XL vs Wokingham (South Open) Match Report

Match Report: XL v
Wokingham (28/11/2010)




Score: Won 47 vs 26


Captain: Kimberley Holt

Team Manager: Tracey Stone


Player of the Match: Christa Heydon (GA)

Team: Kelly, Christa, Sarah, Jo, Bex, Charlene, Kim, Tracy, Hayley (Jen A didn’t travel as recovering
from a chest infection)

We started the match with confidence after both Reds & Blues defeated XL in Berkshire Premier League and winning our
last South game. Our strong start saw us not only scoring our own centre passes, but converting turnovers from defence
to goal. XL quickly became frustrated, which was reflected in their play. We held XL up well all the way down the court, with them having to opt for the square/ backwards pass or forcing a long ball into the circle. If the ball reached their circle, then Hayley & Tracey were pressurising the shots and picking up the rebounds. Bex & Charlene chased down a number of loose balls from either defensive tips or overzealous XL passes. The first quarter ended with us holding a 7 goal advantage at 14 vs 7.

After a positive quarter time team talk we all step back on court committed to provide more options to bring the ball down
the court. The attack showed patience with the ball and played it around the circle until the right ball was on, which was reflected in the shooting stats of both Kelly & Christa. Combined with tight defence throughout the court saw us extending our lead and ending the 1^st half of the game 26 vs 11.

We had fresh legs come on in the 3^rd quarter with Jo Robinson replacing Sarah Missen at WA and Kim Holt taking over
at WD from Charlene Cox. It took us a little while to settle into the changes and XL took advantage both in defence and attack. XL started the 3^rd quarter with a well-needed new tactic in attack, which saw them successfully feeding in the early ball to a holding GS. The frustration was still apparent from XL both on court and on the bench and after an umpiring warning we were awarded a penalty pass or shot for consistent infringements. XL managed to draw the 3^rd quarter, but we still held a lead of 10 goals.

In the last quarter we returned to the form seen in the 1^st half of the game and begin to pull away again, with excellent interceptions throughout the court converted to goals. A change in defence strategy worked brilliantly with the defence unit predicting the passes into attack and Hayley and Tracey taking a number of interceptions. Final score 46 vs 27.
Well done Wokingham.

It was a well fought game, we held up to the challenge and played as a team and stuck to our own style of game resulting
in a very positive win. Thanks go to Pat for coaching, Chris Hopkins for scoring and to our supporters. The latest win has moved us up the Div 2 table to 5^th place, with Sussex Tigers and Abbey within our grasps and only 2 and 4 points ahead of us.