No way back for men after disappointing first half

Hockey

Canterbury were punished for a poor first half as they were beaten 7-3 away to Division 1 South leaders Oxted. The visitors trailed 3-1 inside 15 minutes and conceded two further goals before half-time.

They made the worst possible start, Chris Webster scoring for the hosts inside the opening minute.

The same player doubled the lead on 13 minutes and although Louis Ridge replied immediately Matt Brown’s penalty stroke swiftly restored the home’s side two-goal cushion. Oxted’s Sam Driver made it 4-1 in the 23rd minute and Canterbury conceded a fifth when Brown claimed his second three minutes before the break. The 5-1 half-time scoreline was always going to be tough to overturn but Canterbury were more competitive in the second half.

Oxted did score twice more through Nick Giles (44 minutes) and Driver (56) but Ridge’s second and another from skipper Toby Vaughan meant at least they matched their opponents goal for goal.

The result leaves Canterbury one point outside the bottom two ahead of Sunday’s home game with Havant (start 12.45pm).

Ca n t e r b u r y 2 n d s lost 2-1 to Blackheath & Elthamians. Despite skipper Andrew Dunn scoring from a short corner on the half-time whistle, two goals conceded in the second-half meant a trip back to Canterbury with no points.

The Pilgrims produced a fantastic performance by smashing Folkestone 2nds 7-0.

Jake Smith opened the scoring through a short corner and the floodgates opened in the second half with two goals from Dave Shelly and one each from Ben Youngs, Tom Laslett, Ed Laslett and Hari Roblin. Alex Laslett produced a match winning performance.

The Pilgrims are two points behind the leaders with a game in hand. Canterbury 3rds won 6-4 in a top of the table clash with Cliftonville 2nds to keep them eight points clear. Matt Lea and Chris Ashenden both scored two goals with Morten Pederson and Shane Godwin completing the scoring.

Canterbury 4ths beat Herne Bay 2nds 4-1, with two goals each from Ethan West and Glenn Prebble.

West picked up the match of the match award.

In the 3-3 draw between Canterbury 5ths and Herne Bay 3rds, Johnny Amos scored from two short corners and Peter Ratcliff was also on target. Canterbury Griffins drew 1-1 with Old Williamsonians thanks to an Ethan Aitken penalty flick. Harry Halle-smith and Josh Kitson were the players of the match.

The Squires beat Holcombe 5ths 2-0 thanks to goals from Max Sherhod and Andrew Hurst. Canterbury Friars and Maidstone 5ths drew 3-3 with Chris Paine the star of the show.

Father and son duo John and Pete Ratcliffe scored a goal each, but Maidstone took the lead with 10 minutes to go. Fortunately with just four minutes left Pete Bowell smashed home the equaliser.

The Friars are fourth at the halfway stage of the season with 16 points.

■ Canterbury Ladies are back in the bottom two of Division 1 South after losing 2-1 at St Albans on Saturday. Canterbury had arrived in

Hertfordshire feeling confident having beaten their opponents 4-0 at home in October.

However, the home started strongly and dominated the first two quarters of the game.

They opened the scoring from a direct and accurately struck penalty corner from Natasha Humphris in the eighth minute, and doubled the lead courtesy of a breakaway effort from Lottie Simpson two minutes before half-time. Canterbury, on the other hand, couldn’t seem to find each other and lacked any real threats in front of goal. From the restart Canterbury showed a much better attitude.

They were sharper, tougher and more accurate with their passes. Their build-up play was excellent at times but they still struggled to seriously challenge the home goalkeeper.

Canterbury retained their supremacy in the fourth quarter, but it wasn’t until the 65th minute that they broke through thanks to a trademark Mel Clewlow corner strike.

They then went in search of an equaliser but were unable to find one, giving St Albans their first points of the season.

Canterbury slipped into the bottom two due to Isca picking up a point against Reading.

They host Slough on Saturday in the last game prior to the Christmas break (2pm).

Canterbury 2nds shared a goalless home draw with Broxbourne, a side they had lost 5-1 away to in October. The result extended their unbeaten run to three matches and left them eighth in Conference East, ahead of Broxbourne and bottom club Ipswich. After a cagey start the sides settled with Broxbourne winning some penalty corners which they were unable to capitalise on. Canterbury also created chances and were twice denied by the post.

As the game neared i t s e nd, temperatures stated to rise with three cards being issued – two to Canterbury and one to the visitors.

Both sides might have snatched victory but the game ended in stalemate, in no small apart due to some excellent defensive work by Alex Hooker and Hannah Harvey.

She shared the player-of-the-match award with Hannah Harvey, who worked relentlessly, providing support going forward, and coming back.