Henley stars of tomorrow end season on a high

Henley’s Men’s 5th team played their last league game of the season away at local rivals Sonning on Saturday. Henley’s season has seen a new team bring on a large number of colts, at several games making up the majority of the team.

After a week’s break for Easter it was nice to see the sun, the game was played in a friendly spirit, Henley dominating the first exchanges, getting their reward within 5 mins with a Matthew Lawson finish from close range after Sonning failed to clear a short corner.

Though further chances came, Dom Proudfoot and Jamie Taylor linking well down the right hand side on multiple occasions to create a number of short corners Henley failed to add to their dominance. Sonning regrouped and found more fluidity to press Henley late in the half, creating a string of short corners which Henley managed to repel.

The second half saw the game open up, despite short corners at both ends and multiple saves from both keepers, the second half remained goalless, Nick Shuttleworth in the Henley goal keeping another clean sheet.

The victory ensured Henley finished in the upper echelons of the table; one more triumph would have propelled them to fourth place. This achievement is particularly noteworthy considering the youthful composition of the team, with six players experiencing their maiden forays into men's hockey this season. Their burgeoning talent promises a bright future, all poised to ascend to higher teams in the near future, perhaps as soon as the upcoming season later this year. Keep an eye out for the ascent of Dom Proudfoot, Jamie Taylor, Matthew Lawson, Oliver Whale, Toby Lane and Tomas Chamberlain - Henley stars of tomorrow!

Thank you to everyone from the wider club who's supported the team this year, not least the team of umpires without whom the games can't happen.