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Men and Ladies 1st Reports

Men and Ladies 1st Reports

Liz Spencer12 Nov 2014 - 07:55
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Disappointing Results for the top teams

Written by Dave Wright - Evening Post

Mens
Brooklands MU 5 Reading 4

READING threw away a four-goal lead in dramatic style at Manchester University on Sunday.
A flying start saw Blues score four times in the opening 15 minutes.
But they then failed to prevent the home side from hitting back to record their first NOW: Pensions League win of the season.
Reading team manager Chris Davey described it as a ‘bizarre game’, adding: “We played so well in patches and so badly at other times.”
It all looked good for his side as they strolled into the lead with goals from Ben Boon, in the first and fifth minutes, Dan Shingles in the ninth and Jack Clee on 15 minutes.
Reading were good value for their lead and the home side looked to be heading for another big defeat, having suffered two 7-1 reverses in recent weeks.
But Brooklands, urged on by a vocal crowd, edged their way back into the game, gaining momentum with every goal scored.
Stefan Ray-Hills opened their account in the 19th minute and Peter Flanagan added a second in the 24th minute with Oliver Clarke notching a third on the half-hour mark.
Davey said: “All credit to them (Brooklands) for their fightback, but we should still have been professional enough to control the game and press them back.
“Instead, a few silly mistakes crept in and the latter part of the first half was probably the worst we've played all year.”
The Manchester side, catching Reading out with long aerial balls, leveled the scores through Phil Dutoy after 45 minutes and 10 minutes later a penalty stroke saw Flanagan put them ahead.
Reading had most of the second-half play and were camped in the Brooklands half for the last 15 minutes of the game, but were foiled by some good saves from the home keeper.
Davey added: “We need to build on the good passages of play which we produced and bounce back against Cannock on Saturday.”
The match at Sonning Lane has a 4.30pm push back.​

Ladies
Reading 1 Holcombe 4

Kate Richardson​-Walsh returned to the Reading side on Saturday, ​but walked in to what can only be described as a bad day at the office.
Blues were blown apart as unbeaten Holcombe scored four goals in a 20-minute spell before half-time.
For the rest of this Investec League game Reading never looked like conceding any more goals and they did manage to pull one back. But, with an attack missing the injured Alex Danson, Blues didn’t have the fire power to make their scoreline look any more respectable.
​Richardson-Walsh was playing her first game since leading England to a bronze medal in the Glasgow Commonwealth Games​.
​She only returned home from a five-week trip around the world the week before and had one training session last Wednesday.
“It is good to be back although the result was disappointing,” she said.​
With Richardson-Walsh returning along with Leah Wilkinson and Emily Maguire both after injury, coach Merijn van Willigen had plenty of defensive options.
​But he looked as shocked as everyone else as sloppy defending was punished by the visitors.
Players, including keeper Sarah Ellis, were drawn out of position and this left Lauren Osborn with a simple tap-in in the 13th minute.
Ellis managed to scramble the ball away in Holcombe’s next attack, but more poor covering by her defenders saw Lucy Wood double the visitors’ lead in the 24th minute. And Blues’ woes were doubled when Wood, from a penalty stroke, and Laura Unsworth scored in the 32nd and 33rd minutes.
Reading looked better organised in the second half and had more of the game. But they managed just one goal, which came in the 45th minute from Charlotte Daly, their youngest player.

Reading meet University of Birmingham at home on Sunday (1.30pm).

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