Hereford Cathedral School

ESFA Midland Regional Finals – Nottingham University

We travelled to the splendid grounds of Nottingham University to take part in the ESFA regional football finals as representatives of Herefordshire. No matter who we had in our group, it was going to be the toughest challenge of the season against some footballing heavyweights.

Conditions were tricky with a strong driving wind and intermittent showers throughout the day. The first game against Catshill (Worcestershire) was a disaster. A goal down after 19 seconds, it was two shortly after, and I was fearing a long afternoon, especially after seeing the others sides earlier on. We regrouped in the second half but the damage was done and we lost 3 – 0.

Water Orton from Warwickshire were next and they looked good, with three players from Birmingham City in their ranks.  Physically, we were much stronger and committed in the tackle. We squandered a couple of good chances and were by far the better side. It ended 0-0 and our opponents were rather aggrieved at what they thought would have been an easy three points.

Badgerbrook (Leicestershire) had set the pace early in the group but you would not have thought it looking at the game. HCJS again missed gilt-edged chances and dominated possession and territory but one mistake in the second half saw our opponents win 1 – 0.

Heads went down a little but we were certainly competitive. Guy and Charlie were improving in defence and Jonathan was making some good saves.  A little more luck in front of goal was what was required. Morven Park (Nottinghamshire) were our next opponents and again they had players with clubs, this time at Nottingham Forest. With a large backing behind them (compared to just me on the opposite side! ) we had to withstand a barrage of attacks. However, in the second half, Jasper’s ball set Luke away, and his brilliant run ended up with Billy bundling the ball in. You could have heard a pin drop!! A 1 – 0 win against one of the biggest counties was brilliant.

It was a relief to get on the board finally and we were full of confidence going into our last game against Longstone (Derbyshire). They had been propping up the group but had one electric player up front. In their last game in school colours, we fell a little short, perhaps with our efforts in the previous game taking too much out of us. We ended up losing 1 -0.

This was a great day and, although the table shows us as finishing last, we would have won 3 games but for our finishing. In our normal matches and tournaments, you can sometimes get away with it, but not often on the bigger stage. As it happened, Water Orton, with whom we had drawn, ended up making the national finals. Considering that we were the smallest county represented by far and that all the other sides had numerous players with professional clubs, we more than held our own.  I am immensely proud of the boys’ achievements throughout the season and am a firm believer that HCJS are a real footballing force, both locally and regionally.

S. Turpin 

  

TDMCPS U11 A  0  v HCJS U11 B  1 (Theo Rogers)

This was an uncharacteristically lethargic display from the U11 B team. There was a general lack of urgency to track back and defend, not enough physical presence in the midfield and a severe case of 'goal shyness'! On the positive side: we won the game with a goal from a left footed strike from Theo Rogers and Jude Gummerson was excellent at the back. This completed another unbeaten season for the U11 B team and the boys should be proud of their achievements this term. 

HCJS U11 C 3 v The Downs U11 B 1 (Edward Filmer 2, Cody Wheeler)

We completely dominated the game and, with the score at 3-0 at half time, only the brilliance of the opposing goalkeeper prevented an even steeper tilt. Cody Wheeler opened the scoring with a long shot from an improbable angle and Edward Filmer had two strong shots from outside the area bulge the net. We took Edward off for the second half, as he was far too good, but all of the boys proved themselves adaptable at slotting into different positions. We should have scored far more, particularly from Elliott Thomson's excellent corner kicks, but we missed several golden chances. Throughout the game we passed the ball with intelligence and played in an excellent spirit.

Y3/4 FOOTBALL HOUSE MATCHES

Matthews 0 v Britten 1 (Hayes)                                                Woodhall 1 v Oakeley 0 (Skerrett)

Matthews 4 v Oakeley 0 (Evans, Sockett 3)                   Woodhall 1 (Tulacz) v Britten 2 (Hayes 2)

Matthews 1 (Sockett) v Woodhall 2 (B Griffiths, J Wheeler)

Britten 3 (Hayes 3) v  Oakeley 2 (Petrie, Dorise)

House                          W        D         L          GD       PTS

Britten                          3          0          0          +3        9

Woodhall                     2          0          1          +1        6

Matthews                     1          2          0          +2        3

Oakeley                        0          0          3          -6         0

  

The Elms U9 3 v HCJS U9 1 (Tom Skerrett)

In glorious sunshine, all of the Year 4 boys went off to play The Elms. The first half was a scrappy affair with HCJS having a lot of territory but not much of an end product whereas The Elms relied on speedy counter attacks. The home side probably had the best of the chances but Sam Yeo made a cracking save and then Matthew Tulacz cleared the ball off the line.

The second half was equally as frenetic but it was the home side who took the lead when, from a long throw, their striker, all alone, guided it past Hugo Evans. It was 2 – 0 not long after when the ball was gleefully poked home after another scramble. It was HCJS who were looking to score on the counter attack this time, and Tom Skerrett duly obliged with a lovely finish into the bottom corner. Chasing the elusive equaliser, HCJS pushed everyone forward but were caught on the break, with the ball bobbling home despite Hugo’s best efforts.
 

The Elms U10A 1 v  HCJS U10A  6 (Aidan Webb 3, Miles Newall 2, Theo Rogers)

The U10 team underlined their promise with a good win at The Elms.  It was the home side who took an early lead when a missed tackle presented the chance for the ball to be played across the box, where the striker swept the ball home. However, this just galvanized HCJS and for the rest of the half it was a relentless wave of attacks. When the equaliser came, it was the best goal of the match. A Charlie Laing corner was met by the head of Aidan Webb who directed it into the bottom corner. The rest of the half saw a mixture of scrambled goals and good strikes putting HCJS into a 5- 1 interval lead, Miles with two good finishes, Aidan claiming his second after a goalkeeping error and Theo Rogers breaking clear to calmly slot home. Charlie Laing shook the crossbar with a long range strike and Jude Gummerson also hit the woodwork after a short corner.

In the second half, HCJS played with a more challenging five players and also changed positions. This disrupted the flow of the game but it also gave Jake Harding more to do in goal, which he did well. Aidan completed his hat trick following up his own shot which the keeper had initially blocked.
 

The Elms U10B 1 v  HCJS U10B  3 (Cody Wheeler, Elliott Thomson 2)

HCJS started the stronger of the two sides, with Cody Wheeler smashing the ball against the wood work. The early pressure soon paid off with Elliott Thomson opening the scoring. Despite the strong start, HCJS couldn't capitalize on the various chances which fell their way and they were punished when The Elms equalised on the brink of half-time. Both teams came out for the second half eager to score but it was HCJS who took the game by the scruff of the neck and pegged back the Elms into their own half. Eventually, HCJS took the lead when Joel Wheeler took his chance to make it 2-1. Soon after the restart Elliott Thomson made it 3-1, effectively putting the game beyond The Elms.
 

The Downs U10C 4 v  HCJS U10C 1 (Oliver Mumford)

HCJS started off slowly and conceded a goal within the first 3 minutes. The defence of Bissell and Ashley-Morgan was clearly shaken but they got their positioning organised and kept the waves of attacks at bay until the 9th minute, when a mistake saw us go 2-0 down. Some hard work from Monty Alexander, who played a defensive midfield role, kept us in the game until the dying seconds of the first half when our pinball tactics were found wanting and we conceded a third.
At half time we regrouped with a fresh half orange each and looked the better for it. We upped the tempo and some quick thinking by Dales nearly saw the strike partnership of Mumford and Pillai get us back on track. McKay in midfield threaded a Ronaldo-like through ball to Pillai who set up Mumford for a fantastic HCJS goal, at which point the sun came out for a brief moment. We kept up the pressure for the remainder of the match but failed to capitalise on the high percentage of
possession we had and finally had to admit defeat at the final whistle, losing 4-1.
The players all performed well and gave their best, and, after conceding a very early goal, the match was evenly poised throughout. We will take the positives and look forward to the next match

Y5/6 House Football Tournament

A Team Tournament Results

Woodhall 0 – 1 Matthews                    Britten 0 – 0 Oakeley               Oakeley 0 – 1 Woodhall

Matthews 0 – 3 Britten                         Woodhall 0 – 0 Britten             Oakeley 2 – 0 Matthews

            House                          P          W        D         L          F          A          GD       PTS

1^st:        Britten                          3          1          2          0          3          0          +3        5

2^nd:       Oakeley                        3          1          1          1          2          1          +1        4

3^rd:       Woodhall                     3          1          1          1          1          1          0          4

4^th:       Matthews                     3          1          0          2          1          5          -4         3

B Team Tournament Results

Woodhall 1 – 2 Matthews                    Britten 4 – 0 Oakeley               Oakeley 1 – 2 Woodhall

Matthews 3 – 2 Britten                         Woodhall 1 – 1 Britten             Oakeley 0 – 3 Matthews

House                          P          W        D         L          F          A          GD       PTS

1^st:        Matthews                     3          3          0          0          8          3          +5        9

2^nd:       Britten                          3          1          1          1          7          4          +3        4

3^rd:       Woodhall                     3          1          1          1          4          4          0          4

4^th:       Oakeley                        3          0          0          0          1          9          -8         0

Combined Table

            House                          P          W        D         L          F          A          GD       PTS

1^st:        Matthews                     6          4          0          2          9          8          +1        12

2^nd:       Britten                          6          2          3          1          10        4          +6        9

3^rd:       Woodhall                     6          2          2          2          5          5          0          8

4^th:       Oakeley                        6          1          1          4          3          10        -7         4