22nd December 2003
Match results

8th December 2003

2 Ipswich stars in the making in Suffolk U14 team. 

(Coach Pete Glading, Assistant coach Allison Glading)

Ipswich has 2 girls in the squad  Bethany Golding and Emily Masson. Both Emily and Beth joined Ipswich this year and are already making their mark in the club. Beth has become a regular part of the 2nd team squad and Emily is hoping to do the same now her Saturday school fixtures have finished. They also are part of the Ipswich U15 team that are in action in the 3rd round of the Cup on Sunday.

The U14 team beat  Herts 3-0, Bethany scored twice, other scorer was Isobel Watts and then beat Lincs 2-1, with 1 goal each from Bethany and Emily.

We must now wait until Feb for next round of matches.

Congratulations girls.

8th December 2003

2 Ipswich stars in the making in Suffolk U14 team. 

(Coach Pete Glading, Assistant coach Allison Glading)

Ipswich has 2 girls in the squad  Bethany Golding and Emily Masson. Both Emily and Beth joined Ipswich this year and are already making their mark in the club. Beth has become a regular part of the 2nd team squad and Emily is hoping to do the same now her Saturday school fixtures have finished. They also are part of the Ipswich U15 team that are in action in the 3rd round of the Cup on Sunday.

The U14 team beat  Herts 3-0, Bethany scored twice, other scorer was Isobel Watts and then beat Lincs 2-1, with 1 goal each from Bethany and Emily.

We must now wait until Feb for next round of matches.

Congratulations girls.

8th December 2003

England just miss out on medal game but finish 5th

Despite a good 2-2 draw with China England Women just missed out on the 3rd and 4th place play off in the Champions Trophy. They played South Korea in the 5th and 6th placed play off and after a 2-2 draw won 4-2 on strokes to finish 5th. Ipswich's Leisa King netting one of the strokes.

This is England's best finish ever in this tournament so even though disappointed not to get a medal the team have gone some way in proving that they world ranking is justified. 

The attention now turns to the GB squad and the Olympic qualifiers in March 2004.

8th December 2003

Ladies 2's and 3's get points

The 2's earned a good point with a 1-1 draw against Sevenoaks.  Kirsten Spencer, who has retired from 1st team hockey scoring with a trademark short corner strike and also earning the player of the match accolade. Results above them mean that they are still bottom but with a game in hand the 2's have the opportunity to move out of the relegation zone if they take 3 points.

The 3's played 3rd placed Watton away and worked really hard to gain a 1-1 draw and a good point.

The 4th's lost 5-0 to Stour Valley and will be disappointed with this result.

So no wins but the last league games before xmas for the 2's and 3's saw them earn well deserved points and bodes well for more points in 2004.

1st December 2003

Men's 1's and 3's miss out while 2's win 9 goal thriller

The 1's could not repeat the win of last week and lost out to Bluehearts 4-3. Despite the loss they still sit just outside the relegation zone on goal difference.  With new players due to join the team after Xmas hopefully 2004 will bring in some more wins to ease the team up the table and continue the re-building process.

The 2's played local rivals Colchester and won out 5-4 in a real rollercoaster game. Now only 2 points from safety the 2's knew that this result could be vital. A great win. 

The 3's faced  2nd placed Wapping away and suffered their first loss for 8 league games. Things are now very close at the top of Div 3SE with the 3's leading on goal difference from Wapping and both are being chased hard by Old Southendians. Despite the blip the 3's are definitely the team of the season so far, well done lads!

The 4's played the University of Essex who were level on points with them. A close 3-2 loss saw the students move clear and drop the 4's into the relegation zone.

The 5's played league leaders Waltham Forest 2's and even though they lost 2-0 the score line shows that they are more than capable of getting the vital points  needed to keep them in the league.

The vets v Harleston saw them lose 4-2 in a good game and record only their 2nd loss of the season.

So disappointment for all apart from the 2's. A hard first part of the season for all apart from the 3's but hopes are high that 2004 will see movement up the leagues.

4th December 2003

England get 1st win at Champions trophy

After 3 losses England at last claimed 3 points with a 1-0 victory against Holland. 

England left it late, Kate Walsh scoring from a penalty corner in the 67th minute after some great build up play by Ipswich's Leisa King.  King and Ipswich team mate Jo Ellis have, along with the rest of the squad ,endured a torrid time in Australia after losing 5-0 to Australia, 2-1 to Korea and 2-0 to Argentina.

Jo Ellis gets tackled the hard way by an Argentinean player

England still are in with an outside chance of making the bronze medal play off but they must win tier final game against the in form Chinese on Friday.

4th December 2003

Ladies 2's look for Xmas points

The 2's last game before Xmas is at home against last years runners up Sevenoaks. This will be a hard game but Ipswich are boosted by the inclusion of Kirsten Spencer, who has retired from 1st team hockey. A win here would set up the 2's for a good start to 2004.

The 3's face 3rd placed Watton away and know that they will have to play to their best to record another win.

The 4th's face Stour Valley and with the teams quite close in terms of league points this could be a close game.

Can the 2's and 3's finish 2003 on a win? It would make for a good night in the clubhouse!

1st December 2003

Men's 1's back on track and want another win

The 1's moved out of the relegation zone and now want to keep upward momentum with another win against mid-table Bluehearts on sat.

The 2's face local rivals Colchester who sit in the comfort zone of the middle of the table. The 2's know a win is necessary to keep them in touch with their nearest rivals

The 3's face their hardest game of the season as the play 2nd placed Wapping away. Wapping lost last week but the pressure is on the leaders Ipswich. A win here would see them move 6 points in front of Wapping and the team would deservedly finish 2003 as the clubs best team.

The 4's to face a crucial game playing the University of Essex who are level on points with them. a win for Ipswich would move them out of the relegation zone.

The 5's play league leaders Waltham Forest 2's and have a very hard game. However the Ladies 2's beat their league leaders while in a similar position so all things are possible.

The vets will be hoping that their match against Harleston goes ahead to keep them fit in their run up to the festive season.

Several huge games, especially for the 3's and 4's..come on lads!

1st December 2003

Spencer retires from 1's as she concentrates on PhD

14 unbroken years of National Premier League hockey ended on Saturday as Kirsten Spencer retired from 1st team hockey.

Spencer had played every season at the highest level since the league began in 1989 but with her PhD work needing to take priority she could no longer offer the commitment needed to play at this high level.

The 1st team's loss is the 2nd teams gain though as she will hopefully be playing for them after the Xmas break.

It was an emotional retirement for Spencer as she was presented with a team photo and T-shirt to mark her special contribution. With Ipswich Captain Vic Sandall leading the proceedings Spencer was visibly moved by the praise heaped on her by her team mates and coach.

Congratulations Kirst and good luck for the future.

1st December 2003

Ladies 1's end 2003 on good performance but no win

The 1's played Leicester at home on Saturday and for the first 20 minutes played their visitors off the park and established a 1-0 lead. Unfortunately for the home side though they did not capitalise on further chances and when Leicester equalised the game was finely balanced. A scrambled goal by Leicester in the 2nd half eventually earned them 3 points as Ipswich could not find the reply. Not the end to 2003 that the team wanted but they have come such a long way in 3 months that they should be proud of themselves. 2004 will hopefully see a change in fortune.

The 2's travelled to Canterbury 2's and also lost 2-1 after leading 1-0. Again a good performance and with several key players returning to the team after Xmas things look good . Their last game is at home against last years runners up Sevenoaks.

The 3's bounced back after last weeks loss to thrash Boston 7-0. A great performance and one that sees them in a good position in the middle of the table.

The 4th's match v  Mildenhall was conceded 3-0 due to a lack of available umpires.

Not the right result for any teams apart from the 3's but performances are becoming better and 2004 should hopefully bring some more points and some consistent results. 

1st December 2003

Men's 1's bounced back with 5-2

The 1's got it right against Bishop Stortford winning 5-2 and moving themselves out of the relegation zone. A good run is needed to keep climbing up the table.

The 2's played  Norwich City and lost 2-1 to see them 3 points away from safety.

The 3's continued on their winning streak with a 4-0 win against Old Southendian  2's. With 2nd placed side Wapping losing Ipswich are now 3 points clear at the top of Div 3 SE.

The 4's played Upminster 2's and after a brave performance lost 3-1 and are now in a relegation spot.

The 5's played Rochford casual and lost 2-0 to see them firmly rooted at the bottom of the table with no points.

The vets match v Dereham was cancelled

The3's lead the way as usual but the 1's get that winning feeling to. still a lot of work to do in the last games next weekend to give all teams a happy Christmas.