Seven out of twelve points secured for Winchmore Hill & Enfield HC this weekend.
For all matches occurring on 28th September 2024.
Men’s First Team Match Report
WHE Men 1-1 Harrow 1’s – Away
Goal scorers: C. Foad
Player of the Match: J. Wilson
“In a tense and fiercely contested match away from home, newly promoted Winchmore Hill faced a stern test against Harrow 1s.
The game began on a frustrating note as an early lapse in concentration led to a careless pass being intercepted, gifting the home team a 1-0 lead. However, Winchmore Hill proved their mettle, responding with an equalizer not soon after; coming at the courtesy of some brilliant team play.
Jack’s incisive pass sliced through the defence from midfield, finding Schof who then made a selfless pass to the ever clinical Colin, coolly slotting the ball home.
From there, Winchmore began to settle and assert themselves. A particularly promising moment came when newcomer Drew’s creative play set up Mr. Scholefield, only for him to miss a golden opportunity to put Winchmore Hill ahead — a chance that would have capped off some lovely build-up play.
Despite the occasional moment of quality, both teams struggled to find a decisive breakthrough in what became an increasingly gritty contest. Nevertheless, Winchmore Hill showed resilience and composure, defending resolutely and keeping their structure intact.
The match ended in a hard-fought 1-1 draw — a result that leaves Winchmore Hill with plenty of positives to take away. It was not their best performance, but given the context of a challenging away fixture and a new league environment, the team displayed the grit and quality that will serve them well throughout the season. As they continue to adapt and gel in this higher division, there is a sense that much more is to come from this promising side“
as written by Alex Scholefield
Men’s Second Team Match Report
WHE Men 5-1 PHC Chiswick 6’s – Home
Goal scorers: E. Cohen, D. Smith (2), L. Trevill (2)
Player of the Match: J. Thompson
“Men’s 2’s back at home to host Chiswick after captain Cal made his umpiring debut for the game beforehand.
Swift start from Winch to go 1-0 up with Dom getting his first of many goals from a penalty corner. Ellis then rubbed salt in the wound by scoring his second is as many games. Winchmore making us of the silky passing around the back and through through midfield to get another short corner which Dom converted again after about 15 shots. Chiswick snuck one in before the half to make it 3-1.
Halftime rolls around and after Cal got advised he was being “too shouty” by loyal supporter Nicole, a calmer more reserved Winchmore start the second half.
Winchmore keeping cool had to withstand a fair amount of Chiswick pressure and handled it well and pushed on for a fourth and they got that go old “Luke in” for his first of the season. With the game progressing and getting my physical, Winchmore pushed on for goals with the young attackers Arran, Siva and James doing their thing. Rob then makes a lung busting run into the D to slot it unselfishly for a second Luke in.
Overall a good 5-1 win for Winchmore and 6 points from a possible 6 for the men’s 2’s.”
as written by Calum Hunt
Women’s First Team Match Report
WHE Women 0-4 London Royals 1’s – Away
Goal Scorers: None
Player of the Match: H. Chapman
“It seriously wasn’t as bad as we made out it to be………
With half the team arriving over 30 minutes late due to traffic, we started off with balls bouncing and whistles being blown from all directions. We pressed strongly in their half but so did they and we found it difficult to break.
Nic made some brilliant saves and we all held our breaths as Amber made a defensive clear, narrowly missing the goal.
We had some good attacking opportunities only to be overturned with a speedy counterattack and slick passes from the oppo.
No WHE goals, no cards (even after Bethany’s stick tantrum) and no astros for Shell. But we did have Eccles cakes! The final score finished 4-0 but if you can’t lose you can’t win. It was just one game, onto next week….“
as written by Kate Smith
Women’s Second Team Match Report
WHE Women 2-0 Southgate 6’s – Home
Goal scorers: K. Allan (2)
Players of the Match: C. Briers
“The Women’s 2’s have cemented that North London well and truly is purple with a resounding 2-0 win over Southgate.
Despite the initial hiccup of not being able to get on the pitch (thank you to the 7 members of staff who came to assist us) the 2’s came out with a force and skill that left Southgate unable to pose a defence.
With Kareen scoring an opening goal in the first 10 mins, assisted by Abbi who made a triumphant come back, the team was feeling good. Everyone was working well as a unit, implementing what was practiced in training and the Southgate side seemed unable to respond.
At half time the score was 1-0 and the team talk revolved around continuing the positivity and great play. With spirits up, and the energy high the team came out strong in the second half. Southgate did have a few breakaway plays but the second line of defence from Lorna, Lisa and Briers meant that no shots on target were possible.
Possession remained firmly with Winchmore Hill which culminated in three short corners. Two were unfortunately defended well, however the final one is one I may never get over. Let me paint a picture for you, a quick whisper at the top of the D and the forwards set up. Kareen took the injection straight to the top where Briers pinged off a ball at a pace that potentially broke the sound barrier the crack was so loud. She popped it straight to Kareen on post who deflected it in in a way that means I now understand what Ollie means at training. It was safe to say that the Southgate defence were left stunned by the master class, which was met by the roar of applause from the sideline supporters.
The goal secured a 2-0 win for the 2’s and player of the match for Caroline Briers. It must be mentioned however, that no pictures of Briers in the beautifully made Women’s 2’s player of the match Winstagram frame will be available. This is due to her needing to dart off after the match to buy an oven… This did not win her the double whammy of player and moose of the day however, which was instead won by Sula who, on Thursday, despite being on the team sheet, was unaware that we had a match. We look forward to seeing what Winfield gets up to this week!
Well done ladies let’s keep the good energy rolling into next week. And Men, both women’s teams have kept North London purple….just saying.”
as written by Anna Rayson
That’s all for the second week of London League hockey!
