A strong (if late) start by Christchurch but it was IES who took the lead from a quick break. Kate S levelled things soon after, with Christchurch putting together some slick astro moves. IES then lost a player to injury and Christchurch added insult when Melissa brilliantly turned in a short corner. 2-1 at half time, advantage Christchurch.

Straight from the restart, Megan simply ran at goal and set up Lois to extend Christchurch’s lead. But ten-man IES galvanised and pushed forward with considerable determination, bringing the best out of the Christchurch defence. Both teams had scoring opportunities denied but finally IES applied the decisive touch as the ball ricocheted around a crowded D. At 3-2, and with ten or so minutes to play, Christchurch did well to hang on for a good win.

A goalless game, maybe, but certainly not a bore-draw.

by Linzi and Lizzy 

The last time Christchurch played hockey on such a warm day, they pulled off an amazing win against Ipswich. They couldn’t repeat that, could they? Against league champions Harleston? Surely not.  Their promotion may have already been decided but from the off, the visitors made their intentions clear and were straight into the Christchurch D- this was no end of season jolly, it was the chance to sign off in style. They played with skill and fluency, passed the ball around with ease and largely dominated the first half. However, a doggedly determined Christchurch fought all the way and limited their opponents to one first half goal, a close range effort giving Harleston a derserved lead at the break.

Some half time tactical wizardry from Val and Julie saw the hosts start the second half with a tweaked formation and immediately looked brighter but Harleston continued to threaten at every opportunity. It was from one such barrage of Harleston pressure that Christchurch demonstrated the very definition of turning defence into attack. From just outside her defensive D, Kate L found Katy down the line and the ball was worked player to player down the right, finding its way to Lizzy. Carving her way through two defenders, she advanced into the D with only the keeper to beat and as she came off her line to close down the striker, Lizzy dinked the ball left to go around her. As the ball bobbled and seemed to hold up almost under Lizzy’s feet, Christchurch held their breath and watched as Lizzy reverse swept the ball. The contact wasn’t the cleanest and suddenly everything played out in slow motion- agonising moments passed as the ball rolled towards the goaline...would it spin just the wrong side of the post? Would the diving goalkeeper get back to clear just in time? The sweep turned out to be inch perfect and Christchurch celebrated a wonderful team move with a wonderful solo finish. No time to lose focus though, there was still a long way to go and loads of Harleston short corners to deal with but Christchurch had got their second wind and battled through the pressure. Becky put in a fine tackle before feeding the ball to Katy who skillfully acclerated past her marker. Her inviting cross was collected by Amy who passed to Lizzy who touched the ball on towards the penalty spot where Kate S pounced to send a mouth-watering sweep goal-bound and take Christchurch into the lead.

Having surprised themselves by edging in front, Christhurch fought hard to maintain the lead and every single player found some extra energy and determination, holding possession well while Harleston threw everything they could at the game in search of at least an equaliser. With two mintues left on the clock, Harleston had two short corners but the home defence tackled and blocked to prevent the equaliser. After what seemed more like two hours than two mintues, the final whistle sounded and whilst Christchurch cheered with deilght,  there was enormous respect for the high levels of skill shown by the league champions, who we wish well in a new league next season. The elation of a win, and the disappointment of knowing relegation was already decided were a mixture of things you wouldn't really want together...but like choccy philly, it's ok, you know.

Well done to the whole team and thank you to everyone who supported

The steely skies and steady rain set a backdrop which suited the somewhat sombre undertones to this game between the leagues two bottom placed clubs, both fighting for pride, if not their survival. Unlike the weather, the game was bright and lively. The bulk of the battle was fought in the midfield where Ali and Lesley marshalled the central area whilst Megan and Katy launched dangerous sorties into opposition territory down the flanks. Whenever Dereham responded, as they did several times on the break, the troops at the back stood firm. Christchurch had chances to strike the first blow, notably should anyone have been able to get onto the end of a number of Becky's crosses. Almost on the stroke of half time, Dereham had a great opportunity to score themselves but Lyndsay closed down the first shot brilliantly and Linzi was able to save the follow up.
 
Both sides proved themselves equally up for the fight in the second half and things were pretty tight. When a melee broke out in front of Dereham's goal, the visitors thought they had scored but the ball was judged not to have crossed the line and by the time the ball was in the goal, a short corner had already been given. Deep into the game, Dereham worked their way behind enemy lines and with two-on-one, they looked odds on to score but Christchurch did just enough to get themselves off the hook. With just three minutes left on the clock, Megan collected the ball in the middle of the pitch and broke free, leaving the defence behind her and bearing down on goal with some menace. As she hit the D, the goalkeeper stayed on her line, inviting the shot which Megan duly delivered. It was crisp, it was pacy, it was agonisingly wide. And from the resulting hit out, with the umpires signalling the last two minutes Dereham worked their way forward and Christchurch were forced to defend. As the ball pinged around outside the D, an infringement drew the umpires whistle, a shrill, forceful blast, but one which a focussed Trudy genuinely didn't hear as she cleared the ball upfield after play had stopped. This was harshly judged to have been deliberate and the Dereham free hit was upgraded to a short corner. As both teams set themselves, the final whistle was signalled, bringing with it a sickening feeling of déjà vu for Christchurch. Was recent hockey history about to repeat itself? One short became two, became three but finally, a Dereham foot brought an enjoyable game to a close. Both sides should be proud of their performances but perhaps the scoreline offers a clue as to why these two teams find themselves where they are in the league this season.

MOTM: Lyndsay