Good Day for the Boys
It proved to be a fine weekend for the men of South Berkshire Hockey Club, who managed to negotiate their fixtures without a single defeat, recording four wins and two draws across the club. With the season entering its closing stages, points are becoming increasingly valuable, and several Berkshire sides strengthened their positions in the league tables.
Proceedings began bright and early at Cantley Park where the Men’s 3rd XI welcomed local neighbours Sonning. Berkshire went into the match knowing they needed to keep the pressure on the top two in Division Four North, Stoke Green and Buckingham, if their promotion hopes were to remain alive.
The hosts could not have asked for a better start. With barely fifty seconds on the clock, a neat one–two between Richie Wallace and Des Sanders opened up the Sonning defence and Sanders bundled the ball over the line to give Berkshire the perfect start. Gareth Menezes soon doubled the lead with a trademark mazy run before firing home to make it 2–0. Sonning briefly threatened to make a game of it when they pulled a goal back, but Berkshire quickly reasserted their dominance. Mike Longson hammered home from a short corner and Elliott Spencer added a tidy tap-in to give Berkshire a comfortable 4–1 advantage at the interval.
The second half continued in the same fashion. Longson added another powerful strike from a short corner, Spencer grabbed his second of the morning, and Sanders completed the scoring from the penalty spot after calmly converting a flick. The final whistle confirmed a convincing 7–1 victory. With Buckingham also winning and Stoke Green already out of reach at the top of the table, Berkshire remain one point behind Buckingham with three matches left to try and snatch the final promotion place.
The Ladies’ 3rd XI were next onto the Cantley Park pitch where they faced a strong Amersham side. Despite plenty of effort from Berkshire, Amersham’s forward line proved difficult to contain and the visitors gradually took control of the game. Clare Plant did manage to find the net for Berkshire, but Amersham ultimately ran out 4–1 winners. With three matches remaining, Berkshire could still climb as high as fifth place, although a finish around seventh appears the more likely outcome.
Attention then turned to the Men’s 1st XI, who were preparing for a top-five clash against Haslemere. With several players returning to the squad, Berkshire began the game with real energy and quickly took control of possession. Connor Eatwell thought he had opened the scoring early on, only for the effort to be controversially ruled out. Berkshire continued to press, however, and eventually made the breakthrough near the end of the first quarter. Josh Cowell drove strongly into the circle before slipping a clever pass to player-coach Tom McLean, who found enough contact on his strike to guide the ball into the Haslemere goal for 1–0.
Berkshire extended their lead midway through the half when Luke Kennedy battled his way along the byline before pulling the ball back to Marcus Longfield, who stepped away from his marker and hammered the ball home from the penalty spot area. With confidence flowing, the home side soon added a third as a cross from the edge of the circle was met by Connor Anderson, who launched himself forward to slide the ball into the net with a spectacular diving finish. Berkshire went into the break firmly in control at 3–0.
The half ended on a worrying note for Berkshire, however, when captain Ollie Bruce suffered a painful split finger while defending a Haslemere short corner and had to leave the pitch to seek hospital treatment. With Luke Kennedy dropping back into defence, Berkshire took a few minutes in the second half to reorganise before resuming their attacking play.
On forty minutes Marcus Longfield threaded a precise pass into the circle which again found Tom McLean in space, and the player-coach calmly struck home his second goal of the afternoon. Moments later he completed his first hat-trick for the club by converting a penalty stroke, bringing up Berkshire’s fifth goal. Haslemere eventually managed a consolation goal late in the game, but Berkshire quickly responded when Chris Badger squeezed in a typically opportunistic finish from a tight angle to complete a convincing 6–1 victory. The closing minutes brought another concern for Berkshire as Sam Fox-Harvey limped off with a hamstring problem, but the win still lifted the side into fifth place in the table, level on points with Amersham.
The Ladies’ 1st XI then took centre stage in what was effectively a six-pointer in the relegation battle against Southampton University. In a tense contest where neither side was keen to make the first mistake, clear chances were few and far between. The breakthrough came on twenty-five minutes when experienced forward Kelly Hancock found space and struck decisively to give Berkshire a precious lead. The second half remained tight, with both defences standing firm and the two goalkeepers called into action on several occasions. Berkshire held on for a valuable 1–0 win which moves them up to ninth place, though with several teams below them holding games in hand, the battle to avoid relegation is far from over.
Under the floodlights in the evening’s final Cantley Park fixture, the Men’s 5th XI faced Henley while searching for their first victory in eleven matches. Berkshire produced a determined performance and were rewarded midway through the first half when David Badger found the net to give the hosts a deserved lead. That advantage lasted until early in the second half when Henley’s Alex Woolfrey equalised. Both sides created opportunities in an entertaining finish, but some resolute defending ensured the match ended 1–1. The result leaves Berkshire still at the foot of the table, though a win next week could yet keep their survival hopes alive going into the final round of fixtures.
Away from Cantley Park there were several encouraging performances for Berkshire sides on their travels. The Men’s 2nd XI fought out a hard-earned 2–2 draw at Aylesbury. After Ben Dudley opened the scoring for Berkshire, the hosts battled back, but a dramatic late goal from Jack Baveystock ensured the points were shared. With three matches remaining, Berkshire appear relatively safe in seventh place.
The Men’s 6th XI continued their excellent run of form with a 2–0 victory over local rivals Phoenix Reading. Goals from Fergus McMahon and Ajinkya Gothoskar secured the win and extended Berkshire’s unbeaten run to eight matches. Although promotion places have already been decided in the division, Berkshire are determined to finish the season strongly and currently sit third, though there may yet be administrative decisions from the league that could affect their points tally.
The Men’s 4th XI also enjoyed success in a competitive top-five clash away to Wootton Wanderers. Goals from Tom Scott, Duncan Clarke and Mark Andrews helped Berkshire to a hard-fought 3–2 victory, a result that lifts them above Wootton into fourth place with three games left to play.
There were mixed fortunes for the Berkshire ladies on the road. The Ladies’ 2nd XI suffered a narrow 3–2 defeat at Windsor, slipping to ninth in the table but remaining safely clear of relegation danger. The Ladies’ 4th XI, meanwhile, kept their faint promotion hopes alive with a 1–0 win away at Wallingford, Natalie Douthwaite scoring the decisive early goal. Promotion remains a long shot, however, as Berkshire will likely need to win all their remaining games and hope for slips from those above them. The Ladies’ 5th XI endured a frustrating afternoon at Newbury, losing 2–1 in a result that dents their own promotion ambitions, leaving them six points outside the promotion places with four matches still to play.
Attention now turns to another busy weekend of fixtures. An injury-hit Men’s 1st XI travel to Slough for their final away match of the season, a game that will also mark the team’s 200th outing together. The Men’s 2nd XI welcome Maidenhead to Cantley Park for their last home game, hoping to cement their position in seventh. The promotion-chasing Men’s 3rd XI head to Aylesbury knowing that nothing less than victory will do if they are to keep the pressure on Buckingham, while the Men’s 4th XI host Amersham as they look to maintain fourth place.
The Men’s 5th XI face a daunting task away to second-placed Amersham, needing both a win and favourable results elsewhere to keep their survival hopes alive, while the in-form Men’s 6th XI meet Wallingford at Birch Hill aiming to
continue their unbeaten streak.
There is also a crucial afternoon for the Berkshire ladies. The Ladies’ 1st XI entertain high-flying Havant at Cantley Park in a match they will be desperate not to lose as they battle to stay clear of the relegation places. The Ladies’ 2nd XI travel to second-placed Sonning, while the Ladies’ 3rd XI visit Wallingford. The Ladies’ 4th XI host Wycombe in a must-win game to keep their promotion hopes flickering, while the Ladies’ 5th XI face perhaps the toughest test of the weekend with a trip to league leaders Slough.
The veterans are also in action, with the Men’s Over-60s hosting Amersham at Cantley Park in the early 10:15 start as they look to hold onto fourth place in their league. Meanwhile the Ladies’ Over-35s travel to Marlow on Sunday hoping a victory will lift them off the foot of their table.
With the business end of the season fast approaching, every point now carries extra significance, and South Berkshire will be hoping that another successful weekend lies just around the corner. 
