Captain’s Report – Penarth 2nds v Gowerton

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This week it was so nice to actually play hockey without getting soaked by the rain. Going up with 11 and a half players (Rhi was only available first half) and no goal keeper the odds were against us. But that never stopped the ladies drive and determination. Thankfully Ria Cannon stepped up to the plate and went in goals, despite her nerves she smashed it! 

The first half was very frustrating as we just seemed all over the place. Penarth played the middle well meaning the midfield had their work cut out. Despite opportunities and short corners in our attacking area we were unable to secure a lead goal. Not long into the first half penarth took their chances and secured themselves a 1-0 lead over the ladies. This didn’t drop our spirits but made us more determined to get one back. 

After a good half time talk led by Ffion Morgans the girls came out striving for the win. After much battling Jess Williams took the ball into our attacking circle and into the back of the goal making the score 1-1. The ladies demonstrated some lovely one twos thought the whole game and defended well when needed, frustrating penarth as they were unable to achieve the win. 

This week my captains player was a no brainer. It takes a lot of courage to get that goalie kit on and step into goal having not done it before or even had a training session to help. I felt Ria took the responsibility on well and gave it her best shot. Well done Ria you literally saved us.

Final score Gowerton 1-1 penarth 2nds 

Gowerton v Swansea 3rds – Captain’s Report

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This week the girls had the task of battling against the sideways rain and wind. We can’t remember the last time we played without it raining haha. Despite the elements the ladies smashed it again this week. 

The first half was pretty equal between both teams with the majority of the play being within the 2 centre 25 yard quarters. Defence were solid keeping Swansea at bay, midfield held the centre well; feeding the ball up to Nicola Tucker and Jessica Williams. The girls were very settled, demonstrating some fantastic one twos and set plays (the ladies smashed them this week). The first goal came from myself of a short corner putting the ladies 1-0 up at half time. 

With nothing to change during the half time talk the ladies went into the second half with their heads held high and confident. Another short corner enabled me to secure another goal for the ladies taking us 2-0 up. 

Despite the opportunity for score from two short corners Swansea were unable to get the ball over the line. The ladies managed to keep the intensity high and keep Swansea on their toes. Each member of the team gelled and gave their all. The ladies were able to secure another short corner which meant a 3rd goal for myself. 

The 3-0 lead didn’t slow the girls down. Determination and fight secured another goal for the ladies which came from Ria Cannon. 

However after much scrambling and battling to hold the ball off our goal line Swansea secured themselves a penalty flick which Amy was unable to hold off, this one goal didn’t match up to her fantastic saves that she made during the whole match. 

My captains player this week goes to someone who really has stepped up her game this week! Her confidence has improved massively since joining Gowerton and she is really starting to find her feet and confidence in the team. My captains player is Kelly Melbourne. She ran the line well and made some lovely passes and tackled well. Outstanding effort from her this week! 

Final score Gowerton 4-1 Swansea 

Captain’s Report Gowerton v Radnor

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Outstanding win for the ladies this Saturday against Radnor. 

After a good warm up the girls were focused and ready to rock, which showed in the way they played. There was great play from the midfield feeding the ball up to Jessica Williams and Nicola tucker upfront. Defence were strong and manage to hold Radnor off. Man marking was on point causing Radnor to struggle to find any effective plays. 

The first half was slightly frustrating at first, with the girls settling into the game and fighting against the horrendous weather conditions. Despite this the girls managed to secure two goals, one from Jessica Williams and the other from Nicola tucker. Taking the half time score to 2-0. 

After a constructive half time talk the ladies came out even stronger, with great positioning on the pitch and constructive team work. Constant fresh legs on the pitch meant the ladies were able to maintain the intensity of the game and keep Radnor under pressure. Despite a few short corners Radnor were unable to score a goal, meaning a clean sheet for Amy Hansen this week. With a ball fed  from the midfield into the attacking circle Nicola Tucker secured Gowerton their third and final goal. Each member Gowerton ladies worked well and gave their all as they do every week. 

This week I would like to give my captains player to Lauren Humphries for her outstanding and constant efforts thought the whole game. I felt Lauren committed herself to every tackle and didn’t stop until the ball was securely out of Gowerton’s defensive area. Lauren’s hard efforts also didn’t go unnoticed by Radnor as they also gave her man of the match. Awesome effort Lozza well done. 

Captain’s Report – Gowerton vs Cardiff Uni 3rds

Posted on by gowertonhockey

Saturday saw a frustrating loss for Gowerton Ladies. With Rachel not playing, I captained the team against Cardiff Uni 3’s. 

After an intense warm up; the first half we really came out fighting and dominated the game, we had the possession but were struggling to finish. 

The first half saw great switching of side line balls from Hannah Preuss through the defence with Victoria Vaughan and Annie Williams releasing the balls to Helen Quinn and her running the ball up the pitch. 

A lifted strike from Jayde Piontecki nearly saw us go 1-0 up and Nicola Tucker was running herself ragged up front. A well defended short corner by Gowerton led to a a goal from Jayde, rightly so seeing Gowerton lead 1-0. We were using the play to our advantage. Gowerton were the stronger team. 

1-0 up and a half time talk about quick balls and man marking led the girls back out on the pitch for the second half with their heads held high. A slight loss of structure within the middle of the pitch caused some mistakes with Cardiff players being left unmarked but this was soon sorted out and Gowerton defended their socks off. 

At some point in the D, I was scared of us myself with shots being saved on the line and Amy continuing with her epic saves! It was looking good for Gowerton but a fumble in the D led to Cardiff dribbling the ball over the line and making the score 1-1. 

This disheartened the girls as they were all fighting really hard. A second goal then came from Cardiff from a pass into the D and shortly followed by another flukey goal where the ball dribbled over the line despite the defence bouncing shots back at them. Gowerton continued to fight but had nothing left in their tanks.

A 3-1 loss for Gowerton does not reflect the game and I was proud to captain that side on Saturday. Every one of the girls played amazingly and we did not deserve to lose. 

My captains player this week has to go to Victoria Vaughan for her consistency at the back, great tackling and ball switching. Sorry, I’m a defender so might be biased! Good work GLHC!

Katie Young

Vice-Captain

Katie Young 2

Captain’s Report – Kington v Gowerton

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Unfortunate loss for the ladies this week.

The first half was pretty much in our favour, with the majority of possession being ours. Despite the good fight the girls put up we were unable to hold Kington off from scoring their first goal.
This goal gave the girls determination to get a goal back. Not long before the half time whistle Gowerton were able to secure them an equalising goal. The goal came from the joint effort of Ria Cannon and Jessica Williams, who fought hard to get the ball over the line.

The second half was very similar to the first half, with the girls holding most of the possession. However Kington managed to secure them a short corner, which resulted in them scoring their second and final goal. At this point the game was stopped due to injury time. Rhiannon Simms took a stick to the knee after defending a strike from a Kington attacker which caused just below her knee to split open. With Rhiannon being sent to hospital to get stitches Gowerton were now down to 10 players. Despite this the girls were able to hold Kington off from scoring another goal.

My captain’s player this week was again very hard to pick as all the girls put in a good effort, despite the weather being horrendous and picking up the standard when the team dropped to 10. However I would like to give my Captains player to Victoria Vaughan as she held midfield well. She also worked well with Megan James and defended well when needed. Well done Vic.

 

Final score Kington 2 – 1 Gowerton