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Issue No 4 February 2008 |
Sporting Hurst - Girls
Hurst Girls Football Team
Hurst U14 Netballers triumph in Southern Championships
(by Sarah Ivemy)
Skill, speed and determination helped our U14 girls to power their way through to the winners' rostrum at the South of England finals of the Sporting Destinations National Schools Netball Competition.
The Hurst girls became County Champions at the November tournament playing against the top Sussex schools, and thereby qualifying for the next level of the competition. Here we came up against Eastleigh's Thornden School in the semi finals. We had heard how strong Thornden were during the earlier rounds of the competition and the girls were determined to play well against them. That is exactly what the girls achieved, playing short, sharp and quick netball, marked by some excellent shooting and backed by a defence that simply wouldn't give way, despite exceptional pressure from Thornden. The scoreline of 9-4 to Hurst saw the girls move on to the final against Beaconsfield School.
Beaconsfield are a very strong netball school and were contesting all three group finals (U14, U16 and U19s) that day. The Beaconsfield girls were, like those from Thornden, physically bigger than the Hurst girls, but Hurst kept to their original game plan, knowing that they would simply have to outplay their opponents, which is exactly what they did. They maintained their structure throughout a punishing match, and played a fluid and fast-paced game that forced the pressure back on the Beaconsfield team. The final score of 14-10 to Hurst was a well-deserved victory.
The girls now go on to the national finals to be held in Bournemouth in March.
Another first for Hurst Girls
Under the expert guidance of Alex Battison, Hurst girls played their first football match on Tuesday 6th February. Drawing from a squad of 22 enthusiasts, Hurst played away to Farlington Girls School, Horsham. 8 a-side football can be a fast and furious game and it was to the credit of everyone that Hurst were the first to tuck the ball into the back of the net.
Mr Battison used considerable ingenuity in this inaugural match to ensure that every member of the squad enjoyed time on the pitch. Inevitably this led to small uncertainties as players moved into, and out of, the game and thus creating an opportunity for Farlington to equalise.
All agreed, however, that 1-1 was a fair result and a great start for girls' football at Hurst. With a squad of 22, of course, we can field both 'A' and 'B' teams so the hunt is on for schools who can provide competition not just in strength, but also in depth.
Hurst U14 Netballers win Sussex Schools Knockout Cup Semi-final
(by Sarah Ivemy)
This was always going to be a tough game; we knew from our previous experience of Imberhorne that they are a strong, resilient and very physical side. We last met in the Sussex Schools tournament at Roedean when we lost by just one goal and we were determined to prove that we could dominate in a full length game.
Imberhorne marked very tightly, one on one, and as a result we had to re-think our attack's game plan. Every member of the team worked tirelessly to win the ball and take it forward and their exceptional work rate enabled us to be 9-2 up at the end of the first quarter.
Imberhorne, as we anticipated, worked even harder after the break, playing themselves back into the game and winning the quarter by 1 goal. Whilst we still held the lead by 12-6, it was clear that we would need to make additional changes to ensure victory. As a result, two players were allocated to mark the pass into the circle, placing Imberhorne under increased pressure and forcing errors. In attack, we kept the ball moving fast and flat, capitalising on our speed and agility. Working the ball closer to the post enabled us to increase still further our shooting consistency. These changes quickly began to show results. By the end of the third quarter, we had drawn ahead to 23-10 and we closed the game at 32-14.
The final score does not really reflect the exceptional quality of Imberhorne's game but rather the success of our circle defence strategy in limiting their score. Playing such an unrelentingly fast and physical game against such a good team is excellent preparation for our next big challenge - the National finals in March.