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The bone-chilling wind and rain at the weekend added to the challenge for the 14 Bedford Hockey Club teams in action.

The bone-chilling wind and rain at the weekend added to the challenge for the 14 Bedford Hockey Club teams in action.

James Oakley1 Dec 2021 - 07:59
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The bone-chilling wind and rain at the weekend added to the challenge for the 14 Bedford Hockey Club teams in action.

The bone-chilling wind and rain at the weekend added to the challenge for the 14 Bedford Hockey Club teams in action.

The Ladies’ 1s kept the heat on in a late fixture under floodlights, with a forceful 4-1 win against Broxbourne, keeping Bedford comfortably in second place. The squad now have a Christmas break from matches but will be looking for a strong return when the league recommences on the 5th of February, when they travel away to battle it out with third placed St Albans.

The Ladies’ 2s continued their winning run, taking the points in a 1-0 victory over Letchworth, Bedford holding their second place in the table and leaving Letchworth a point behind in third, with Havering just one point above the Bedford team. Bedford and Havering will both be looking to take advantage of playing the bottom two teams in the division next weekend.

Meanwhile, a third consecutive win for the Men’s 2s, taking a 2-1 victory, holds them in fifth place, just above their Waltham Forest opposition.

Both third teams had uncharacteristic losses this week. The Men’s 3s remain second in the table, however, despite their surprising 1-5 loss away to Royston. The Ladies’ 3 shock defeat came after travelling away to Hertford. The result leaves both Bedford and Hertford level-pegging in second position in the division, Stevenage holding top spot.

A different story for the fourth XIs. The Men’s 4s 3-nil win against Cheshunt 1s marked a third victory in a row and has Bedford sitting third in the table with a game in hand over fourth-placed Southgate. Bedford will be hoping for further success next weekend when they take on Harpenden.

A thrilling encounter between the Ladies' 4s and Blueharts 3s ended with a hard-fought victory for Bedford by 4 goals to 3 and leaves the 4th XI comfortably in second place on the table.

The Men’s Vets were also back to their winning ways, with a decisive 7-4 conquest over Shefford & Sandy. The Vets remaining second in their division.

The Men’s 5s failed to make any headway as they struggle with a difficult season, going 2-0 down away to Cheshunt.

It was a dominant show of strength and talent by the Ladies’ 5s though, smashing St Albans Boadiceas with a 5-0 trouncing, Bedford holding firm at the top of the table.

As a result of England Hockey’s rearranged league structure across the country this season, the Ladies’ 6s find themselves in the strange position of playing in the same division as the Club’s 5th XI. Despite being pitted against some very tough oppositions, they are holding their own and were delighted to get another win under their belt, with a 2-1 victory away to Saffron Walden.

The Men’s 6s also demonstrated they can score goals, taking a 5-0 away win against Shefford & Sandy. Having a bye next week means they won’t be in action again until 11th December, when they will hope to build on their success, playing on home turf against Potters Bar.

The Men’s 7s will look to turn their luck around next week when they travel away to Southgate, after an unfortunate 2-1 loss this weekend to Hertford.

A very junior Ladies’ 7s squad are continuing to develop their skills and match-play experience, but theirs was always going to be a challenging match away to high-table St Albans. The Club is constantly proud of the way its youngsters play their matches in good spirit, and the resilience they demonstrate in battling right to the final whistle.

Whilst the frosty conditions stopped the chance of much hockey play on Sunday, the Girl’s Under 16s squad did manage to head to Cambridge for their match, and a great performance by the teenagers ended with a nil-all stalemate.

Photo: Pippa Jones supplying the cross for Stephanie Holyoak to place the ball in the back of the net for the Ladies' 1s

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