A great performance but no points
Ladies 1s Vs Nottingham Uni
Lost 3-1
A great performance from the 1’s, it was a solid first half going into half time 1-0 up thanks to a goal from Hannah Laughton, unfortunately, Notts Uni came out the stronger team in the second half scoring three goals in quick succession.
Player of the match – Rosie Stainforth
Ladies 2s v West Bridgford 3-0
Newark 2s had an away fixture at West Bridgford 2s on Saturday. The aim was made clear;, win the game in the first half, hold on against the wind in the second. Sarah Pask took this brief on board and immediately and took the ball forward from the start, skilfully navigating around and through the West Bridgford midfield and drawing a foul outside the D. The free hit was quickly taken and the ball found it’s way to Shanade Bradley’s perfectly placed stick for a shot on goal and with a helpful gust of wind the ball was over the line to make it 1-0 to Newark within the first 20 seconds!
Newark pressed high and had more chances on goal thanks to work in the Midfield and wings between Amy Crouch, Rachael Vickers, Beatrice, Felicity, Bradley and Hannah Beckett only denied by some super saves by the Bridgford keeper. Newark’s second goal came from another Pask break, intercepting a pass she sent the ball on for Gabrielle who sprinted forward and crossed the ball back in for Pask to convert.
For the second half Newark were playing into the strong winds and moving forward was compared to running in treacle. On the plus side-tracking back was assisted and Anna Hall, Mel Woods, Lyndsey Sayer and Lauren Gray in defence were able to keep the lines clear at the back only calling on keeper Lilian Dean once to kick the ball back up the pitch. Newark were awarded a few penalty corners and a quick Bridgford defence meant the direct shot was a no-go, a tried and tested routine was needed, Hall fired the ball out to Bradley who slipped it right to Pask who sent it back to Bradley to finish in sublime fashion!
Newark battled on against wind and aerial balls and finished with a clean sheet and 3 points. Final score 3-0. Player Amy Crouch.
Ladies 3s lost 1- 3 v Beeston 4s
With a depleted team and in the windy rainy conditions, it took a while for the ladies to warm up and get into what was going to be a tough match for the team who are fighting to stay in the championship. The Beeston side beat Newark earlier in the season and are looking for promotion. The game was fast-paced and the air was tense, as both teams needed the win.
Beeston had a young team, with some skill full players upfront who put the Newark defence under pressure from the first whistle. Jacky Nullis and Hannah Bond marked the wingers out of the match and made some key tackles in the defensive quarter. Susan Tate, Sophie Chambers and Zoe White worked as a three in the centre of the pitch, feeding the ball around Beeston and feeding a number of balls to the wingers and centre forward Alex Olivant.
Possession was relatively even, with the ball going from one end of the pitch to the other, both sides hungry for the win. A hit out from Beeston was deflected from a Newark stick, injuring a Beeston player on the forehead, the first of a number of injuries in this exciting and tense match.
Beeston moved the ball well, running Newark around the pitch, the away side had a number of subs, something Newark did not benefit from and the home side began to tire. The defence conceded a number of penalty corners as a result, but Goal Keeper Freya Grocock kept the ball out of the goal with some incredible saves. Unfortunately, a strike on goal from Beeston eventually got past and the away side went 1-0 up.
Mid-field player Zoe White was causing havoc to the Beeston attack, but took a hard ball to the foot, meaning super-sub Sam Wade, who had already played a full match for the 4’s side came onto the pitch.
After a half time talk from coach Paul Halfpenny who rearranged the formation to give Newark more strength up front, Sophie Chambers caught the Beeston defence off-guard and used her pace and skill to dribble past a number of defenders and winning a penalty corner. Captain Emily Crisp took a strike from the short-corner which injector Sophie deflected over the line, making it 1-1.
Just minutes into the second half, defender Hannah was injured from a strike on goal and was wheeled off the pitch straight to hospital, thankfully no broken bones for Hannah, but Newark were back down to the bare 11 as Zoe braved her foot injury and Sam stepped into defence for the second half.
Newark responded, sending a high ball to Sophie who worked with wingers Zara and Eliza to get the ball back into the Beeston defensive D, but were unlucky not to score again. Beeston then stepped up the pace, winning a number of penalty corners in a row; finally, they broke the Newark defence with a deflection in to the top left-hand corner, which was shortly followed by a third for the away side, making the final score 3-1 to Beeston.
Ladies 4’s v Worksop
The Newark ladies lost 2-1 at home to Worksop at the weekend. After a slow start from the squad, the girls settled into the match, working the ball well around the pitch and creating chances in the attacking half with great runs up the pitch from the wingers supported by midfielders Kate and Vicky.
Worksop had several key play makers in the middle of the pitch who put Newark defence under pressure from the off, Moira Chambers calmly cleared any balls into the D and Polly showed skill and speed moving the ball out of danger and onto the mid-field aided by defender Holly.
Worksop continued to add pressure and eventually scored after a scrap in the D following a couple of penalty corners.
Newark were not depleted and added on the pressure; Sam Wade had several strikes on goal in the final few minutes of the first half but the Worksop goalie made some great saves keeping the score at 1-0.
Going into the second half, Worksop upped the pace and kept the pressure on the Newark defence, winning a number of short corners in a row, but Newark GK Clare Dent kept Newark in the game.
Eventually, the Worksop attack broke the defence and a strike on goal made it 2-0. Youngster Kate saw the opportunity after a break from the defence and dribbled past a number of players in the middle and slipping the ball neatly past the Worksop goalie.
Final score – 2-1. Player of the match – Kate.
Men’s 1s v Derby 1s
After losing 5-2 to Derby earlier in the season, the Men drew 2-2 at home.
Men's 2s v West Bridgford 3s
Lost 11 - 1
Two early goals then good fight back with a short corner goal from Ryan saw Newark get back to 2-1. Another 2 goals at end of half didn't fully reflect the game
2nd half not so close 7 goals against but never gave up and kept fighting to the end.
Goal Scorer and Man of the Match - Ryan Parrett