AGS Netball: Adams' vs. Church Village, 1st Team

The match was played in the gorgous surroundings of Church village and following the win by the second team, we were anxious to also take our first victory.
By the end of the first quarter the score was 4-6 to Church Village. Both teams started strongly and it was a closely contested match. After the hard Silver raders game of the evening before, everyone was ready to play a hard game of physical netball, which we we certainly given.
In the second quarter the score was 3-5, and so brought the overall score to 7-11. Time was taken 2 minutes from the end of the quarter to take time for Lucy who had been elbowed in the nose and so had a nose bleed. But she played on for the final 2 mins where the team played excellantly, despite the set back.
In the the third quarter Harriet was subsituted for Miss Jones. This was to give the team a fresh pair of legs for the final half, because after over half way through all the games on tour tiredness was beginning to show. The score was brought to 12-14.
In the final quarter, excellent interceptions and shooting drew the Adams' team to a 15 all draw. However, in the final 2 minutes, the oppositon pulled ahead to win by 3 goals.
After the match we were informed that the team which we so nearly beat, had 2 National Barbados players who had competed internationally. Their GS and GD had played outstandingly, and Adams' had given them a good fight finishing with a final score of 16-19.

Day 6 - Fourth Hockey Match

Adams turned up in the morning ready to play for the second time in less than 24 hours, against a once again strong Barbados u21 team. On paper it was yet another monumental task, however we all know paper has never won a hockey game before. We started strongly and applied pressure to the Barbados U21 team, which won us two short corners, the second of which Tom Widdows scored with a well placed flick. The Bajans tried a variety of tactics but were unable to break down a stubborn Adams' defense. Concentration eventually wavered unfortunately and the home team seized the opportunity, quickly scoring with some individual skill and luck. The half ended with a barrage of Adams' chances. The half time whistle blew before this could come to any consequence however. 1-1. All level. After a quick break, Adams' went back out for the second half fired up and more determined than ever with the prospect of our first win on tour. Lower temperatures a sea breeze both played in to the hands of the tourists, leading to a high work rate with the forwards running the international standard defense ragged. The intensity increased from both sides with a frustrating lack of end product. 70 minutes came to a close with the scores still level. Penalty flicks were in order. After picking themselves up from a fruitless second half, Adams’ rose to the occasion, winning 4-3 in a tense showdown of skill and composure. This meant Adams' won their first game on tour. Pete Grech was awarded man of the match after his instrumental work which has been evident throughout tour. Tour 2011 debutant Ian Armstrong also had a strong game orchestrating play from the midfield, pulling the strings in an overall fantastic team performance.

Day 5- Third Hockey Match

Off the back of two defeats to the U21 Barbados National team, it was time to face their U18 side. Unlike previous encounters we started with an all L6th XI in order to gel as a team in preparation for next year. 

AGS were quick off the mark, hassling and harrying the opposition. In what was a gritty first 10 minutes, concentration and determination were key in the explosive start. Unfortunately we conceded against the run of play, but heads did not drop. Immediate pressure saw the Bajans on the back foot, with David Bentham surging into opposition territory on numerous occasions and Cameron Law's inspired efforts catching the eyes of many and the hearts of some.

Hard work paid dividends after admirable work from David Bentham and Nick Middleton set up Raj Sandhu to pounce from 7 yards. At 1-1 Adams' were dominant for extended periods until a couple of mistakes and some ruthless finishing left the home team leading 3-1 at half time.

After the break the opposition 'half-court press' stifled the flow of the game, arguably in the home team's favour. With a thirst for possession Adams' pressed from the front. A couple of quickfire injuries upset the dynamics of the Adams' team and the already high work-rate was pushed to a near-frantic level. A piece of brilliant individual skill saw AGS undeservedly go 4-1 down and again it seemed as if the Bajans would walk away with a flattering victory. Adams' reduced the deficit with a fine first-time strike from eventual Man of the Match Alex Gray.

Valiant efforts across the pitch allowed Adams' to more than hold their own against a strong U18 National side, but what I suppose is most pleasing is that there were clear spells of AGS dominance. Perhaps if we had faced such a team earlier in the week the outcome would have been different. No matter though, plenty of positives have left the squad optimistic for their last two games. On to the next one.