Match report

Match report

Hanhdorf U16 played against Strathalbyn on Sat 1st August.  The game pace was frantic from the first whistle, and both teams attacked the ball aggressively.  However, Hanhdorf’s passes to the ball were a little cleaner, which resulted in several attempts at goal from Edward Hardingham, Angus Mason and Kane Gibbs.  Not deterred, Strathalbyn mounted their own forward attack but great teamwork and strong defence from David Neilsen, Joshua Rayner and Jackson Doley shut down Strathalbyn’s running charges almost every time.  Strathalbyn managed to break through Hahndorf’s defence and take a couple of shots at goals, but the safe hands of keeper James Bagley ensured the ball never saw the back of the net.

It was looking like neither team were going to score in the first half of the game, but some frantic game play inside the goal square saw Kyle Fenlon score the first goal for Hanhdorf in the last two minutes of the first half.  

Both teams started the second half aggressively, with strong tackles, but an amazing corner kick from Toby Bockel in the first 2 minutes of the second half saw the ball perfectly curve past the keeper and into the net for Hanhndorf’s second goal.  This fired up the Strathalbyn team who came back strong.  Hayden Abrahams and Kit Erhart-Bruce were put under pressure in the mid-field, and were often required to drop back and assist the Hahndorf defenders as Strathalbyn kept the pressure on.  Eventually the pressure from Strathalbyn was too great, and they managed to score after the ball rebounded from an attempted save from Hahndorf’s goalie.

With the score now 2-1, Hahndorf were undeterred.  Xiaver Kell was relentless in midfield, running down the opposition players to take the ball and continued to feed the ball up to Hahndorf’s front line.  One of these plays from Xavier landed at the feet of Kyle Fenlon, who promptly smashed the ball for Hahndorf’s third goal.  As before, Strathalbyn refused to give up and continued pushing forward, which tested the skills of Alex Montagu and Oakley Lockyer. 

As the clock ticked down to the final minutes of the game, Kyle Fenlon scored an amazing goal from a bicycle style kick.  The crowd was elated with his athleticism!  The match was restarted and Hahndorf immediately resumed their attack.  An overly enthusiastic push in the back in the goal square on Xavier Kell, meant a penalty shot in the last 30 seconds of the game.  A perfectly placed kick saw the ball in the net for Hahndorf’s fifth goal.  The game ended with Hahndorf taking the win 5-1.

By Sean Gibbs