Results for the under 14s boys. Sunday 4th December 2011.
In our first game against Ben Rhydding we started with Jack Newman in goal, Joseph Shannon as sweeper, Will Grainger as right back, Ben Bell at left back. In the mid field we had James Goswell at the bottom of the diamond Dan Lawson at the top of the diamond Jack Holland on the right and Liam Shannon on the left. Johnny Scaling centre forward, Joe Grundy right wing, Louis Watson left wing and Nathan Thompson as substitute. We started the game well passing the ball but as soon as Ben Rhydding got the ball they were in control. Louis came off and Nathan went on with 5 mins to go. Jack in goal made some great saves and we defended well but the game ended 5-0.
In our second game against Bridlington we started with same except Joseph and Johnny swapped places. In this game however the passing between Jack, Dan, James and Liam was much better getting the ball up the pitch to the forwards and making a lot of attacking moves. In one such attack we gained a short corner, Joseph miss-hit the ball, James picked it up and scored our first goal of the day. However Bridlington fought back well, scoring a goal of their own. After that it was back and forth hockey between both teams, Thirsk attacking well but Bridlington were constant in the counter attack, on one occasion Bridlington had a good attack on goal which called upon Jack to make a fantastic save ending the game a very fair 1-1 draw.
The 3rd game against Driffield, Nathan started as sub, the team was the same but Jack H was in defence and Ben B went into mid field. Thirsk started the third game by pushing the ball back and attacking the goal immediately, Dan and James putting pressure on the Driffielld defence with Johnny and Louis linking up well the team looked a different team from the first game. In one such attack Louis went past a player and passed the ball to Johnny to score. The team passing to each other well and the game ended a 1-0 win to Thirsk. I would like to thank the parents for supporting the boys and Dave Goswell for umpiring on such a cold day.
Report by Ken Shannon, Team Manager

On Sunday 24th October Thirsk under 14 boys travelled to Harrogate fir their first round of games. Due to Nordest not turning up ,there were only 3 teams playing. Bradford, Huddersfield and Thirsk. Our squad consisted of Jack Newman, Will Grainger, Jonnie Scaling, Ben Bell, Liam Shannon, James Goswell, Dan Lawson, Eddie Medley, Jack Holland, Louie Watson, Olliver Houseman, Joseph Shannon and Jake Bowers.
In our first game against Bradford we started with Louie and Ben started as subs. When going forward our attacking line up of Oliver, Joseph and Jake linked well with the midfield Eddie, Dan, Jack and James. In the first couple of minutes we had several shots on goal.When Bradford attacked they did with pace it was good to see Jack, Eddie, James and Dan track back to help in defence. Jack in goal had hairy moment nearly letting a goal in , but after that he never put a foot wrong, making some good saves. Ben came on and Liam went into attack and Oliver came off we made several attacking moves on the Bradford goal but the game ended 0-0.

For the next game Joseph and James stared as subs. We changed things about with Eddie going to the left wing, Jonnie was centre forward while Jake stayed on the right wing. On the odd occasion that Huddersfield attacked the defence of Will, Ben and Joseph cleared the ball and often turned an attack by Huddersfield into an attack for Thirsk. In one such attack Liam hit the ball into the “D” where Jake got the ball, turned and shot into the corner of the goal. Ben came off and James came on. Louie came off and Joseph came on. Joseph went up into attack , Jonnie went into midfield, all the midfielders still tracked back when Huddersfield did attack because we were attacking more than defending we defended higher up the pitch. From a short corner Eddie pushed the ball out to Jack who took on the Huddersfield defenders and struck the ball at the goalie who was behind the line the goal was given.The team kept looking for more goals with Oliver and Joseph creating some good chances to score.The game ended 2-0.   My thanks to all the parents who drove and supported the team and a special thanks to Dave Goswell for umpiring, I thought this is the best under 14′s boys team I’ve seen. These results put them in 5th position in the league of 16.

The under 14 boys were away at Huntington School for the last round of the season (20th Mar) against Nordest, currently second in the league, Slazengers and Sheffield Hallam who were also above Thirsk’s position 8.The first game against Nordest was the biggest challange and for the first 10 minutes Thirsk were able to keep them controlled with again some excellent goal keeping by Simon Cockerill. Defenders Andrew McCann, William Grainger and Jonathan Scalling being kept very busy. Eventually the pressure told and a goal came from a ball bouncing around in the D which eventually went in off Simons helmet. Two more followed shortly afterwards before Thirsk started to penetrate the Nordest defence. They were unlucky not to get a least one in return after a shot from Charlie Whitfield went just wide. A 3-0 loss. Next was Sheffield Hallam, playing with several borrowed players, but Thirsk were in good control for most of the game and a first goal by Charlie and then a second by Matthew Glegg sealed the 2-0 victory. This game was also won in mid field with strong running and tackling by Sam Gardiner and Oliver Hill. The last game against Slazengers was a closer affair and Slazengers nearly went into an early lead but the goal was disallowed; although it seemed ok to this manager! Thirsk were now pressing hard and wide control by Daniel Lawson and Joseph Shannon supporting forwards Nick Edwards, Jake Bowers and Anthony Gillard produced two goals for Sam, although Jake would claim an assist! Another 2-0 win. These two wins should ensure that THirsk are in the last 8 playoffs in April, the first time in the history of the junior section. A great days hockey. Well done to the players and thanks for the support from the many parents who travelled.

The under 14 boys were at Halifax for the playoffs for the top 8 teams. Having finished 5th in the league out of 16 was the best result yet for the team. They were drawn in a group with Ben Rhydding, Doncaster and Sheffield Hallam. The first game against Sheffield was very even and could have gone either way. Great saves by keeper Simon Cockerill kept Thirsk in the game and eventually Thirsk were rewarded with a goal by Anthony Gillard. Thirsk had a few more chances with pressure down the right from Daniel Lawson leading to strikes by Charlie Whitfield and Adam Snowden but the game finished 1-0. Next against Doncaster was a harder game and despite determined defence from William Grainger, Jonathan Scaling and Matthew Glegg, Doncaster were able to score from a short corner early in the game. Not upset Thirsk started back in the attack and following some strong passes into the D by Oliver Hill and a saved shot from Joseph Shannon, which Sam Gardiner finished off with a lifted strike outside the goalies reach. 1-1 and still in with a chance Thirsk continued to press but this left the defence exposed and Doncaster were able to run in a couple of goals from hard strikes into the D being deflected by their forwards and not giving Simon much of a chance. Despite more efforts on the Doncaster goal no more Thirsk goals were scored and Doncaster finished winners at 4-1. The last game against Ben Rhydding proved a game too far and despite substituting several players to try and keep fresh legs on the pitch, they were able to score 9 goals without reply. Partly this was due to William having to go off with a badly bruised knee from a rising ball, which meant rearranging the defence and that meant missing better cover of their forwards. Having a squad of 14 was a real bonus and the remaining players were Jake Bowers and Nick Edwards playing in mid field and Andrew McCann in defence. Thirsk came third in their group so did not get into the semi finals. Despite that it was good to get to this stage and thanks go to the parents who drove and supported and well done to the squad.

Back row L to R:
Oliver Hill, Antony Gillard, Sam Gardiner, William Grainger, Matthew Glegg, Charlie Whitfield, Andrew McCann, Joseph Shannon.
Front Row L to R:
Jake Bowers, Jonathan Scaling, Daniel Lawson, Simon Cockerill, Nick Edwards, Adam Snowden.

The under 14 boys team were in York for their next round in the Yorkshire Youth League. The opposition included the top of the table Ben Rhydding A team with also their B team and Rotherham. Thirsk started strongly against Ben Rhydding B and kept their attacks well under control. William Grainger providing a solid defence with Andrew McCann and Jonathan Scaling. Oliver Hill in central defence was able to easily move the ball up to the forward line and with a strong run into the opposition D Charlie Whitfield scored with a strong reverse strike. Shortly afterwards Joseph Shannon had a shot following a long corner which rattled into the back of the net. A 2-0 win to Thirsk. Thirsk were then straight on against Ben Rhydding A. It was expected to be a hard game but everyone stuck to their game and although Thirsk lost 3-0 this low score was down to good marking and a stunning game by goal keeper Simon Cockerill; a performance that generated praise from the Ben Rhydding coach and their players. The final game against Rotherham should have been another win but after the effort of the previous game Thirsk seemed to loose their way with slack marking and little passing. They were punished by an early goal from a short corner giving Rotherham the lead. This seemed to wake up our players and with some better control and movement leading to a scramble in the D providing a second goal of the day for Joseph. Daniel Lawson and Anthony Gillard completed the half back line with Adam Snowden and Nick Edwards up front. A 1-1 draw the final score. New player Jake Bowers took over the left wing role in the second game and proved a very usefull addition to the squad. Thanks to Dick Edwards for umpiring and parents as ever for driving.
On the 27th February the Thirsk under 10 girls team travelled to Weetwood, Leeds for their penultimate series of league fixtures this season. The girls got off to a great start earning a 1-0 win against Leeds Adel. This match saw great work from Marianne Morrice and Sophie Corner in the centre which led to Sophie taking an excellent opportunity and scoring for Thirsk. The second match proved tougher against Rotherham and resulted in a 1-1 draw. Throughout the match Gabby Bell played excellently in goal with Megan Allen making strong clearances further up the field and Sophie scoring another fantastic goal for Thirsk. The next game was against a strong Ben Rhydding and again, the Thirsk girls battled hard to hold them to 0-0. Good work from the midfield provided us with some opportunities to score although this was quickly turned around with the opposition making a break forward. Fern Watson never stopped working up and down the wing supporting the attack and also helping defend, helping the score to remain a draw. Unfortunately the next match ended in a 1-0 loss against Doncaster despite continuous hard work from Thirsk. Marianne was in goal for this match with Gabby in defence, both preventing the score line from being considerably more. The final match of the day was against Wakefield and all the girls put in all their remaining effort to earn a well deserved 2-0 win. Sophie Corner made some excellent shots which were unfortunately saved, although provided opportunity for Megan and Fern to follow up the shots and score. Thirsk girls worked exceptionally hard and deserved to gain the results that they did. Well done girls!

In the fourth round of the under 14 boys Yorkshire Youth league on Sunday 30th January, the boys were playing at Harrogate against York, Harrogate and Leeds Adel. The first game against Adel proved the easiest although goals were hard to come by. The Adel keeper saving several strong shots from the forwards, Charlie Whitfield, Joseph Shannon, Adam Snowden and Nick Edwards. Eventually Charlie managed to burst through a couple of defenders and celebrated when the ball found the back of the net. Despite further pressure Thirsk could not add to this. A 1-0 win. Next against York was end to end play with Thirsk again having several chances with strong runs from mid field by Sam Gardiner, Oliver Hill and Matthew Glegg. A 0-0 draw. Last game of the day against Harrogate was the decider and Thirsk did not have this game as well controlled and the defence of Daniel Lawson, Andrew McCann and William Grainger needed to be alert to give cover to keeper Liam Shannon. Another 0-0 draw. 5 points from a possible 9 means they keep their 7th place in the league out of 16 and may even have moved up places depending on other results. The team is playing well with a very strong chance of being in the last 8 playoffs at the end of the season. Thanks are due to parents for providing transport and umpiring duties.

The under 14 boys team travelled to Brigshaw High School on the 13th November for their next round in the Yorkshire Youth Hockey League. With a full squad of 12 including a goal keeper they were taking on Doncaster, Driffield and Bridlington. The first game against Bridlington produced a solid performance and with an open play goal by Sam Gardiner and a short corner strike by Charlie Whitfield, Thirsk ran out deserved winners 2-0. The next game against Driffield was a total reverse and even though the team had been rearranged to bolster the defence it turned into a one way process finishing as a 6-0 defeat. Simon Cockerill having his first game back in goal had a tough time, despite valiant defending by Nick Edwards, Andrew McCann and Oliver Hill. The last game against Doncaster started as the Driffield game ended and Thirsk were 3-0 down inside 10 minutes. Gradually Thirsk got back in the game and after another 2 goals by Doncaster the midfield of Joseph Shannon, Adam Snowden and Daniel Lawson started to get passes forward and produced two goals by Joe Shuttleworth that demonstrated it could be done. Matthew Clegg and Anthony Gillard took turns as substitutes and played in various positions in each game.
There is still work to be done against the stronger teams in understanding how to mark better and pass sooner but the overall result was a great effort especially to end with the two goals against Doncaster. Also thanks to the parents who drove and supported.

On Sunday 24th Thirsk under 14 boys played their first round in the Yorkshire youth league at Ben Rhydding hockey club. They played three games and came away with six points. The first was against Wakefield which proved a very even game with both sides finding chances in front of goal. The Thirsk defence of Liam Shannon in goal, with Andrew McCann and Joseph Shannon managing to clear away all serious attacks, ably supported by Oliver Hall. With strong running in mid field by Jack Holland supporting the forwards leading to a goal by Joe Shuttleworth to seal the result as a 1-0 win. Next came Huddersfield where the Thirsk running and passing produced some excellent chances with goals by Joe with three and then one by Daniel Lawson having a stunning game on the left wing. One mix up in defence allowed Huddersfield a consolation but a good 4-0 win was well deserved. Finally it was Bradford, who were the strongest team on the day and this kept all the team members which included Anthony Gillard and Charlie Whitfield fully occupied in trying to close down the Bradford attack. After several attacks by both sides Bradford managed to squeeze the ball past Liam and despite several late chances by Thirsk the final result was a 1-0 loss. The team played well and have really developed since last season. The passing and running have improved and with these sort of results the confidence is high. Thanks also go to the parents who drove and the two players we borrowed each game from other teams to cover the shortfall in our numbers.