The Match that lit up Bonfire Night

As is becoming a Bonfire Night tradition, Marlow Men’s 1XI took on the Great Britain Ladies squad in a friendly. With previous matches between the two sides being somewhat of a spectacle, the passionate hockey fans of Marlow had good reason to pass up their Guy Fawkes festivities for the Pound Lane fixture.

The floodlights gleamed off the glistening green turf; the fans were giddy with anticipation; the coaching staff had butterflies in their stomachs; and both sets of players knew this was an occasion befitting only their utmost exertion and determination. An almost deathly silence descended as the teams took to their huddles, with the captains’ last chance to marshal their troops and motivate their warriors.

The whistle blew and the noise level rose to drown out the evening’s fireworks, the players sprung forward like Grand National steeds let out of the traps. The Great Britain ladies must have thought they had accidentally walked into a scene from 300, such was the ferociousness and intensity at which the Marlow men went about their hockey in the opening minutes.

Great Britain had faced much more fearsome opponents and were not fazed, their skill and talent shining through as they tore the Marlow defence apart only to be thwarted on numerous occasions by Toby Bruce. The young debutant goalkeeper had people in the crowd pondering the masked bandit’s identity and asking whether GB had kindly offered their keeper to alleviate Marlow’s tendency to ship goals. With the pleasant surprise of a secure foundation Marlow pressed forward in numbers with great aplomb but the finishing was just off the mark and the sides finished the first quarter on equal terms.

Kevin Chappell, the young coach in charge of his first international friendly, smelt blood and spotted a weakness in the GB tactics, readjusting his team into a dutch-inspired attacking formation. The Marlow players started the quarter as if pieces on Chappell’s drawing board, with passing and movement to match that of their pedigree opponents.

The mounting pressure led to a Marlow goal within 5 minutes as Gary Goodman controlled a bouncing injection expertly with his shoulder to release the battle scarred veteran John Hooker to fire a rifle into the bottom corner. The noise from the home crowd was akin to the ’99 travelling support at Camp Nou in the 90th minute.

The Olympic bronze medalists were somewhat taken aback, but not for long, as they mounted flowing attack after flowing attack and slid home an equalizer, leaving all to wonder why Toby Bruce had been replaced by Boyd Dercksen. Conceding goals was not new to this Marlow side and they took it in their stride admirably, the intensity level somehow rose further and the Reds showed glimpses of why they had been the pundit’s pre-season pick for promotion. The sides went in at half time with the scores level but spirits seemingly higher in the Male camp, Kevin Chappell dissected the first half hockey with surgeon-like precision and gave all players food for thought heading into the third quarter.

As the intensity of the first half took its toll on the legs and lungs of all participants, both teams appeared stretched in the third quarter, but despite numerous penetrations by both sides the defences and keepers held strong. This was a game in which there was some outstanding stick skills and hand speeds on show, Alex Danson, Imre Gerrits and Jack Turner all showing why they represent their countries at their respective levels.

The tension was building and the crowd sensed the next goal might just be crucial in separating the two sides. Up steps Alexander Dalton with eyes like a hawk and reactions like a cat to pounce on a pinballing cross to slam home and put the more-often-than-not misfiring Land brothers to shame. The Pound Lane faithful sensed this was their time and attempted to spur their side to victory with choruses of “Kevin Chappell’s Crimson Army”, “There’s only one Larry Lovejoy” and “Land, Land will tear you apart again”.

Then came a period of sustained pressure from Great Britain that could have ended in numerous goals if it weren’t for the lackadaisical finishing and iron-wrought defending. The ball broke following a characteristic Pete Harding tackle and Marlow raced to the far end at break-neck speed, and GB could do nothing but concede a stroke.

Players and supporters held their collective breath, waiting for what would inevitably be the nail in the coffin for the away team. Gary Goodman’s knees began to wobble as he gingerly approached the ball and in a combination of a Goodman fluff and a splendid diving save the backboard remained undisturbed. As much as his fellow player’s admired Goodman’s bravery to attempt the flick, the miss was surely a factor in his Least Valuable Player of the Match award and the seasoned midfield battler must see this as the worst moment of his career. The enthusiastic and motivational coach did his best to lift his players in the interval following Goodman’s fluff and they went in to the final quarter ready to finish the job.

Robbie and Neil from A-list personal training were spotted in the crowd checking how much of a difference their preseason fitness sessions had made to Marlow. The evidence seemed to be a great deal as they did not stop running for 80 minutes and did not look too far off the pace of the international athletes.

However, the difference in mental stamina and decision making between the two sides showed in the final quarter as Great Britain continued with the same professional high standards. Marlow, however, seemed to creep into bad habits of cheap turnovers and loose marking, this lead to two sharply taken GB goals that turned the game. Despite Marlow’s attempts to grab a late equalizer, the Great Britain defence remained resolute, even in the face of 11 outfield players.

This was a truly exhilarating experience for the Men’s 1st XI, and many thanks go to the GB women and to the flocks of supporters who came down to watch. The atmosphere lead to the Reds’ best performance of the season, hopefully this will carry on into the weekend fixture against West Hampstead. The Most Valuable Player of the Match award went to Luke Lovejoy, who patrolled the park with the grace, composure and passing of Andrea Pirlo.

Match report by Alex Land …who didn't realise we played on 4th Nov not 5th!