Men’s 2s 1 - 1 Hampstead & Westminster 2s (A)

Scorer: Josh Redstone (FG)

After a humbling defeat the previous weekend against Spencer (going down 4-1), Surbiton 2s were determined to make positive progress at Paddington Rec against local (or not so local) Hampstead and Westminster 2s.

I may as well get DOD out of the way. The reason I write this report is as follows:

Even though we travelled to Maida Vale with the likes of Jonny Gall and wife, Steph Elliott, who came along not only to support the boys, but obviously to play her own game later (vs H&W W1s), I may have asked a silly question to see who the W1s were playing later. In my defence, there was a ladies game underway when we arrived, and somebody who I assumed to be a ‘gun’ hockey player played (apparently for their 2s) and I mistook H&W2s for their 1s. Nothing to do with celebrating half term a tiny bit earlier on the Friday evening. I may have also forgot some underwear after the game.

Anyway… we played the game… we were dominant in the first half with Redders scoring his favourite type of goal a reverse stick from top circle… into the top right of the net! Lovely, we went 1-0 up and dominated the rest of the half.

As the W1s arrived, the fast flowing hockey and quality seemed to drop a tiny bit, and the opposition equalised via a very strange deflection. Not before, Mr ‘calm head’ Liam Doidge (who is notorious for a trap door after a planned night out to celebrate our keeper’s birthday) decided to trickle the ball towards goal after a well earned penalty stroke from Jonnie Bird, which was easily saved to say the least.

We played the better hockey, but couldn’t convert. The score finished 1-1. Frankie was absolutely correct that we shouldn’t have drawn the game and it was our basic standards that let us down at times and particularly in the final third of the pitch. It was clear Willie wanted to say something to Scott J, but shower etiquette refrained him from doing so.

If anything positive was to come from the day’s experience it was that we travelled to London to see Dewi lose to the English in the rugby. As it was his birthday, he thought he would give some positive feedback to the team that he doesn’t concede PCs, something that may bode well for the rest of the season… we hope.

Beaumont turned up to give support to his Birmingham crew, which continued late into the night… Rhys captained well throughout the game, but forgot some rules of ‘not out’. Even after the DOD vote, Liam struggled to stick to the rules of a pint, reaching into his endless vast supplies of Jack Daniel’s.

Nevertheless, we all remain positive; we are happy in the league that we play. Rhys failed to mention that we play with our mates, hence why I mention it now! The 2s genuinely are the strongest second XI in the country (though Uni of Nottingham M2s may disagree on current league standings) and we vow to go again next week against London Wayfarers in Chiswick (before heading back to our Sugden Road HQ to watch the big Prem game with OGs).