03/12/2025
Berkshire sides endure difficult weekend as Ladies’ teams struggle and Men’s 1st claim dramatic win
It proved a challenging weekend for the South Berkshire Hockey Club, with the Ladies’ section enduring a day to forget while the Men’s 1st XI produced a dramatic late victory to brighten the club’s fortunes.
The Ladies’ 1st team faced a tough assignment in Premier Division Two as they hosted league leaders Wi******er. The match began brightly, with both sides trading goals inside the opening ten minutes. Berkshire’s Sophie Taylor-Hogg levelled the contest after an early Wi******er strike, and the visitors held firm to reach half-time at 1–1.
The second half, however, swung decisively in Wi******er’s favour, with goals on 50 and 60 minutes putting the leaders firmly in control. Alessia Osbourne offered Berkshire hope with a well-taken finish in the dying moments, but it was not enough to prevent a 3–2 defeat. The result leaves the Ladies’ 1st team struggling in eighth place and in need of points to move clear of the lower reaches of the table.
It was a difficult day across the Ladies’ section, with the remaining sides unable to muster either goals or points. Both the 2nd and 3rd teams suffered 3–0 defeats to their respective Wycombe opposition, while the 4th XI were overrun 8–0 at home by division leaders Marlow. The 5th XI also came up short, falling 1–0 away to Wallingford. In the standings, the Ladies’ 2nd team now drop to 10th, the 3rd team remain 8th, the 4th side hold 5th place, and the 5th team sit 6th in their division.
On the men’s side, the 1st XI travelled to Wi******er for a first-ever meeting between the two clubs in Premier Division One. Still hampered by injuries, Berkshire were forced to reshuffle their defensive line, although they travelled with strength and depth in attack. Wi******er, recovering form after a difficult start to their season, struck first after nine minutes when a short-corner strike crept past both goalkeeper Cameron Mitchell and defender Zax Brayshaw.
The visitors initially struggled to adjust to their revised formation, and Wi******er applied sustained pressure. Yet Berkshire’s reorganised defence gradually found its shape and weathered several strong attacks. Their resilience paved the way for an equaliser midway through the half: a driving run from Luke Kennedy released Connor Anderson in the circle, whose deft one-touch pass found the club’s leading scorer, Josh Cowell. Cowell made no mistake, sliding the ball under the advancing keeper for 1–1.
Berkshire finished the half strongly but could not force a breakthrough, and the sides went into the interval level.
The third quarter saw Berkshire dominate, with Wi******er rarely escaping their own half. Sam Fox-Harvey thought he had scored his 100th goal for the club, only for the effort to be controversially ruled out—incorrectly, post-match video suggested—for failing to travel outside the circle before Ben Fryatt’s initial attempt struck the post.
The pressure finally told early in the fourth quarter, though not in Berkshire’s favour. On 52 minutes Mitchell saved well from a strike at the top of the D, only for the rebound to fall kindly to a Wi******er forward who tapped in for a 2–1 lead.
Berkshire hit back ten minutes later with a superb finish from Marcus Longfield, last week’s four-goal hero. Turning a defender on the edge of the circle, he unleashed a fierce shot past the Wi******er keeper to restore parity at 2–2.
With five minutes left, Berkshire completed the comeback through a moment of brilliance from Man of the Match Kennedy. Dribbling skilfully along the right baseline, he fired a dangerous ball across goal where Chris Badger reacted quickest to turn it past the keeper for a 3–2 Berkshire lead, sealing a memorable victory. The win lifts the Men’s 1st XI back to fourth place in the league.
Elsewhere, the Men’s 2nd XI secured their second win of the campaign with a solid 2–0 triumph over Oxford, courtesy of goals from Joe Hayes and Sam Coombes, a result that keeps them ninth. In Division 4 North, the Men’s 3rd XI were beaten 3–0 away at leaders Stoke Green, dropping them to third place, while the Men’s 4th XI climbed to sixth thanks to a convincing 4–1 win over Henley, highlighted by a hat-trick from Duncan Clarke and a strike from Chris Priddle.
The Men’s 5th XI were defeated 2–0 at Marlow and slip to eighth, while the Men’s 6th XI earned a hard-fought 0–0 draw against the same club, retaining their position in fifth.
Cup action on Sunday at Cantley Park brought mixed fortunes. The Ladies’ Over-55s cruised into the next round with an emphatic 8–0 win over a Ladies’ South side, racing to a 6–0 half-time lead before adding two more after the break.
The Men’s Over-35s faced a powerful Marlow outfit. Despite a promising opening spell, two defensive lapses handed Marlow a 2–0 lead. Berkshire pulled one back before the interval through Ryan Pogson, following an incisive right-wing run and cross from Justin Paterson. Marlow’s superior finishing proved decisive in the second half as they surged to a 5–1 advantage. Berkshire continued to battle, reducing the deficit through Duncan Clarke and then Neil Bennett after a rebound from Pogson’s shot, but Marlow held on for a 5–3 win.
Attention now turns to the upcoming fixtures at Cantley Park this weekend, beginning with the Ladies’ 4th XI against Sonning at 10:30am. The Ladies’ 1st team then host Leighton Buzzard ahead of the Men’s 1st XI’s home clash with Basingstoke. The Men’s 6th XI meet Newbury at 3pm, before the Men’s 4th XI conclude the day with a 4:30pm fixture, also against Sonning.
Away from home, the Ladies’ 2nd XI travel to Yateley, the Men’s 2nd XI head to Banbury, the Ladies’ 3rd XI visit Marlow, and the Men’s 3rd XI take on Staines. The Ladies’ 5th XI are at Sonning, while the Men’s 5th XI make the short trip to Reading.
On Sunday, the Mixed A team travel to Windsor for the latest round of the cup.
