U14s - Strength in Depth

On Sunday the 12th November Old Sils played in the Mixed U14 section of the Yardley Festival at Holt Secondary School (featuring teams from Yardley, Edgbaston, Bromsgrove and Stratford). Their first match was a w/o (as Yardley were unable to field a team) and, after losing to Edgbaston and Bromsgrove, Old Sils drew their final match against Stratford.

Old Sils were fortunate - given so many absences for County representative matches - to draw upon a fine pool of talent which bodes well for the future. All the players contributed magnificently. What did they collectively learn? In their first two encounters they started slowly but finished well, positioning themselves more effectively and attacking quickly with greater intent. Their efforts came to fruition in the final match when they got at the opposition (Stratford) from the start. They went a goal up immediately and - in spite of conceding two - they mounted wave after wave of attack, before scoring in the last play of the match. By this time they had played nearly an hour of non-stop hockey; showing this level of resolve and determination, so late in the game, was impressive!

Individually, all players did extremely well; Jonnie Carter (a huge presence in goal - truly excellent), Suna Ozsey (brave and courageous in the tackle), Jess Cox (tireless, steadfast and determined at all times), Izzy Connolly (remarkable first match - played with real confidence), Fergus Montgomery (a leader and creative force), Jane Woodley (silky stick skills and stunning acceleration), Josh Atwal (great driving force and unflappable goal scorer) and Lorna Brooks-Scott (great first touch and eye for the layoff pass).

Once again, thanks to all the parents who braced the chilling winds in Lozells! Special thanks to David Carter for ensuring Jonnie was suitably booted and suited to do a fine job in goal.

Chris Edger