GU14 Eagles 3 - 1 Wimbledon GU14 Stormers (H)
By Mark Rogers
After all of the excitement of the Eagles’ successful qualifying campaign, there was always a risk that the National Supra League, when it arrived, would not live up to its headline billing. Those fears proved to be misplaced as the Eagles, returning to their iconic Sugden Road home, had a flying start with a 3-1 win over South West London rivals Wimbledon Stormers.
The teams had already played a goal-heavy humdinger early in the season. However the initial omens were not good. Both sides seemed nervous, perhaps affected by the enormity of the Supra League, and the game spluttered and stuttered in the early stages with neither side able to gain any fluency.
Saskia was the first to seize the initiative. A one-handed wonder, driving down the right hand side and outpacing the defence, she entered the opponent’s D and, bearing down on the goal, was brought down by a try-saving wrap-around tackle: all limbs and no stick. The defender was sent to the sin-bin, and Saskia, with continuing fearlessness, stepped forward to take the penalty stroke. What followed was the hockey equivalent of football’s panenka penalty kick: looking right, switching left, and pushing the ball down the middle through the legs of the outbluffed goalkeeper. 1-0 to the Eagles and the crowd came alive, revelling in the razzmatazz of the fixture.
However, the home fans’ celebrations were short-lived. Wimbledon roared into life, long passing the ball up to the Eagles’ goal. Initially kept away by the rock solid full back partnership of Emily and Bella, as well as a fine string of saves by the ever incredible Lexi, the Eagles eventually conceded to a clever Wimbledon penalty corner shortly before half-time.
Jolted into action by a match-winning combination of Will’s half-time talk and fruit pastels, the Eagles returned to their pre-Christmas form in the second half. For every fast-paced attack that Elsa, Romaine and Izzy led on the left flank, Nancy, Maeve and Natalia responded with an equally devastating one down the right. It was all the more impressive from Maeve, playing courageously on her return from a career-threatening injury.
The lead, coming in the 35th minute, will be spoken about for years to come. Freya, on top form throughout with a series of hard and accurate passes from the deep, linked up with her engine-room partner Erin, who fizzed the ball through to a sprinting Tileena. Running diagonally through the D from left to right, she dipped her left shoulder to feign a pass, before shifting her weight onto her right leg and thumping the ball into the three inch gap between the goalie’s outstretched left foot and the post. “Come on Tileena!”
Wimbledon never gave up, their powerful forwards a constant threat. They almost scored an equaliser from an ambitious pass to a high forward but the Eagles were saved by some combative footwork from Lexi at the top of her own D. As Will rotated the Eagles’ bench to great effect, the away team slowly tired and ultimately had few answers to the Eagles’ passing and pressing game. It was no surprise when the Eagles sealed a memorable winning start to the Supra League with Bella’s second goal of the season coming five minutes from the end.
