Ladies 1st Team
Matches
Sat 17 Nov 2018  ·  Premier Division
Broxbourne Hockey Club
Ladies 1st Team
2
1
Chelmsford 1
Badgers dig deep and come out top of the league

Badgers dig deep and come out top of the league

Laura Wills19 Nov 2018 - 11:19
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“The greatest trick Gemma Wilkinson ever played, was convincing the world she couldn’t score.” Broxbourne 2:1 Chelmsford

By Lisa Banahan

Broxbourne claimed pole position in the East Premier League on Saturday, defeating Chelmsford on a leaf covered Badger field in front of a packed out crowd. Centre Forward Gemma Wilkinson silenced her critics by opening her tally for the season with the Badger’s first goal, which came in the second half. Such a famine has Wilkinson experienced this season that the bookies odds extended to double figures on the striker opening her account on Saturday. This has prompted unprecedented support from the men’s 1s squad, not least Wilkinson’s husband having a nibble at 10-1 with their children’s Christmas present fund. After a cagey 0-0 affair in the first half, much to Finn and Ollie’s relief, no sooner had the whistle blown for the resume of play that Emily Wilkins intercepted a 16 from the opposition. She played the ball to Laura Wills waiting patiently at the top of the D. Wilkinson, meanwhile, being her usual menacing self, posted up for a beautiful ball sent to the spot by her captain. Just managing to get her stick in front of the defender’s, she put to use a move only previously performed by the striker on the dance floor of Pop World, dropping suddenly to the ground in order to deflect the ball passed the keeper’s right foot. This put an abrupt end to the chant “ She couldn’t finish her dinner” ringing out in the stand, led by Manager Georgina Green, as Wilkinson wheeled away to salute the crowds. Coach Matt McDonnell has never lost faith in the ex-international, citing the stats on short corners won by the veteran, though preceding this with “She is definitely not young”. The Badgers are devastated that in-form Wilkinson is unavailable for the trip to Canterbury next weekend, due to it being her turn to read out the numbers at her local Bingo Hall that evening.

McDonnell felt that his side could do no wrong, and indeed it was commented that it was the best performance by the team for a long time. Inspecting the league table before the game, the visitors would have been widely considered the likely victors. However, precision of passing, fitness levels, and accuracy in the final third made it a comfortable win for the Badgers. Laura Wills’ aerials proved testing for opposition, and disguise sweeps by Becky Watkins and Claire "Cat" Cattermole penetrated their press a number of times. Diminutive but pacey striker Kerri Marshall was a continuous headache for the defence, not being able to take their eyes off her for a moment with her relentless leading off the ball. Panic broke out amongst the Chelmsford defence when Marshall was nowhere to be seen when a long corner had been awarded to Broxbourne. However, she was eventually spotted neck deep in a pile of leaves in the corner of the pitch looking for the ball. The striker’s prolific skills were first noticed on the football fields of Doncaster, and the greatest challenge transitioning to hockey has been her eagerness to header the ball, resulting in multiple injuries. Captain and doctor Laura Wills encourages this tactic, hoping for a proverbial “Head of God” in this tight league, as generally the impacts only result in bruises.

The Badger’s second goal came courtesy of an Alice Brown deflection from a short corner. Although Marshall leaned in for the header, Brown managed to get her stick to the ball first to slot the ball into the corner. The noise made by her connection was so unusual, that the umpires
referred it to the video official, following protestations of a foot from the Chelmsford keeper. On closer inspection, the ball was confirmed to have only made contact with the stick and the goal was awarded. Footage on the big screen at Badger Field revealed Brown’s stick to be held together mainly with blue tack, hence the unusual noise. Brown was forced to sell her new Addidas stick on ebay, still plagued by debts resulting from her taxidermy interests.

Chelmsford, although down, were not out and pursued their long ball tactic, rewarded by a goal with 5 minutes to go. A melee in front of goal left Freya Green unsighted as the ball trickled into the bottom right corner. This resulted in a nervy last few minutes for the Badgers, but Tor Stacey and Lucy Hoskins stepped up for the Badgers, driving the ball down the right hand side and out of danger. The final whistle couldn’t come too soon for Coach McDonnell, and the team celebrated with protein snacks provided by superstar supporter Sam Gates.

The Badgers travel to Canterbury for another crucial top of the league tie next Saturday. Previous clashes between these two clubs have been filled with controversy, all stemming from a bitter row over a hole in a goal net over four years ago. Alice Brown and Emily Wilkins will command most of the media attention in the build up to the game, both having spent time at the Kent club before signing for Broxbourne. Rumours that Brown herself was implicated in so- called “Net-gate” have been quashed by a spokesperson for the Leicester born mid-fielder, claiming that it is not unusual for someone with interests in taxidermy to carry a nail scissors on her person during games. Captain Laura Wills has commented that she has full confidence in Brown’s commitment to both the Badgers and to Fair Play.

Match details

Match date

Sat 17 Nov 2018

Kickoff

15:00

Meet time

14:00

Instructions

Playing in BLUE but please bring Pink Just incase
Match fees £10 senior £5 Junior

Competition

Premier Division

League position

2
Broxbourne 1
6
Chelmsford 1
Team overview
Further reading