Men's 2s
Matches
Sat 30 Mar 2019  ·  Middx, Berks, Bucks & Oxon - Division 1
Oxford Hawks 3
6
3
Henley Hockey Club
Men's 2s
D Herbert (7'), C Green (22'), J Hughes-Burne (55')
Men's 2s lose to miss out on promotion

Men's 2s lose to miss out on promotion

Richard Woolfrey1 Apr 2019 - 10:48
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Men's 2s lose to miss out on promotion

After a long season, the Henley 2nds faced a promotion decider away against Oxford Hawks, who were also chasing promotion. With Oxford Hawks being one point ahead in the league, only a win would secure promotion for the Amber and Blues.
Both teams started well, with both sides creating chances in the early minutes of the game. However after some nimble stick work and a charge through the midfield into the opposition D from Nicolas Jean-Jean, it was to be Henley who took the lead after the ball ended up coming to Jeremy Hughes-Burne who calmly slotted the ball into the corner of the goal.
Oxford responded well and soon began to dictate play in the Henley half. This was rewarded with a short corner, which they convincingly flicked into the top corner of the Henley goal.
With the score level at 1-1, the match began to open up and the play was end to end with both sides having good opportunities. Henley however would once again take the lead via a penalty flick, successfully converted by Chris Green. Oxford again regrouped well and responded, converting two short corners in quick succession to take the lead for the first time in the match.
With the first half ending at 3-2 to Oxford, Henley had to regroup to keep their promotion hopes alive. Being behind at half time has been a trademark of the 2nds this season however, and the team remained confident in overturning the deficit.
With the 2nd half beginning, the passage of play remained equal between the two sides. However as cards and injuries for Henley took their toll, Oxford began again to dictate play. After pinning Henley back into their own D, Oxford won a fourth short corner, which they again converted to extend their lead to 4-2. With Henley having to now chase the game, play became increasingly stretched and Oxford had several breaks against the Henley defence. With some skilful play from the home side, Oxford extended their lead further with a goal calmly slotted away into the Henley goal. With further injuries for Henley, Oxford again capitalised taking the score to 6-2. Despite the deficit growing, Henley did not get disheartened and continued to push forward towards the Oxford goal. This positive attitude from the Amber & Blues resulted in a conciliation goal from Dan Herbert to make it 6-3. Full time soon sounded however and Henley’s fate was sealed. Despite it not being Henley’s day, the 2s can be rightfully proud of a successful season.

Match details

Match date

Sat 30 Mar 2019

Kickoff

15:00

Competition

Middx, Berks, Bucks & Oxon - Division 1

League position

1
Henley 2
3
Oxford Hawks 3
Team overview
Further reading