White nets another hat-trick as Marlow ease past Newbury & Thatcham
Callum White scored another hat-trick for Marlow men’s 1sts as they produced some of their best hockey of the season to win 3-1 away at Newbury & Thatcham.
Marlow were clinical when chances came their way and White took his season’s goal tally to 13 in 11 matches.
Tactically they had to get things spot on against resolute opponents, and when they lost possession, they had to be resolute in defence to prevent their hosts scoring more than once.
White netted his first from open play before converting the other two from penalty corners.
The win is likely to give the 1sts plenty of confidence heading into Saturday’s home game with Oxford University
2nds, 3pm push back, and lifts them up to second in the South Central Premier League 2.
They still have a game in hand after their match at Fareham was postponed before Christmas.
The men’s 2nd team also enjoyed a good win as they beat Reading 3rds 3-1 in front of a good crowd.
They pressed hard from the first whistle and, although it took a while to break down Reading’s defences, once they got themselves in front, they looked relatively comfortable. Mav Girn helped himself to a brace and John Butt was also on the scoresheet with a well taken goal from a short corner.
Other results saw the men’s 4ths lose away to Yateley 2nds, the 5ths lose 4-3 to Tring 1sts, the 6ths defeat Sonning 5ths 4-0 and the 7ths win 5-0 away at Sonning 6ths.
The ladies’ 5ths were 2-0 winners at
Yateley 2nds and the 6ths defeated Maidenhead 5ths 9-0, while the 7ths almost matched them with an 8-0 away win at Slough 4ths.
Marlow’s u18s girls made it through to the semi-finals of the National Supersixes indoor tournament in Wolverhampton before losing to Knole Park from Sevenoaks.
Both the u18s and the u16s did exceptionally well to qualify for the national competition, and, while the u16s failed to progress from their group, the u18s came second and went through to the semis where they lost to Knole Park. They did though have the consolation of losing to the eventual champions, with Knole Park going on to beat Surbiton in the final.