Match Reports Compiled By:- Paul Graham Sunday 22nd November U14 girls made the long trip to Hull and while they suffered 3 defeats , the team played well and considering that 8 of the squad are still U13, it was not such a bad morning. The strength of the opposition was a telling factor in all the games. Against very strong Hull and York teams two 2-0 defeats were suffered but the games were competitive with Charlotte Rowbotham excellent at sweeper putting in a number of good tackles. Bethany Beeby, Annalea Staples and Rebecca Kendall all worked hard and marked their opposite numbers with determination. Ellen Campsall was influential in midfield covering a lot of ground and provided some good link play to the forwards. The 3rd game against Leeds Adel was much more even and with better finishing, the girls could have got a positive result. Phillipa Wilkinson, Lucy Hollingdrake, Sophie Kaney and Rachel Hoyle all worked hard to get the ball into forward positions and both Hoyle and Campsall came close to scoring. A late goal from Adel was a little harsh on the team. Sophie Sismanovic and Jo Hare were solid in the middle of defence and both tackled strongly as well as showing good distribution of the ball. Sasha Penny-Ward as the Halifax Keeper made several excellent saves and her kicking has improved considerably. There were clearly some good signs for the future. On Sunday 25th Halifax HC had 2 U12 girls teams playing in the 2nd round of Yorkshire league matches played at Park lane High Astros. Despite the showers and everyone getting wet, the girls had a good morning of playing hockey and improving their skills and game awareness. The B team These girls are largely the younger and newer players to the club with a couple of more experienced players to help them. They played 4 games losing 2, drawing 1 and winning 1. V Hull lost 1-0 V Driffield won 1-0 V Sheffield lost 2-0 V Leeds Adel draw 0-0 Very much a learning experience for many of the team with both Lucy Maidwell and Katherine Webb making excellent debuts showing tenacity and some good technical touches. Rebecca Kendall worked tirelessly in midfield and was supported well by Annabele Delaney. Sophie Kaney scored the teams only goal after good work from centre forward Robyn Fawkes. Regan Midgely was excellent in goal positioning herself very well and making several really good saves. The team deserve alot of credit for their attitude and improvement. The A team. Playing in division 2 of the 4 Yorkshire leagues, the Halifax girls did really well and with the results from other games going their way, they may have gained promotion to the premier division of 6 teams for the next set of matches. Game 1 V Huddersfield Draw 0-0. After a slow start with Huddersfield dominating, the girls fought back in the 2nd half of the game and could easily have won the game with several chances being created. Game 2 V Leeds Adel Win 1-0. Once again a very even game with Chloe Baines having a solid game at sweeper. Just when we all thought it was another 0-0 draw Jess Manning popped up at the far post to squeeze the ball in from a narrow angle after the Adel defence failed to clear. Game 3 V Driffield lost 3-1. Driffield were a very strong team and the halifax girls were 2 goals down within the 1st few minutes. Molly Midgely pulled a goal back after good work from Laura Neimantas who had another good tournament showing tenacity and good tackling technique in defence and distributing the ball well from midfield. The team never really looked like getting a result and Driffield made it 3 near the end. Game 4 V Thirsk won 4-0. This was an outstanding team performance with Lizzie Mayland, Midgely, Grace Ramsden and Neimantas dominating midfield with good movement and passing. Manning scored the 1st goal with a crisp strike with Ramsden scoring soon after. Mayland dribbled through the Thirsk defence before using a cheeky reverse stick push to wrong foot the keeper. Perhaps the last goal was the best with Midgely finishing off a sweeping move down the right involving good interpassing from Neimantas and Ramsden. Game 5 V Ben Rhydding draw 0-0. Both teams played some good hockey but were unable to create many chances and in the end the Halifax girls were happy with a draw against a very good team. Well done to all the girls ___________________________ Sunday October 18th 2009 – Yorkshire Junior Hockey leagues The U16 girls travelled to Brigshaw High School Astro and played 3 matches We dominated the !st game against Selby but failed to convert pressure into goals and the team were woken up when a rare Selby attack resulted in Alice Buckle having no chance with a low powerful shot shot. That goal spurred the team on and Alice Young and Lucinda Dickens did not allow the Selby attack to have another chance. Charlotte Grabowski scored with a great strike to equalise after good work from Nikki Clarke. Katie Love was always a threat down the wings but Halifax were unable to get the winner. The 2nd game against the North of England champions was a completely different matters and despite playing well as a team, it was backs to the wall as the Wakefield forwards scored at regular intervals. Ami Campsall had a good game as did Harriet Wood but the final score was 8-0 which was a little harsh. The girls were not downhearted and in their last game against local rivals Huddersfield, they played their best hockey. Charlie Moss and Hannah James were outstanding controlling the midfield with skill and athleticism. This allowed the forwards to have more space and Danielle Parker was more influential setting up the 1st goal for Grabowski. The team continued to dominate and sealed the victory when Graboski scored her 3rd of the morning capitalising on a mistake in the heart of the Huddersfield defence.