Football match report vs Ashover

On Monday 21st October Stretton Handley welcomed league leaders Ashover for their final football match before the winter break.

Stretton were again without co captain and leading scorer MH but that didn’t stop their enthusiasm and effort. With GT in goal Stretton started well and he made 2 excellent saves in the opening 5 minutes. LH, BP and FT were solid in defence and frustrated the Ashover attackers. TB continued her impressive start in the team with an excellent block to prevent another attack. Unfortunately TB had to come off injured which left Stretton with no subs, just the 7 players on the field.

FH and SB kept making runs to try and create space to receive the ball and CG had a fantastic dribble down the wing which resulted in FH making a good cross only for the Ashover keeper to gather the ball. Ashover managed to eventually find the net and in doing so created a few nerves in the Stretton defence. Half time 4-0.

LH went in goal for the second half and he carried on where GT left off by making some tremendous saves. GT had a few excellent dribbles and made some good shots at goal but Ashover are top of the league and undefeated for a reason and didn’t let GT score. BP continued to make some outstanding defensive blocks and tackles to help LH out in goal but again Ashover managed to score.

Stretton started to tire towards the end of the game and with no substitutes available they had to continue to play the best they could. Ashover managed a few late goals and it finished 7-0.

Player of the match BP.

Football match report v Sharley Park

On a very boggy pitch on Thursday 17th October Stretton Handley welcomed Sharley Park.

Stretton Handley’s top scorer MH was unavailable due to illness but this didn’t stop the team from battling and trying their best throughout!

GT started in goal and made some fantastic saves with again good defending from FT, SB, TB and LH. Unfortunately, GT couldn’t stop everything and at half time the score was 6-0.

LH went in goal for the second half and again made some stunning saves and with GT now outfield Stretton grew in confidence and created some good chances. CG, BP and FH started to link together well, allowing GT to dribble freely around players only for the Sharley Park goalkeeper to make some good saves.

Unfortunately. the match finished 12-0 but the scoreline wasn’t true for the amount of effort that the Stretton Handley team put in.

Player of the match GT.

Next match at home vs Ashover on Monday 21st October (last match before winter break).

Futsal tournament

On Monday 14th October Stretton Handley took part in a indoor ‘futsal’ tournament at Queens Park Sport and Leisure Centre. A five-a-side format with rolling substitutes, small pitches and smaller balls suited Stretton Handley well and this proved on the pitch!

Stretton came away from the tournament in 6th place out of the 10 teams in attendance. They finished 3rd in their group and played some excellent futsal throughout, with MH scoring 6 goals and even FH (YEAR 3!) scoring a goal. They managed to win 1 game, draw 1 game and lose 3 games.

Results were as follows:

Stretton Handley 0 – 4 Sharley Park A

Stretton Handley 2 – 2 Grassmoor           (Goals MH x 2)

Stretton Handley 2 – 1 Hunloke B            (Goals MH x 2)

Stretton Handley 0 – 8 Deer Park A

Stretton Handley 3 – 4 Deer Park B         (Goals MH x 2, FH x 1)

An excellent performance by the team!

 

Football match report v Park House

On a wet cold Thursday afternoon, Stretton travelled to the much bigger Park House primary school. They arrived to see what looked like 11 a side adult nets which caused a little worry and panic amongst some of the team. Unfortunately that sense of fear and anxiety showed on the pitch and within 5 minutes Stretton were 4 nil down.

Stretton didn’t give up however and MH continued to shoot when he could at the huge nets. The Park House goal keeper was very tall and managed to save a lot. SB and LH also continued to tackle and block and these 2 players proved a nuisance for Park House.

At 6-0 SB made a good tackle and played the ball forwards for MH to run onto. MH dribbled past a defender and blasted the ball into the bottom corner! 6-1. Park House managed to score a couple more to make the half time score 8-1.

GT came out of goal in the second half and his fitness around the pitch along with MH making more and more outstanding saves made life much more difficult for Park House. SB continued to impress making tackles and getting the ball out of the Stretton half. BP, CG and FH started to look more energetic and that allowed TB to grow in confidence in defence in her first game for Stretton Handley.

At 10-1 FT  managed to force the attacker wide allowing MH to grab the ball and throw it forwards to SB who quickly turned and passed to GT who ran through and calmly slotted the ball past the keeper to make it 10-2. Stretton continued to battle but unfortunately in the huge nets they couldn’t keep everything out and the match finished 14-2.

Well played by the team in tough conditions with nets far bigger than what Stretton are used to.

Player of the match SB.

Next match at home vs Sharley Park on Thursday 17th October.

Football match report v Grassmoor

On Thursday 3rd October Stretton Handley welcomed Grassmoor for their second match of the season.

Stretton started well with LH, FH and BP making some fantastic blocks and tackles to keep the score 0-0. Stretton defended well throughout the half with GT again making some fantastic saves in the Stretton goal. MH always looked dangerous in attack with plenty of dribbles and a few good shots, one in which the Grassmoor keeper made an incredible save. CG and SB were always in support of MH and made some good interceptions in order for him to drive forwards.

Eventually, from a corner, Grassmoor scored a good header to take the lead and from kick off a second goal followed. Half time 2-0.

GT and MH swapped positions for the second half and again both players shone with their performances on the pitch. MH making save after save in the goal and GT’s fitness was pivotal in creating opportunities for Stretton to score. FT and LH also had a stunning half with both players quick to close down attackers and tackle/block shots. LH made 2 goal line clearances and made an incredible header to prevent a through ball.

With 5 minutes to go Grassmoor scored again to make it 3-0 but that didn’t stop the Stretton team who managed to score a fantastic goal to make it 3-1. A good tackle by LH left FH with the ball who played it forwards to GT who dribbled through and smashed his shot into the bottom corner! Finally in the last minute Grassmoor grabbed a late goal to make it 4-1.

Player of the match LH.

A fantastic effort from a young inexperienced Stretton team who continue to grow in confidence each week. Well done Stretton Handley!

Next match Thursday 10th October away against Park House.

Football match report v Tupton

On Monday 23rd September, Stretton Handley football team started their season with a tough away match against Tupton.

Stretton Handley have a new, younger, less experienced team this year so an early start to the season is good for their development.

With last years top scorer in goal MH, Stretton looked strong and made some terrific tackles in defence with BP, LH and FT all contributing to stop Tupton taking the lead. MH in goal was outstanding and produced some stunning saves to keep the game close. Eventually Tupton broke through and managed to score 3 in the first half.

With GT in midfield though, Stretton always had a chance and he looked energetic when he played SB through only for the Tupton keeper to close the ball down well. FH (the only Y3 on the field!) made an impressive start and managed to make a crucial tackle to stop another goal near the end of the half. Half Time 3-0.

GT went in goal in the second half allowing MH to play in midfield. Both players didn’t disappoint with MH scoring 2 fantastic goals one of which he dribbled round 3 Tupton players from his own half before slotting the ball into the bottom corner. GT also made some tremendous saves to keep the score down but eventually again Tupton managed to break through and score a further 4 goals to complete the match 7-2.

An excellent effort from a young, inexperienced team who will grow and develop throughout the season. Well played Stretton Handley!

Player of the match – MH.

Next match – Thursday 3rd October at home against Grassmoor.

Kwik Cricket Tournament

The Kwik Cricket team did an incredible job finishing runners up in the whole tournament.  The team won their group winning all three matches, beating Ashover A by 91 runs, Deer Park B by 40 runs and Sharley Park by 23 runs.  In the semi-final they beat Holmgate A by 53 runs. They were just pipped to the post by Deer Park A  in the final losing our by 15 runs.  An excellent performance by all the team.

Football match report vs North Wingfield

On a warm sunny spring afternoon (Thursday 28th March), Stretton Handley had a home football match against North Wingfield. It was the first time Stretton had played a home match since October!

Straight away North Wingfield started strong and began to attack the Stretton defence. A couple of early saves from MH settled the goal keeper down, however KH, GH and RJ looked nervous. A good run by an attacker had the defenders in trouble and eventually he was tripped to the ground. Penalty to North Wingfield. MH couldn’t save the powerful strike, 0-1 North Wingfield.

Stretton started to concentrate and play better once they were losing. Some good skill by LR left him with a chance to shoot and he smashed the ball towards the goal and it beat the goalkeeper but bounced back off the post. Half time 0-1.

GT came in to the middle of defence in the second half and it completely changed the game. He didn’t allow the attackers any space to shoot which meant that MH, LR and LH had more time to control the game. A long throw in from LH fell to MH who turned and shot. The keeper saved it but LR followed in and tapped the ball into the net, 1-1.

Stretton were full of confidence now and within 2 minutes had scored again to take the lead. Another long throw from LH saw the ball come to LR who turned and passed to MH who shot the ball low into the bottom corner, 2-1 Stretton.

North Wingfield tried to get back into the game and had a couple of attacks but GT made sure that goalkeeper MH didn’t have a save to make as he tackled or blocked every shot. GT also managed to get forward for one of LH throw ins, which seemed to cause problems for North Wingfield all game, and he shot low only for the keeper to make a good save.

Finally with 5 minutes left MH rifled a powerful effort from near the half way line into the roof of the net to put the cherry on the cake and seal the win, 3-1 Stretton.

A fantastic comeback from being 1-0 down at half time to win 3-1. Well played Stretton Handley!

Player of the match GT with a fantastic second half defending masterclass!

Next game Park House away on Thursday 11th April.

Football match report vs Grassmoor

On a beautiful sunny spring afternoon (Wednesday 20th March), the Stretton Handley team travelled to Grassmoor for their first league match after the winter break.

Stretton started very well and within 4 minutes took the lead through a wonderful strike by LH as she swept the ball into the bottom corner. 1-0. However Stretton looked nervous in defence and gave away a corner which resulted in a cross hitting a defender and trickling into the net, 1-1. Stretton lost their concentration and again from a corner the Grassmoor attacker scored a good header which put them in the lead. Stretton equalised soon after with a long throw from LH which was flicked on by LR allowing MH to tap the ball into the net, 2-2. Just before half time GH and GT made a couple of good tackles but couldn’t stop a long range shot which flew past goalkeeper MH. Half time 3-2 Grassmoor.

After a team talk involving shooting more and being tighter in defense, Stretton scored in the first minute of the second half to equalise. A good tackle and pass by RJ left LR with the ball near the half way line. LR looked up and fired a rifle of a shot into the top corner. Nobody would have saved the strike! 3-3. Stretton grew in confidence and KH played a good ball to LH who managed to knock it forwards to MH who dribbled through and shot into the roof of the net, too powerful for the keepers out reached arm. Stretton were back in the lead, 4-3.

With 10 minutes to go a good piece of skill from the Grassmoor attacker saw him through on goal and he slotted it into the net to equalise and create a tense finish. 4-4. A tactical change saw LR move into defence to prevent Grassmoor from scoring anymore and it worked! Stretton piled on the pressure to try and score the winner but a counter attack from Grassmoor meant that the striker had what appeared to be a clear shot of goal. Up stepped LR with a diving block followed by Stretton goalkeeper MH to make a magnificent save with his legs to keep the score at 4-4.

With 1 minute left Stretton completed the comeback win. MH put pressure on a short goal kick by Grassmoor and managed to win the ball from the defender and then dribbled into the box and slotted the ball coolly into the bottom corner to complete his hat trick and the win for Stretton Handley 5-4.

What an end to end game with lots of good attacking on show by both teams. The Stretton team really played the game in good spirit with excellent support from the travelling parents. Player of the match, MH.

Next match is Thursday 28th March at home vs North Wingfield.

Futsal Tournament

On Wednesday 14th November 2018, Stretton Handley CE Primary School took park in the Y5 and Y6 Futsal tournament at Queen’s Park Sport and Leisure Centre in Chesterfield.

With a much smaller and heavier ball than a normal football and only 5-a-side, with smaller pitches and bigger goals, the sport is quite different to football. It is very fast-paced and constant with hardly any outs.

Stretton Handley performed brilliantly, reaching the quarter finals and only losing out 4-3 to the eventual finalists!

Results:

Stretton Handley 2-3 Deer Park A

Stretton Handley 1-2 Holmgate A

Stretton Handley 0-2 Hunloke

Stretton Handley 4-1 Tupton

QUARTER FINAL Stretton Handley 3-4 Deer Park B

The children really enjoyed this energetic new sport and hopefully will take part again!