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Weekend Round Up - 25th January 2025

Weekend Round Up - 25th January 2025

Victoria Boulton27 Jan - 22:00

A good day of results for the club, including some important wins for the Ladies 1s and Mens 1s.

Saturday 25th January

Home Fixtures

Mens 3s vs St Albans 5 - 2-1 loss

Goal scorer: KP
Assist: Scott
Player: Fin
Cards: KP (green), Cranners (green) & Matt (yellow)

After the always wonderful morning trip to Luton the week prior, the 3s welcomed an in-form St Albans side to Badger Field for yet another early start. We welcomed back Scotty this week, who clearly had enough of looking after his newborn baby for the time being. After a warm up led by the newcomer into the 3s, Ruddy, the game got underway.

The 3s started the game really well, they passed it around nicely and created some good chances at the start of the game. They kept probing for an opening goal when the 3s were awarded a handful of short corners, but unfortunately, these came to nothing and the veteran St Albans defenders defended well. The deadlock was broken near the end of the first half when the St Albans striker finished deftly into the back of the Badgers net - 1-0 St Albans at the half time break.

The second half started how the first half finished, with St Albans doubling their lead with a well worked goal finished by their striker, the Badgers defence looked all over the place with some questionable marking leading up to St Albans’ second goal. The 3s were struggling with possession; the double turnovers really hampered their chance of getting up the pitch to try and half the St Albans lead. With around ten minutes to go, Ruddy being Ruddy unleashed his small-man syndrome on a St Albans player; he was awarded a green card for shoving an opposition player to the ground (he should’ve done his weight training for the week though if you ask me), his green was upgraded to a yellow for kicking the ball away, and then proceeded to drop-kick his stick into the stands - a quite truly impressive trio of events in a very short space of time. Captain KP halved the St Albans lead near the end of the game, where he picked the ball up at the top of the D, swivelled on a sixpence and crashed it hard and low past an outstretched leg from the St Albans goalkeeper. Unfortunately though, the comeback was in vein as the 3s weren’t able to find the equaliser to salvage a point - full time, Broxbourne 1 - 2 St Albans.

The morning run of fixtures ends next week, where the 3s have an away day against Letchworth in the afternoon - lets hope that the third time is the charm and the 3s get their first win of the second half of the season!

Mens 2s vs St Albans 3 - 3-1 loss

Goal scorer: Harrison
Assist: Kav Jnr
Player: Stu & Alex Satwick
Donkey: Joe & Kav Jnr

Broxbourne men’s 2s were looking to bounce back after their trip to Luton the previous weekend.

A return to the fortress against St Albans 3s was going to be a stern test but after a great showing at training, and ample availability the lads unanimously woke up confidence high and feeling fresh, especially Joe.

Captain Kav felt so confident he decided to drop himself to run the bench, and the confidence spread with Fradders and Angus confident enough to give the warm up run a miss.

After the successful debut for Harrison the week before, it was Elliot’s turn for a debut at full back, and returned the call up with some excellent runs down the right channel.

The game started in an unusual fashion, with the umpire threatening to hand St Albans a walk over unless broxbourne hurried up with the push back. Clearly he had somewhere better to be and saw us for what we are, massive time wasters.

The potential diary clash didn’t phase the badgers who went toe to toe with the oppo in the first 10 mins, creating chances and putting in a good defensive display.

Unfortunately, St Albans upped their game, bullying the badgers off the ball and winning turn over ball. The pressure eventually told, with St Albans slotting 2 goals in before half time. The first was a solo piece of skill running down the baseline and sneaking it in the near post.

It went from bad to worse for the badgers as Browny suspicions that he couldn’t last the whole game were confirmed. Fradders was subsequently promoted to midfield maestro for the second half.

The second half started and saw similar patterns, with plenty of missed controls and missed passes from the badgers, but coming off the advice from the half time team talk the fans were rewarded with more fight and they did see an increase in spiciness, with St Albans getting increasingly frustrated with the umpiring.

The self righteousness from St Albans was rewarded with a green card, and this was enough for one of their players to properly loose it and launch into a tirade on the side of the pitch. Baller added some useful comments which the St Albans angry old man didn’t appreciate, but ballers mum got involved pointing out that the angry old man was being pretty rude, or something of that nature (relying on my wife for this intel). The phrase “Oi that’s my son you’re talking about” was used, fair play to Ballers mum, showing more fight than the 16 badgers player combined.

There was another goal for St Albans to go 3-0 up. A deflected shot from the top which landed kindly for one of them to slot in, and then came the real fireworks with the ball falling for Kav Jnr in the D, only for his shot to be blocked by a St Albans stick before he could hit the ball, which led to Bobby being clear of mind and able to calmly slot in the loose ball home for 3-1.

This caused St Albans to go into full melt down mode and their bearded striker to conclude that he could dribble past all of the Broxbourne team from the push back, he couldn’t it turned out.

The heckling continued after the match, with Riggers’ 3 year old asking the St Albans keeper “why you got a helmet mate?!”. Needless to say he couldn’t come up with a satisfactory retort and had to jog on.

Perhaps the most successful part of the day was pizza after the game. Gutting for the fans of self made ham rolls and packets of crisps but a nice chance to vary the diet.

Mom was shared between stu and satwick, with an obligatory dod for Joe, and kav jnr kindly sharing the honours.

Onwards and upwards for next weeks game away against Shefford and Sandy.

Ladies 2s vs Harpenden 1 - 1-0 win

Goal scorer: Lauren
Assist: Vic
Player: Lydia
Donkey: Ella

Off the back of our first defeat of the season last week, the Ladies 2s were going all out for a win today at the Badger Den. This included Ells and Lil who arrived so early, they even had time to welcome the opposition, Harpenden, and get to the changing rooms before Lyds arrived. Our mighty leader, Millie, alongside our claim-to-fame forward, Jess, rejoined the ranks and we were very happy to have them back this week!

Game day started as usual; with a great team talk about various men and deciding if height prevents someone being considered for Vic and then a quick mention of hockey and our starting line up. After, our warm-up was lead by expert, Baz, and we headed out to the pitch determined to win.

Despite using everything we worked on in training, many short corners and breakaways, we were locked at 0-0 for most of the first half. It is important to mention here that, due to a clerical error with our substitutions, the 2s were left with a situation known as “stuck in the s**t” when we were awarded a short corner with ALL THREE of our injectors on the bench. Safe to say, that was not our golden moment. Later in the half though, an excellent short corner slip from Vic at the top to Lauren on the left saw a first touch slap through the defence, beyond the keeper and into the backboard of Harpenden’s goal. 1-0 Badgers!

The halftime talk consisted of captain, Millie, laying down the law on her expectations and sent the team back on pitch with our head screwed on and a new attack momentum. Unfortunately, the badgers could not find the back of the goal but had some incredible team play across the pitch. Despite currently being stuck to the side of the toilet, Darcey played very well with her hangover and had great runs supported by Gem. This game also saw Sue follow in Baz’s footsteps by throwing an aerial to Emily which was very well picked, earning them both player votes. A storming break from Harpenden saw a shot in from an insane angle hurtle towards the goal. This was denied by goalkeeper, Lil, who kept the 2s in the game, securing the 3 points from their win and pushing them further ahead at the top of the table. (For fantasy fans, these clean sheet points were doubled for this goalie as Lil made many saves in the 4s game to keep them in it and grant them their first clean sheet of the season! #TopKeeperOfTheWeek)

At our amazing teas of pizza, organised by Ali but collected by our top supporters, Charlotte and Simon, player was awarded to Lyds for her outstanding play throughout the game. Honourable mentions go to Lauren for a great goal, Lara for injections and good play, Emily for her out-of-defence celebration game and Lisa for her unparalleled work rate, which left her with a scraped knee after a rather dramatic fall. (I’d like to also mention Jess and Ali in this for also taking theatrical tumbles during the game!)

I (Ells) was unanimously awarded donkey for zoning out in the team talk so not listening to the line-up and therefore being on the bench waiting to sub on despite being the right forward to start. Oops… However, thanks to Baz, I have been blessed with the care of our team chicken, Nugget, who I wore proudly around my chest for the entirety of the afternoon and evening in the clubhouse.

See you all next week when then 2s take on Berko away at 11:30. Stay tuned to see who the next mother of Nugget is…

Mens 4s vs Bishop's Stortford 7 Dev - 4-0 win

Goal scorers: AJ, Noah x2, Shane
Assists: Noah, Andy B x2
Player: Noah
Donkey: Mark D

Broxbourne 4s squad of 16 youthful and not-quite-so-youthful players took on fellow mid-table Bishops Stortford on a bright and still Saturday at Mill Lane. We welcomed back Team Manager Andy B after a long lay-off due to injury, joining the forward line in a clear attempt to boost his Fantasy League points total, but he forgot to pick himself. After on-field captain Andy H lost the toss, Brox took immediate control of the game. Attacks by BS were effectively shut down by the midfield and the defence before they threatened the goal and quickly turned into counter-attacks by Brox. The ball was often moved swiftly upfield with precise passing moves, aided by good running off the ball by the forwards and possibly the best communication we've experienced all season. Central midfield was controlled by AJ, Wayne and Mark D, with Joseph, Henry and Connor and Oakley, Harrison and Danny providing excellent support in wide defence/midfield. Jason, Luke and Andy H were solid at the back while Shane, Noah and Andy B produced movement, quick interchanges and a real threat in front of goal that's been missing for much of the season. Our first goal came from a short corner injected by Mark to AJ, who slipped past the runner and flicked to the far corner. The second and third goals were superb finishes from close range by Noah after excellent, quick passing moves, with Shane sweeping in a fourth shortly before half-time.

The second half continued in much the same vein with Brox maintaining superiority, focus and desire to win. No further goals were scored but we came close several times, with Mark D narrowly missing the goal twice with deflections from short corners. Our defence was rarely threatened and the BS team did not register a single shot on or off target, leaving Ryan in goal a spectator for much of the game. Overall a great result, and one that has been coming for some time. The aim now is for the squad to reproduce that level of performance for the remainder of the season and get results against the many teams we should have beaten first time around!

Ladies 4s vs Stevenage 4 - 2-0 win

Goal scorers: Jo A & Annie
Assists: Jo A & Frankie
Player: Jo A
Donkey: Ivy

The ladies 4’s welcomed Stevenage to a home game at 4pm on Saturday.
The game started strong for the 4’s as they were able to get a short corner in the 5th minute. Annie was the one who scored with a passage of play from Annie to Jo and back to Annie for the goal.
Play continued with both teams having runs on goal and making the defence work hard, but both teams held strong with the first half ending 1-0 Brox.
During the half time break, Broxbourne stopped the team talk to have a look at the sky which was sporting the broxbourne colours, and to get a cheeky photo. With the extra support from the sky the team felt ready for the 2nd half.
The second half remained evenly matched with both sides full of energy and good movement. The second goal came for Broxbourne 4’s in the 55th minute with an assist from Frankie for Jo to get the goal. Brox had a few more chances for goals but they weren’t to be, even when Lisa celebrated a goal that wasn’t allowed. The score line didn’t deter the opponent who kept brox on their toes to the very end. Game ended 2-0 to Broxbourne 4’s.
Good game and excellent performances from both teams

Player of the match went to Jo for her great passes and goal.
Donkey went to Ivy for asking, Do shin pads have a specific left or right? (Valid question)

Special thank you’s to Sarah Garry for collecting our pizzas and Lily for her performance in goal!

Away Fixtures

Ladies 5s vs Stevenage 5 - 3-0 loss

Player: Kirsty
Donkey: Sharon

We headed to Stevenage for a very sunny game, which was a pleasant surprise! After our scoreline last week we were keen to put into practice what we had learnt last week in training and put in a solid performance.

We had a strong squad of 15 on Friday which had depleted to 12 before the second half through a series of injuries. We welcomed Kirsty to her first match appearance with a baptism of fire as centre-mid.

Overall, we played well as a team and everyone really put in a full shift – particular well done to the team for the amount of ‘fight’ they put in. The persistence and tenacity was great to see.

Unfortunately, despite the amount of possession we had, we weren’t able to get anything across the line and ended the match with a 3-0 scoreline.

Well done to the team – especially to Kirsty who took player of the match. Donkey went to Sharon for missing a lovely cross from Rachel at the top of the D – I mean, it was a miss but it was only 1 ball…… (Harsh judgement me thinks!)

Looking forward to the next match where we continue to implement all we are learning.

Ladies 3s vs Harpenden 2 - C

The leak remains intact.

The Ladies 3s looked to continue the upward trajectory but when they arrived at Harpenden, the pitch was frozen.

No successes on the pitch but a huge win for Hannah, whose parallel parking was magnificent and done in one go upon arrival.

So in short no report about our game but we did then take a detour to the garden centre for a well-needed coffee and Diet Coke and enjoyed supporting the Ladies 1s at St Albans. Clearly, St Albans were not used to the opposition having a loud fan base! Well done to them for a well fought win and at least for us there was some hockey this Saturday!

Ladies 1s vs St Albans 2 - 2-1 win

Goal scorers: Ellie & Em
Assists: Becky & Pip
Player: Willsy
Donkey: Willsy
Green cards: Meg S & Tor

This Saturday saw Broxbourne make the short trip to local rivals St Albans. With the Badgers sitting in 9th following their point deduction and St Albans in 7th this would be a closely matched battle with the away team hoping to skin the tangerines.

Injured reserve list: The Badgers are still without midfield rising star Martha Ker who sustained a finger injury trying to appropriate a vintage ring from a notorious wizarding family.

This week’s pre-match preparation had been less than ideal with several badgers electing to embark on a drastic expulsion diet in an effort to hit their target weights. Thankfully all members of the team were present and able to contain their bodily fluids for the duration of the game.

Fitness coach Esme Fradley was immune to excuses as she led the fast paced warm up, leaving the team sweating under the winter sun.​​

The Badgers started well, pressuring the St Albans defence from the off. Makeshift forward Laura Wills came close but couldn’t finish an early one on one with the keeper.

Energised, the Badgers continued to push on. Driving runs from Em Wilkins and Meg Saywell continued to penetrate the St Albans D but were unable to find the net. The continued pressure paid off with Broxbourne being awarded a penalty corner. A slick routine and straight strike from Wilkins found the backboard, earning the Badgers a well deserved lead 1:0.

Their lead was doubled a few minutes later. A slap shot from Rebecca Scarrott well saved by the St Albans keeper but the rebound slotted home by Ellen Welsh lurking on the P spot.

As St Albans began to come into the game the Badgers held their press well, defenders Victoria Stacey and Megan Thomas easily stepping in front to deny the orange wingers.

The half time whistle saw The Badgers on top with a comfortable 2:0 lead.

The second half demonstrated much of the same. Relentless pressure and midfield turnover from Alice Brown and Kay Finch began to get to the home side and their conviction started to crumble.

Broxbourne came close to extending their lead after the front 3 of Wills, Hartwig-Green and Saywell cut through the tangerine defence but were unable to slot home a sitter on the back post.

Then, against the run of play, St Albans clawed back a goal. A hard slap into the D, narrowly eluded 3 Broxbourne defenders before deflecting beautifully off the St Albans forward to hit the roof of the net. Their tails up, the tangerines piled on the pressure but centre back pairing Pip Evans and Scarrott held firm.

Never ones to make it easy for themselves, the Badgers played the remaining minutes with 10 due to 2 unfortunate green cards. Tireless running from the forward line however continued to break down play and the home side were unable to capitalise.

With 5 to go The Badgers took the ball to the corner to protect the win. Despite varying success, the home team could not break Broxbourne’s tireless defence and The Badgers took the win 2:1.

Riding the wave of momentum and the heady acquisition of 6 points on the trot, Broxbourne welcome Norwich Dragons to Badger Field next week. Knowing they should have taken the spoils in the away fixture, they will be looking to make amends and continue their ascension into mid table.

Mens 1s vs Blueharts 1 - 5-4 win

Goal scorers: Josh, Matt, Mitch & Sam G x2
Assists: Matt x2, Sam W x2 & Stan
Player: Sam G
Donkey: Ed
Cards: Mitch (green), Ed (yellow) & Stan (yellow)

The boys arrived all on time looking to shape up a nice victory vs Blueharts who had the better of us last time as it was time for us to change it around. It started off in the changing room with good vibes ( minus Ed’s squeaky voice ) and a whiteboard session. New year new us… we got out to warm up with a bit of a lack of intensity in the warm up but we didn’t let that affect as we went out and got the victory. We said before the game let’s play to our style and we don’t need to go guns blazing. However, the fire blanket chapman had other ideas and thought to give away a p flick almost instantly.. 1-0 Blueharts. We then took control of the game for the next ten minutes and thanks to inform OG Sam he slotted it home coolly from a Menear drag flick to the back post. Not long after, new Sam had inventive ideas in the middle of the pitch and thought to take on a few players which worked in his favour and allowed him to pass it to OG Sam waiting at the p spot for a nice deflection past the goalkeeper. Just before the end of the first half things got a bit hectic and we allowed Blueharts some time on the ball which allowed them to equalise, shortly after that we decided it would be fun to try play 9 vs 11 for the end of the first half which we dealt with nicely.

At the half time break we sat in the goal as per Brox tradition and we all laughed at the Blueharts coach as they were all rattled. Roll on the second half after some wise words from coach panners.

We started the second half strong however with Blueharts still having the advantage they managed to get the lead on us following a tap in back post by their captain to make it 3-2 to them, after that we took control of the game but lacked that goal scoring threat. However, we decided to go against typical broxbourne fashion and new Sam had a fresh idea of actually shooting when he got in the D on his reverse ( clearly been watching Toby use his back stick to much so decided to take matters into his own hands ) and slotted one to the back post for I believe the fire blanket to tap in. 3-3. The game carried on for two minutes with it being equal to both sides with nice passages of play, however Blueharts had got the better of us and slotted another back post finish home to make it 4-3 to them. Shortly after Ed house thought it was a good idea to get a yellow?? We then took control of the game again managed to slam home a penalty corner to make it 4-4. With Ed house now back on the pitch we were finally 11vs 11 for which felt the first time in the whole match. We used this to our advantage and managed to win a short corner in the dying minutes of the game which manear slotted home into the bottom corner to give us the lead 5-4. With one minute left broxbourne was hanging on to gain the well deserved 3 points. However Toby house ( seems like the houses had other ideas of us winning 3 points ) gave away a short corner for a typical strikers tackle in our D. The nerves were kicking in. Final whistle had blown and Blueharts had a short corner and sent all of their men up. However the pressure got to them as they couldn’t seem to control the ball from their injection which led to broxbourne winning the game 5-4 and bringing home the 3 points. With lots of cheer from the fire blanket on the side of the pitch after going down injured due to a dodgy hamstring our spirits were uplifted. Celebrations had carried on into the changing room and Ed had redeemed himself with getting the speaker on and everyone in a good mood in the changing room after getting those well deserved 3 points. Onto next week vs Dereham. More points needed

DOD. Ed house
MOM OG Sam with special mentions to manear and new Sam. Up the badgers.

Coming up next weekend...

Saturday 1st February

Home Fixtures
11.30am - Ladies 5s vs WGC 1
1pm - Ladies 1s vs Norwich Dragons 1
2.30pm - Mens 1s vs Dereham 1
4pm - Ladies 3s vs Berko & Hemel 2

Away Fixtures
11.30am - Mens 4s vs Bedford 7
11.30am - Ladies 2s vs Berko & Hemel 1
1pm - Ladies 4s vs Rickmansworth 2
2.30pm - Mens 2s vs Shefford & Sandy
3pm - Mens 3s vs Letchworth 3

Join us in the bar from 7pm for our "Goodbye To Dry Jan" social! Everyone welcome.

Sunday 2nd February

Cup - Home Fixtures
1pm - Womens O45s vs St Albans

Further reading