Reports by Tobias Juszt
On a cold afternoon, the Woodbridge J2s competed at Old Buckenham Hall (OBH) in the U13 Hockey Tournament. There were five teams in total, with each match consisting of 15 minutes.
GAME 1:
Playing against Newhall, we got in to the game right from the start, with good communication and passing by our players. Our defensive line was solid, and Tom Turner and Seb Gifford worked the ball well, feeding the play out wide, to our wingers. The first goal came from a break up the wing which then saw Tobias Juszt tuck the ball away at the near post. Not long after, we scored a second goal, with Prem Pohl securing it with a similar finish to the first goal.
Game 2:
Up against OBH, a good side which liked to dominate the centre, we fell behind, trailing 1-0, after losing track of a speculative long ball they sent up the pitch. After that goal, we created far more chances than them, and after some good dribbling by Mauricio Corfe and scrappy defending by OBH, we levelled the score. After chances created and heroic defending at the back, the match finished all square at 1-1, to finish top of our group.
Game 3:
This was the decider, the final against Brandeston Hall; a game we wanted to win! Again, we started well, creating some excellent opportunities to open the scoring. Our opponents defended superbly and managed to keep out some great shots by Mauricio Corfe. They in turn came back at us and if it wasn’t for some great saves by Giles Kelleway, we’d have been down at least one goal by full time. As it was, it went to extra time. We kept knocking at their door with more chances but in the last 30 seconds of extra time, they snatched a late winner. We tried to find an equaliser but Brandeston defended well and took home the gold medal.
