I'll begin with a big call to everyone to head to Rushmere on Sunday 11-3 for the Girls U14 Plate Finals (some inspired coaching from Craig) and to Tuddenham for 12-4 for Men’s 1s and Women’s 1s back to back in vital relegation clashes. The bar is open and support needed!

The weekend was a tough one with London being a particularly challenging venue with losses for the Men’s and Women’s 1s, unusually there was also a double reverse for the Women’s 2s and Men’s 2s, normally our bankers for at least a win from the 2 of them. We’re also a bit light on reports, dare I say the onslaught of stats last week excited everyone so much that they decided not to add a report? That said, a dearth of reports does mean we can focus on some fine creative writing from those submitted. I draw your attention to Felix’s match report for the Women’s 3s – rarely has an ink pot and quill been used to such effect. We’ve also shared a report from the Men’s 1s/2s matches from last week which missed the cut.

As ever enjoy, good luck this weekend and let’s keep pushing for a strong finish across the club; there is so much to be proud of and we knew things would tough after 5 promotions; socials are flying high, 10 teams all competing week in week out and hundreds of juniors.
Talking of things to be proud of, final thing this week – date for your diaries, end of season dinner is on the 11th May!

Juniors
As the In-2 Hockey tournaments approach for the U10 and U12 teams it’s pleasing to see things come together. This weekend the U10 and U12 girls were hosted in style by Magpies – thank you to Harleston. 2 years ago we may have struggled to fulfill all these fixtures, now we’re crying out for more fixtures as we could put out 3 teams for each section. Thanks for everyone’s patience as we expand the junior section and continue to make more match slots available for everyone – Dave Cooper is leading the charge with aplomb here and this weekend Bury St Edmunds awaits for the U10 boys and the U12 girls are playing a travelling school side at Tuddenham. As above please also clear your diaries to see the girls U14s in action at Rushmere in the plate final on Sunday!

U10 Girls W4-0 at Magpies
Sunday 25th Feb Girls U10 Vs Magpie U12B – pitches defrosted in time and sun came in time for a morning of hockey north of the border. As a warmup for the In2 tournament we swapped in and out of 12 min games with both our U10 and U12 girls with a total of 4 quarters. This format worked very well giving the girls time in-between quarters to work on specific skills or set pieces before the next match.

After a slow start the girls got used to the pitch and conditions and went onto play excellent structured hockey. Sophia Dean and Darcey Sharratt looked dangerous on the counter throughout, with Sohpia scoring a goal each quarter to give us a 4 – 0 win overall. Gabby Swindon deservedly won player of the match with strong performance from the back, working well to switch play with Lily Repton. She even found time to tie not one, but two of her teammates laces during the game! Other highlights included our smallest play (8-year LuLu Card) sneaking an interception against their tallest 12-year-old, great impact and energy from Mae Woulfe, Freya Welham and Florence Knight. Eliza Card knitted it together well in the middle with neat 1-2-1 and well times tackles. Goal Keeper Chloe Sanderson held excellent concentration to make critical saves throughout the game to keep Ipswich’s clean sheet. Another Friendly is arranged against Bury St Ed next week with the In2 County Cup on 17th March, onward and upwards!

U16 Boys lost a tough rubber on the road to Hampstead and Westminster.

U12 Girls The u12 girls travelled to Harleston Magpies for a friendly fixture last weekend to further develop their game management and tactical awareness. Absentee coach James Ward set an ambitious meet time of 9.15 at Magpies and despite a frosty, foggy start we arrived promptly and on time long before any of the Magpies team! After a good warm up befitting an adult league game we commenced a series of 3 x 12 minute games, rotating with the u10s with some training/snack eating between matches. A strong squad of 10 with only 7 on pitch at one time meant rapid substitutions but the girls dealt with it well. Coach Wrinch chose and attacking 1, 3, 2 formation which worked well in the first game and ran Magpies close though the second game Magpies had worked us out and pushed up often leaving Poppy isolated at the back with few options. A switch in the 3rd game (suggested by the girls themselves) to a 2,3,1 yielded pleasing results with the squad combining well to pass and move the ball much better. It was great to see this performance and gives us huge hopes for the future for a very talented group of players. Keep up the hard work.

Women’s 1s 0-1
The Ladies 1s travelled to their penultimate away game back in London to play 2nd in the league London Wayfarers.

A huge start from Ipswich surprised wayfarers as they found themselves defending their circle early. Forward Georgia Harrold, narrowly missing, connecting with the post. Ipswich moved on and earned another goal-scoring opportunity. Another close miss off the top from India Goodman. Wayfarers trying to regroup, they get some way up the pitch but quickly slowed down by Ipswich again. Piling on the pressure, Ipswich pushed through to get another circle entry with India North firing a shot across the goal mouth. Only to be lost opportunity as no one got on the end of it.

Second quarter and Wayfarers fought Ipswich for the upper hand. Ipswich started to lose the possession game and not fill the gaps, allowing their opponents to creep into the circle. Some corners awarded to Wayfarers but Ipswich dealt with them easily, with POTM, GK Ali Barham beautifully clearing them away. The girls kept working and trying to execute the game plan. Some lovely passing play from Ipswich and working the ball up the pitch but unfortunately the ball got away from them. Ipswich didn’t give up though. Half time and still 0-0.

As the game developed Ipswich kept their battle up; more corners defended, pressing well and kept their composure. The latter part of the quarter, Wayfarers found a scrappy goal that (lucky for them) went the right side of the post. That was a hard one to take after such relentless work from Ipswich to deny their chances. 0-1.

There was still plenty of time for Ipswich to get back in this. Ipswich started to run out of ideas but despite that kept working on it. A mis-trap from Wayferers’ defence earned Ipswich their final chance. Forward, Charlotte Yates carried into the circle with fellow forward, Lizzy Wheelhouse right with her. Lizzy gets the ball a metre from the goal line but Wayfarers kicked back into defence mode and dealt with it. The final whistle blows with Ipswich having to go out defending 3 corners, Ipswich thought Wayfarers had plenty from their one goal. 0-1 end result.

2 brilliant stats from Saturday’s game:

100% success rate on penalty corner defence.

The rest of Wayfarers’ results in this season, with all their wins (bar one), were with a bigger than 1 goal margin. The last time Ipswich played them, a hefty loss of 1-5. A big statement was made on Saturday, something Ipswich should be proud of it in a positive way. Now to take that performance into the rest of the season and gain some more points…
Ipswich go into back to back home games, first up is the big one, East London. 2pm. TR.

See you there.

Women’s 2nd XI L1-3 No report submitted.

Women’s 3rd XI L1-8 + D1-1 No report submitted.

Women’s 4th XI L 1-2 v BSE
It’s hard to get too upset after losing by the odd goal in three to one of the top teams in the league however the ‘plucky’ Ladies 4s keep ending up on the wrong side of the result in the tight games. After last week’s defeat (0-2 v Magpies 4 who are top) and the creditable draw with Sudbury 2 the previous week (4th in the league) it was annoying to not get at least a draw at the weekend. The game was punctuated with excellent performances across the board with Anna G winning the POTM vote and Abby getting WOTW despite her best performance of the season. Somehow Harri asking the team chat for a pair of size 3 astros 30 minutes before the meet time didn’t merit anything more than a derisory ‘how do you stand up’ comment from the skipper. Try Mothercare Harri!

Defensively the first 30 minutes were the best we have played all season with Ally only called on a couple of times to make gravity defying saves. Led by Chele the defensive unit of Abby, Charlotte, Hannah, Phoebe and Harri worked tirelessly to keep the opposition at bay and to create quick transitions for the attackers. However as the first half drew to a close BSE eventually broke through from a PC where the slip left hit the post and we were a bit sleepy on the rebound. BSE got ever so excited at the goal and for the remainder of the half it looked like we decided that our guests needed to be treated more hospitably; we kindly felt they needed more of the ball in our defensive quarter and needed a more comfortable buffer to take into the changeover. Luckily Ally was up to the task and the score remained 1-0.

Churchillian words (‘stop giving the effing ball away’) from the coach roused passion in the team and the second half began with real purpose and desire to score. Unfortunately it mainly came from BSE. Another sloppy goal was conceded although the strong finish from the top of the D was slightly out of keeping with the rest of the game. So 30 minutes of good hockey had been followed by 10 minutes of not so good play and we were 2-0 down. Then Anna G decided to step up a gear. With excellent support from Mel and Polly running the channels Anna drove forward with relish to wrestle back the initiative; 3 times she won a 50:50 challenges and drove in from the left to try and create a scoring chance which unluckily failed to materialise. This all action un-Anna like aggression spurred her mate Emily to try the same from the right and from one of her wonderful driving base line runs (never a stick block Min) Em laid the ball on a plate for Polly to sweep the ball home for her first goal for the club, and for the season. The delight at winning a £20 bet with her father made Polly desperate to double her earnings (Barefoot Rosé doesn’t buy itself) and she, together with Mel worked hard to try and force the equalizer, supported by the attacking midfield duo of Catherine and Vicky. Alas the game ended before Ipswich could get back on terms but the effort from all players was laudable witnessed by the hobbling trio of Abby, Vicky and Jess (who could only manage 10 painful minutes game time through gritted teeth before being hauled off by the coach).
Our ambition for the remaining games is to finally get a positive result from these close battles and what better opportunity than Saturday (3rd in the league) and then the week after (2nd in the league)? We finish the season with 2 lower half teams so it would be nice to carry some strong momentum into the spring months. Come on Chele’s ‘nearly’ girls!

Women’s 5th XI No match

Men’s 1st XI 0-9
No report from this week, but here’s last week’s report following a tight 0-1 loss to Hampstead and Westminster.

In a tightly contested match between Hampstead and Westminster and Ipswich, spectators were treated to an intense display of hockey prowess. Despite Ipswich’s valiant efforts, it was Hampstead and Westminster who ultimately emerged victorious with a narrow 1-0 win.Throughout the game, both teams showcased their skill and determination, with Ipswich creating several promising scoring opportunities. However, it was Hampstead and Westminster who managed to capitalize on a well-executed play in the fourth quarter, breaking the deadlock and securing the crucial goal.Despite the setback, Ipswich’s defense, led by the solid performance of Alex Ricoux at right back, worked tirelessly to thwart the Hampstead and Westminster attacks. Ricouxs tenacity and defensive prowess were on full display, as he consistently thwarted opposition advances and provided stability at the back for Ipswich.However, the match took a turn when Max Macauley of Ipswich received a green card during the heat of the battle. Despite being temporarily reduced to ten players, Ipswich continued to fight tooth and nail, refusing to concede another goal.As the final whistle blew, Hampstead and Westminster celebrated their hard-fought victory, while Ipswich reflected on a closely contested match. Despite the defeat, Ipswich remains undeterred and vows to come back stronger next week.

Men’s 2nd XI 2-6
In what was always going to be a tough day at home against the league leaders and a few key personnel still enjoying the cool mountain air, the M2s made a terrific start after a short spell of defending some clever interplay allowed the team to work their way up the pitch and Captain for the day Foxy immediately leading by example and finding the back of the net.

This, however, spurred Pelicans on and it was their turn for some finesse and quick hockey and they swiftly replied with 2 goals not helped by Ipswich not valuing the ball enough. Defensive efforts saw to keep the scoreline at bay with a save off the line from a Short Corner.

A final flurry at the end of the first half saw Ipswich drive down the right hand side by man of the match Freddie, to the base line and a deftly fed ball along the 45° to the rampaging Martin, showing his versatility by having a spell in the midfield, took a first touch shoot that was heading goal bound but was remarkably well picked by the opposition centre back.
More inaccuracies in the second half allowed Pelicans in for a well worked third before some sustained pressure from Ipswich saw Paddy pick up the ball 25 metres out from the opposition goal and he saw the opportunity for a good old fashioned heave into the D allowing Tom to get an angled stick onto the ball and deflect into the back of the net – at 3-2 down with 15 minutes left the game was most definitely, if not momentarily, back on!
It was at this point sadly that Pelicans decided now was the moment to score with one of the strikes of the season – on the reverse from the top left of the D. While 4-2 may have felt like a fair reflection of a result against a good side with a few players missing from the home team tiring legs saw Pelicans score a further two, with the final score being 6-2. A decent effort from all involved but the final debrief of the day was of the importance of keeping the ball and not giving it away cheaply, perhaps some left backs were more guilty of this than others…

PLUS last week’s report following a classic away at Spalding.

With some availability issues (Spalding is a 2 hour drive!) a changed 13 brushed off their passports and headed to Spalding. Once again JC didn't bother reading the information sent through by the home team resulting in Windy joining a first aid course and the team changing in a village hall.

Once we finally got to the pitch Ipswich started brightly with some strong passing moves between Baler, Paddy, Elliot, Windy, Foxy and Greg. One of these saw what the opposition described as goal of the season; neat short passing saw Spalding cut apart and Greg calmly slipped the ball round the GK for Elliot to put into an open goal. Ipswich continued to play really well with Ant and Adam slotting in seamlessly into the defence. From a short corner Ipswich won a flick for a foot on the line which, unfortunately, was brilliantly saved by their keeper. Ant was unlucky not to score when one of his drag flicks cannoned off the bar down onto the wrong side of the line. Despite these near misses Ipswich kept creating chances and from another short corner The keepers save fell to Foxy who "drag flicked" a finish into the netting.

Spalding had offered some threat but there plan to win some shorts and get their gun player to flick them in was being thwarted by Callum (MOM) in the Ipswich goal. This prompted a change of plan at a rehuddle that saw Spalding slip the ball left and rifle in.
With 5 minutes to go before the half a fortuitous bounce of the ball saw Spalding break into the D and manage to finish.

2-2 was not a fair reflection of the game but Ipswich regrouped.

The 2nd half started more evenly. Ipswich were looking to control the ball where as Spalding were going for a more direct approach. This paid dividends for them when, after the ball once again bouncing nicely for them, they managed to score on a quick break away. Ipswich responded well with Baler controlling the tempo and Wrinchy providing some good longer passing from left back. The equaliser came when JC intercepted another long ball and found Greg with a quick pass, he and Elliot exchanged passes before Greg once again slipped the ball past the GK for Elliot to tap in.

With the game in the balance JC made the decision that resulted in him writing this report and not Windy for being in his PJs eating beans on toast at the meet time or Wrinchy for his car troubles and tardiness and extended stay in Spalding with Trembath and Bud Lights. That's right, it was the classic centre back square ball straight to the centre forward who then scores DOD moment.

Ipswich valiantly tried to get back into the game, but as they pressed forward were undone by a great run and unstoppable reverse stick finish and another short corner.
A 6-3 loss could easily have been a win. But, the display with quite a few regulars out shows there is a good strength in depth that bodes well. Callum was a deserved man of the match for some outstanding saves.

Men’s 3rd XI W/O 5-0

Men’s 4th XI W5-2

Men’s 5th XI L1-7