HC Knole Park’s teams had another great weekend as the Men’s and Women’s teams all picked up three points, the U18 Girls won to stay top of the league and the U16B Girls progressed to the next round of the EH Cup!
After the half-term break most teams at HC Knole Park were back in action. The Men’s 1st team took on Burnt Ash 3s. In a one-sided match, Knole Park dominated throughout winning 7-2. Duncan opened the scoring with a smart finish from a penalty corner, before doubling the advantage flicking the ball off the crossbar from the next penalty corner. Matt scored his first 1st team goal roofing the ball after a through ball from Duncan to make it 3-0 at the break. The second half was more of the same as Duncan scored two more penalty corners, Ted J put away a very good finish, and Michael scored his second of the season from close range. A couple of late breakaways meant the final score was 7-2. The win moves Knole Park up to 3rd in the league.
The Women’s 2nd team beat Gravesend 2s 10-0. Ines was on fire as she netted a double hat-trick with some outstanding finishes. LJ, Matilda, Farrah, and Cara all scored singles in the win. The Women’s 1st team received a walkover from Gillingham Anchorians 1s. Both women’s teams continue at the top of their respective leagues.
Knole Park’s U18 Girls continued their fantastic start to the season with a 6-5 over Brighton & Hove. Always a tough match, the Knole Park girls knew they would have to work hard for the win. Indeed, it was the side from the South coast who took an early lead. However, goals from Mackenzie, Amelie and Annabel gave Knole Park a 3-2 lead at half-time. Lottie extended the league after the break with a superb forehand strike, only for Brighton & Hove to score two quick goals and make it 4-4. Two penalty corners; one from Amelie and the other from Lottie however gave the girls a 6-5 win. The girls look forward to their next match on Sunday 20th November against Canterbury in the Cup.
The U16B Girls were the only team to be drawn in the next round of the England Hockey Cup as all the other sides received byes. The girls had a tough tie against Surbiton HC, and it was Surbiton who took the lead. However, the silky skills of Elsa tied things up almost immediately to make it 1-1 after ten minutes. A superb backhand from Mali made it 2-1 before Surbiton scored just before half-time. The second half was a fantastic match as both sides had chances to take the league. Elsa broke the second half deadlock however with another classy finish to make it 3-2. This time set-up by player of the match Evie W before Mali scored her second of the match with a rasping backhand into the bottom corner! A 4-2 win and onto the next round!
With the U14A Girls receiving a bye into the next round they took on Hertford HC in a friendly. In a very competitive match both teams played very well. The first half was very even as the score was 1-1 at half-time. Hertford dominated most of the second half and but for Lilian in goal Hertford could have certainly scored some more goals. They had to settle for just the one, and despite an open goal miss for Knole Park in the dying seconds, that was enough to win the match 2-1.
Our minis played in one of our fantastic internal tournaments. Teams from across the minis section played in a round robin format: U12 Boys, U12 Girls, U10 A & 1 Girls and U10 Boys.
The U12 Girls got off to a storming start winning all four of their group matches. Erica scored 8 and Ella 6. The U12 Boys picked up three wins as they grew into the tournament. Ben & Jude both scoring 6, Theo 2, and Ashvik one. The U10 Girls competed well in all the matches with Caroline (2), Ruby, Isabe and Rosie all scoring. Sadly for the U10 Boys it wasn't to be their day as they failed to pick up more than a solitary point after 3 loses and a draw.
Onto the Playoff Matches and for Bronze it was the two U10 Girls teams with a re-match. Goals from Caroline, Flo, Anna, Etta and Elizabeth gave the Navys a 3-2 win! In the Final, the U12 Boys were on a mission to bounce back from their earlier defeat to the U12 Girls and ran out 4-0 winners. Goals from Ben, Josh, Jude & Theo!
Overall it was a superb morning of hockey. Everyone played well, contributed to their teams, listened, learned and enjoyed themselves! Well done to everyone that played!
This weekend HC Knole Park’s Men’s 1st team host Sutton Valence 1s, the Women’s 1s travel to Burnt Ash and the Women’s 2s head to Bromley & Beckenham. The U16A Boys take on Sevenoaks for a winner takes all place at the South East Finals Day, and the U14A Girls play their next league match against Marden Russets. The club’s ever growing mini section are also all in action with the U10 Boys, U10 Girls, U12 Boys and U12 Girls all in action!
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