 tired teams had to settle for a draw and the dramatic penalty shoot out. Halifax scored 3 from their 1st 4 penalties through Josh Sutcliffe, Barron and Spencer with Owens the hero with 2 great saves from Rotherham 1st 4 efforts. It was then left to Connor Sutcliffe who needed to score to win it and the lad was so cool in stepping up and placing his flick into the bottom right corner. A great team performance and a excellent end to the season Sunday 15th March 2011 Halifax 12 and under team travelled to Leeds Uni on Sunday to contest the last tournament on the regular season A mixed morning in terms of results but as their coach a really good morning to see the players having improved over the last few Months. Game 1 was against a weak Bradford team and the lads dominated the game with good passing. Marcus Burge scored twice as did Oliver Stokes and David Garside in the Halifax goal was a mere spectator. Cameron Rushworth completed the scoring in the 5-0 romp. Game 2 was an even contest against Sheffield with both teams having chances-Oliver Stokes a nd Andrew MacDonald came close but just when a draw looked inevitable, some sloppy defence allowed Sheffield to steal the win (1-0) 3rd game against York saw the lads play really well with young William Kirby making some valuable contributions. Marcus Burge was finding space on the right and Cameron Rushworth was able to push forward. The team applied alot of pressure and Rushworth scored twice flicking the ball into the net with cool finishes.(2-1 win) The 4th game was another even contest against Pocklington with Oliver Stokes working tirelessly both in defence and attack. Andrew MacDonald who was player of the day for Halifax was instrumental in most of Halifax’s good work but unfortunately for the team, Pocklington won a game that could have gone either way 1-0 with a late goal. Sunday December 12th After a 3 week forced break from practice and matches, the boys U16 team finally played 2 matches in the Yorkshire league on Sunday at Leeds Adel HC. The team started brightly against Slazengers with Sam Spencer and Joshua Sutcliffe bossing the mid field and star striker Benedict Barron causing all sorts of problems for the Slazenger defence. Barron scored twice early on which settled the team down and Matthew Ward and Peter Garside were rarely troubled in defence, Arron Charlton scored a 3rd goal to make the game safe after good work from Matthew Bairstow and Kristian Mayland. The 2nd game was a different story against a very strong Rotherham team and the lads struggled to get into any rhythm. Despite Fred Owens having a good game in goal and Cameron Hellowell working hard in midfield, the team could not contain the Rotherham forwards and suffered a 3-0 defeat. Sunday November 7th The 12 and under boys team travelled to Leeds University on Sunday for their 2nd Yorkshire league tournament and had mixed results. They played 5 games with 3 defeats and 2 wins. Game 1 V Huddersfield was a even contest with chances being created at each end. Unfortunately it was Huddersfield who took their chances better to win 2-1. Marcus Burge was a constant threat down the left wing and went close to scoring on 2 occasions. Lack of concentration in the defence let in an early goal which proved decisive. Andrew McDonald scored for the team after good work from Tom Brady. The 2nd game provided the spectators with halifax’s best performance of the morning against Harrogate. Cameron Rushworth controlled the midfield and Oliver Stokes was rock solid in defence. Andrew McDonald was on target twice as the team won 2-0 with Goalkeeper David Garside making 3 fine saves to ensure a clean sheet. The 3rd game against Ben Rhydding was a little disappointing as the lads just didn’t maintain possession and gave the ball away cheaply. Max Frost came into the game and made some good passes and Harry Greenwood (in his 1st games) showed some promise but Ben Rhydding were worthy of their 2-0 win. The 4th game against an unbeaten Airdale team showed the team had some battling spirit and they gave their confident and skilful opponents a real contest before going down 1-0. William Kit Kirby battled hard and is improving with every game. The final game was the local derby against Bradford. The Halifax lads were dominant and went into a 2-0 lead with 2 fine strikes from Cameron Rushworth. Tom Brady showed some excellent skills and was the key to Cameron’s goals. The Halifax coach changed the team a little in the latter stages to try a new formation which allowed Bradford a late consolation- a 2-1 win was a good end to the morning. Sunday October 17th Our U16 boys team travelled to York on Sunday October 17th to play their 1st Yorkshire league games of the new season and with most of the team moving up from the very successful U14 squad last year, they were unsure as to how they would fare. The headlines must be the superb performance of Benedict Barron who has recently moved into the mens 1st team and his excellent skills were evident as he bagged 11 goals and already is a strong contender for top goal scorer this season. 1st game against York was a steady opening game with the team pretty dominant. Cameron Hellowell and Arron Charlton did not allow the York forwards much space and Matthew Ward gave Barron plenty of good ball from Midfield. Barron scored all the goals in the 3-1 win but also missed out with 4 flicks at corners going narrowly wide. 2nd game against Ben Rhydding ‘B’ team was very one sided with Barron netting 6 and Fred Owens in the Halifax Goal a mere spectator. Josh Sutcliffe scored a lovely goal after a flowing move involving Max Tingle and brother Conner Sutcliffe. Captain, Sam Spencer also got on the score sheet with a calm finish to complete the demolition (8-0 win) 3rd game was against last years Yorkshire champions (Ben Rhydding ‘A’ team). And the Halifax lads really gave them a good game with Fred Owens on top form. Barron scored 2 superb individual goals to keep the team in the game but the classy Ben Rhydding forwards were not to be denied and they scored at regular intervals for a 5-2 win. A good start to the season for the team well done Sunday 11th April The Halifax U14 boys team had a really good day at the Yorkshire league play-offs on Sunday 11th April coming 2nd (narrowly losing out to Wakefield 1-0 in the final. The top 6 teams in Yorkshire came to Park Lane High’s double astro (home of Halifax HC) to play in the end of season Play offs. The 6 teams were split into 2 pools of 3 and each pool played each other (ie 2 games each). The winners of each pool played in a final , the 2nd in each pool played for 3rd & 4th position with the 3rd in each pool playing off for 5th & 6th Place. Halifax were drawn with Ben Rhydding and Rotherham. 1st game was a scrappy game with neither side getting the basic skills correct on a dry slightly bobbly pitch. The game however was an exciting one which was end to end and either side looked capable of winning. Peter Garside and Arron Charlton were solid in defence and Matthew Ward was sharp to block out the threat of the dangerous Ben Rhydding centre forward. Good work from Ethan Hogson earned the team a penalty corner and Connor Sutcliffe stepped up to crash the ball in from the well worked routine. Ben Rhydding pressed forward and deservedly equalised late in the game. (1-1) The game between Rotherham and Ben Ryhdding was also a draw so the Halifax lads knew they needed to beat Rotherham to top the group and go into the final. The team played a lot better with the passing and control more precise. Fred Owen (the teams top scorer) however had a back injury and was unable to complete the 2nd game and his finishing skills were missed in this game and the final. However Matthew Bairstow worked tirelessly to deny Rotherham space and with Kristian Mayland (The Halifax’s speedy winger) causing Rotherham all sorts of problems, chances started to fall for the team. Mayland finished off a fine move after good work from Matty Stubley flicking the ball home high into the net. Halifax kept the spectators biting their nails as they missed 3 good chances to finish Rotherham off and on the break Rotherham created a couple of chances for themselves. The team won the game 1-0 which was a fair result. The final against Wakefield who convincingly won both their pool games was a very competitive match with Josh Sutcliffe and the Wakefield star player having a battle royal in midfield. Zack Sutcliffe made some crucial saves to keep the Halifax lads in the game but was helpless when a powerful drag flick flew into the net from a penalty corner. Max Tingle had a good game keeping possession well and once again Bairstow, Josh Sutliffe and Ward were influential. Halifax didn’t give up and Josh Sutcliffe made a tremendous solo run only to see his final shot saved. Twin brother (Connor) also went close to equalising but his shot when agonizingly inches wide. Charlton and Garside showed lots of skill and control coming forward from defence but the loss of Mayland to cramp late in the game was decisive and despite the work of all the team to equalise, it was not to be. 2nd place was a fine effort and it has been a few years since one of the junior teams has done so well. Connor Sutcliffe received the runners up trophy. Yorkshire Junior Hockey league 17/01/2010 After several cancelled games, the Halifax Hockey Club U14 boys team managed to play their 4th round of matches in the Yorkshire league and despite the enforced 5 week break, the team managed a full house of 3 wins from 3. Coach, Johnny Sutcliffe was pleased but did feel the lads played as if they had eaten too many mince pies over Xmas. The 1st game was a comfortable 4-0 win over Leeds Adel. The defence was rarely troubled with Matthew Ward and Peter Garside in fine form. Fred Owens scored 2 goals cutting in from the right wing after good work from both Matthew Stubley and Matthew Bairstow both of whom excelled in all 3 games in the right channels. Ethan Hodson opened his account with a solid strike after good work from Arron charlton. Joshua Sutcliffe scored the 4th goal showing good close skills in the D to create space for the decisive shot. Game 2 was a more competitive game against sheffield but good finishing produced a fine 2-0 win. Ethan Hodson scored the 1st finishing off a fine move down the right. Connor Sutcliffe scored the 2nd from a penalty corner. The 3rd game could have gone either way and perhaps the lads were a little luck to come away with a 2-1 win against a strong Huddersfield outfit. Josh Sutcliffe scored a terrific 1st goal against the run of play taking the ball from the ½ way line before beating 3 opponents and firing into the corner. Huddersfield equalised quickly but the winner was scored by Mat Walker who finished off another fine move down the right with Fred Owen supplying the cross. Well done to Zack Sutcliffe in goal as he pulled off 2 fine saves late on to deny Huddersfield and points. Paul G Halifax Hockey Club – Junior Academy The following junior players have been successful in reaching the final trials for the West Yorkshire JAC(Junior Academy Centre) squad sessions. U13 Boys – Matthew Bairstow U14 Boys – Joshua Sutcliffe, Connor Sutcliffe and Kristian Mayland U15 Boys – Arron Charlton, Fred Owens and Matthew Ward U16 Boys – Benedict Barron, Oliver James, Sam Spencer and James Smith U17 Boys – Henry Shelton and Michael Jones Good luck to all these players at the trials in Leeds in January 2010. We hope several of these will be successful in the selection for the West Yorkshire teams. The Boys trials will take place at Leeds University(Weetwood) as follows U13 and 14 on January 10th 10am – 1pm U15 and 16 on January 31st 10am – 1pm U17 on January 31st 1pm – 4pm Sunday 6th December U16 boys The lads travelled to Thirsk on Sunday 6th December and played some good expansive hockey which surprised 2 of the very strong teams they had to play. Against Doncaster, Henry Shelton had an outstanding game in defence and was ably supported by Arron Charlton and Sam Spencer and Peter Garside. The team held out for some time against one of the strongest outfits in the North of England but were powerless to stop 2 terrific goals fired in by the Doncaster centre forward. James Smith got a goal back latching onto a great pass from Joshua Sutcliffe, but as the team pressed forward, Doncaster got a 3rd to seal the game. It was a similar story in the match versus Driffield with the highlight being a great goal from Younger West on his debut after skilful work by Benedict Barron and Oliver James down the right wing. (3-1 defeat). Fred Owens had a good game in goal and was rewarded with a clean sheet in the final game against Huddersfield as the Halifax lads dominated the game. James Smith’s speed was too much for the Huddersfield defence and he grabbed a brace of goals to give him 3 for the morning. Georges Moss worked tirelessly in all the games and was a strong influence throughout the morning. Sunday 22nd November U12 boys Like the U14 girls all but one of the U12 squad are either U11 or U10 so this year with many very new to the game. As a result, this was always going to be a development year although promotion at the last round of games in October was a good sign. However the team found the going fairly tough this Sunday in their 5 matches in the higher league although they were competitive and the games were all close in terms of possession and territory. Results V York lost 1-0 V Huddersfield lost 1-0 V Bridlington Won 1-0 V Leeds Lost 2-0 V Driffield lost 2-0 While the games against Leeds and Driffield were deserved defeats, the other 3 games could have gone either way with Cameron Rushworth going so close to scoring on 2 or 3 occasions. Rushworth had a good morning controlling the middle of the pitch and distributing bthe ball well. Tom Brady also was very good both in defence and passing the ball into attacking areas. Brady was unlucky to have a goal disallowed against Huddersfield as it seemed perfectly ok and would have given the team a deserved draw. David Garside was very good as the teams keeper and showed he has a good sense of positioning. Andrew MacDonald is improving every game as is Jamie Ambler both of whom only started playing the game in the last few Months. Marcus Burge scored the teams only goal after a good move down the right wing started by Max Frost and included contributions from James Fearnley and Brady, Burge finishing with some style. The team are likely to be playing in the lower league in their next set of games in January when they will hope to bounce back. Halifax Hockey Club U14 boys match report from Sunday October 25th at Brigshaw HS – Yorkshire league games. With such a small squad and with players away on ½ term holidays, the team have been able to call on some Bradford Hockey Club players(Bradford were unable to enter a team in the league this year). These 2 Bradford players ( James Celaire and Ben Bateson) joined the 8 Halifax lads and had a good 2 games(despite still only having 10 players) – the team dominating both games and now remain unbeaten this season. Halifax 1 Huddersfield 0 Halifax playing with 10 men dominated a Kirklees team the score line doing no justice to the shots on goal and possession. Fred Owen playing out of goal scored the only goal after good work from Matt Bairstow. Bairstow, Owen and Josh Sutcliffe all squandered easy chances and the game could of ended in a draw apart from a fine 1-1 save from James Celaire Matthew Walker and Max tingle both had steady games in the midfield working hard to create space for the front players. Halifax 5 - Leeds 1 Halifax clicked in to gear in front of goal with Fred Owen opening the scoring after wing Christian Mayland sped away down the right and delivered a pin point pass. Leeds didn't learn or couldn't cope with Maylands speed and skill, Connor Sutcliffe and Matty Bairstow both getting on the end of Maylands passes. At 3-0 HX let in a break away goal James Celaire narrowly beaten. Bairstow and Ben Bateson both missed chances and after sustained pressure and a number of short corners Connor Sutcliffe finally found the net blasting home from the top of the D. To round off a fine day Arron Charlton made a great pass to Josh Sutcliffe who used his skill to manufacture an opening in a crowded D and slotted home from a narrow angle. Keeper Celaire was only called upon occasionally but he showed good technique and a lot of potential for the future. Sunday October 18th 2009 – Yorkshire Junior Hockey leagues U12 boys played 2 games on their visit to Pocklington. The young and inexperienced team who are still largely U11s made great improvements during the morning. The game against a strong York team was fairly even but Yorks finishing was much better and although Cameron Rushworth and Andrew MacDonald were excellent in defence, the York lads scored 3 times in a space of 10 minutes. The lads fought back and after good work from Max Frost, Marcus Burge found the net to give the team heart. Unfortunately they were not able to add to their tally and went down 3-1. The 2nd game against Driffield saw the lads playing much more as a team and the Burge/Tom Brady combination produced 3 fine goals – 2 for Brady and one for Burge. Jamie Ambler in his 1st matches came into the game and came close to opening his scoring record as did MacDonald. James Fearnley had his best game of the morning. Driffield got a consolation goal but Goalkeeper David Garside was solid in goal making some good saves and never looked like conceding another goal. A good 3-1 win.