Ladies 4s Match reports

Match Report by our anonymous author, known only as Mr Whistledown 😂 (apologies to any non-Bridgerton fans).

Anchorians Ladies 4’s were at home this week against a very athletic and youthful Sutton Valance side. The visitors arrived with a squad of 16 players compared to Anchorians’ bare 11, and there was certainly a touch of nervousness before pushback. Earlier in the season Sutton Valance had played exceptionally well and taken a convincing victory in the reverse fixture, so everyone knew this would be a tough test.

The nerves showed early. Sutton Valance pinned Anchorians deep from the start and no amount of Mrs Grey excellence in the centre-back role could initially get the team up the pitch. It didn’t take long for the pressure to tell. Four minutes in, a shot from the edge of the D was deflected onto a Sutton Valance stick at the back post and a simple tap-in made it 1–0 to the visitors.

If Sutton Valance thought that would settle things, they were mistaken.

Straight from the restart Anchorians stormed up the pitch and unleashed a series of attacking attempts. None could quite find the finish, but Sutton Valance suddenly found themselves pinned in their own final third for a solid four minutes as the home side pushed hard for an equaliser.

Between the 9th and 18th minute the game became very stop-start, with a flurry of free hits around the middle of the pitch. During this spell Sutton Valance began to threaten again through blistering counter-attacks, something that would remain a theme for much of the afternoon as Anchorians continued to search for the leveller.

Eventually it came.

A short corner – the fourth of the half for Anchorians – was awarded. Jess slipped the ball out to Hoppo who unleashed an almighty strike with her brand-new stick following last week’s unfortunate “stick snapping incident”. This time the equipment survived. The ball took a deflection and nestled into the bottom corner. The unmistakable thud of the backboard confirmed it.

1–1. Game on.

Anchorians sensed the momentum shifting. Over the next five minutes they went in search of the lead. Sián, exceptional in the middle of the park all afternoon, repeatedly pushed forward in support of the attacking trio and fired several shots at goal. Sutton Valance’s defence held firm, but the pressure was building.

Hoppo, rolling back the years on the right side of midfield, then produced a trademark driving run. Turning sharply with the ball quicker than the opposition could react, she forced an obstruction. From the resulting free hit she delivered a stunning driven ball across the face of goal to the back post, but nobody could quite get the vital touch.

That moment visibly lifted Anchorians and what followed in the final six minutes of the half was complete domination. Even when Sutton Valance managed to counter, Freya in the sweeper role was composed and highly effective, breaking down attack after attack. Jackie was equally assured at the back, reading the game brilliantly and making beautifully timed interceptions.

Tina, operating at full back, found space down the left and carried the ball forward before finding Lila, who won a sideline ball. The ball worked its way to Hoppo who appeared to have wandered across the pitch from her right midfield position to the left. She turned on a sixpence again, drew another obstruction and won another short corner.

The whistle for half-time went just as the short was awarded. One final action.

The ball was injected, Sián struck the shot, and it took a deflection on the way through and found the goal. Anchorians went into the break with a thoroughly deserved 2–1 lead.

The second half began exactly where the first had left off.

Three minutes in, a beautiful passage of play saw Jackie feed Hoppo, who produced a scintillating pass to Sián. She drove to the line and delivered a perfect ball to the back post where Peanut was inches away from finishing the move. It was stunning hockey.

Just sixty seconds later the same trio combined again down the right. The move once again found Peanut whose shot struck a foot and resulted in another short corner for Anchorians.

Nothing came from the short as Sutton Valance cleared down the Anchorians left. Tina collected the ball and played forward to Lila. Lila’s pass was intercepted and popped high into the D. Peanut showed remarkable maturity and confidence, calmly plucking the ball from the air before threading a perfect pass to the P-spot where Hoppo was waiting. The captain powered the ball home.

3–1. What a goal.

Further efforts from Leanne in the 7th minute and a Peanut swipe shortly after could not quite extend the lead.

Sutton Valance remained dangerous on the counter. In the 16th minute they broke with blistering pace but were stopped by an unbelievable last-ditch tackle from Mrs Grey. It was utterly beautiful – timed with precision and executed with brilliance.

Sadly there was no stopping the next attack. A well-worked move down the Sutton Valance right led to a simple tap-in at the back post.

3–2. Game very much alive again.

Anchorians’ response was immediate.

Less than a minute later the lead was extended once more as Hoppo smashed home another superbly worked goal to complete a well-deserved hat trick.

4–2 – and the captain was having quite the afternoon.

Despite dominating large spells, Anchorians could not quite find that fifth goal. Sutton Valance broke again and after some lovely play finished with a far-post tap-in to make it 4–3.

With the game finely balanced, Anchorians kept pushing.

On 28 minutes Lila produced a brilliant driving run down the left, full of power and determination. She slipped a beautifully weighted pass into Peanut who managed to get a strong shot away only for the keeper to make a very good save.

With 32 minutes gone another short corner was awarded. Sián’s initial shot was cleared but the ball was recycled back into the D where Hoppo struck again. The shot deflected kindly onto the stick of birthday girl Jessica who managed to guide it goalwards via another deflection.

A birthday goal.

5–3.

A perfect moment to cap off a brilliant team performance.

This win has been coming for weeks. The continuity in selection, the passion shown week after week, and the learning from each match are really beginning to show.

Players’ Player of the Match: Lila, who delivered another outstanding performance well beyond her years.
A special mention must also go to the captain and hat-trick hero Hoppo, who rolled back the years with a tremendous display from right midfield.

An excellent performance, an excellent win, and fully deserved.

Well done ladies. Very well done.

Anchorians travelled to Marden Russets on an incredibly bitter morning, with a wind that had everyone wishing they had packed an extra layer — and possibly a small portable heater. There was genuine surprise that Frances didn’t have one to be fair, as she arrived as prepared as ever with everything else!

The day began in slightly chaotic fashion with Hoppo confidently heading to Sutton Valance for the away fixture — which wouldn’t have been an issue if we were actually playing Sutton Valance. Unfortunately, we were playing Marden! An early shout for Special. After a swift reroute, she arrived ready to go and, as ever, brought the intensity.

Marden started quickly, shooting wide on three minutes and flashing balls across the face of goal on minutes six and nine as they tried to assert early control.

The back four of Jackie, Hoppo, Freya and Frances were outstanding in the first half — calm, composed and reading the game brilliantly under pressure. Freya in particular stepped into that defensive midfield role time and time again, cutting out play and anticipating danger with impressive awareness.

Midway through the half came what will surely go down as a legendary Hoppo moment. One trademark thunderbolt free hit later and her stick snapped clean in half. Not chipped. Not cracked. Properly halved. The sound echoed. The ball survived. The stick did not.

Jessica was lively throughout, driving forward on 12 and 16 minutes to get strong shots away as Anchorians showed they were very much in the contest. Both times she got the run on her opponent and showed great strength against a very physical defender.

Marden eventually took the lead on 18 minutes with a sharp finish.

Char, who was phenomenal throughout, responded moments later with an excellent one-on-one save.

Anchorians soon created another chance themselves. A slick through ball from Sian on 22 minutes found Leanne at the far post, but her effort was well saved by the Marden keeper.

Charlotte continued to produce top-class saves, including a brilliant diving stop on 24 minutes and a strong save high to her left on 30.

Nat then flashed an effort across goal on 27 minutes that was begging for a touch to make it 1–1, but sadly none was forthcoming.

There was then a highly controversial moment involving Hoppo. A Marden player very clearly backed into her, with Hoppo raising both hands to indicate exactly that. What followed was baffling — the umpire awarded Hoppo a green card for what he described as a “clear push in the back”. How something that didn’t actually happen could be described as clear remains something of a mystery.

This proved to be a real turning point. With Hoppo temporarily off the pitch, Marden were able to score their second and take control of the game late in the half.

Second Half

The second half saw Marden’s youthful legs — and their impressive 17-player rotation — begin to tell. They stretched the scoreline early on, scoring three goals in a six-minute period.

But Anchorians never stopped competing — something that has become a real hallmark of this team throughout the season.

On 29 minutes into the second half came a stunning move and a passage of exceptional hockey from Anchorians. Freya won a tackle in midfield and found Meg with a beautifully weighted pass. Meg then picked out Nat out wide, who gathered the ball and played a delightful pass into space ahead of her.

Jess latched onto it, showing great strength to nudge past her opponent before embarking on a brilliant run down the line. Cutting inside and driving into the D with real intent, she got her shot away early and with power, forcing an excellent save from the keeper. Sian reacted quickest to the rebound and looked certain to score, only for her follow-up effort to be blocked. It was an incredible move from start to finish — sharp, direct, fearless hockey that lifted both the team and the sidelines.

Meanwhile, Char continued her heroic display in goal, saving everything from close-range strikes to point-blank efforts — including one particularly memorable stop with her head. Not textbook, but extremely effective.

Lila once again showed strength and resilience, getting stuck in and showing positive aggression throughout. Peanut matched a physically bigger opponent shoulder to shoulder and never once took a backward step.

Player of the Match quite rightly went to Char in goal — facing a barrage of shots and producing countless saves in a performance full of grit and bravery.

Special, of course, went to Hoppo.

It was a tough scoreline, but the performance was packed with character, courage and moments of genuine quality against a Marden team who are clearly playing in a league far below their true level.

What is increasingly clear, however, is that the 4s continue to grow as a team each week — learning more about each other’s play and improving together. If the positives from this week and last are anything to go by, this is a group that could do something very exciting.

Anchorians 4s hosted Faversham this morning, with the visitors sitting just one place above Anchs in the league — a perfect opportunity to close the gap.

Faversham started quickly, applying early pressure and pinning Anchorians into their own half. After 15 minutes they took the lead, somewhat against the run of play, just as the 4s were beginning to grow into the game.

It soon became clear that Faversham’s real pace was concentrated in attack. Their midfield pushed high but struggled to recover, and this allowed the Anchorians forward line of Jess, Sian and Peanut to find pockets of space and create several promising entries into the D.

Lila once again showed maturity and strength beyond her years. Her overlapping runs were a constant threat, delivering dangerous balls into the circle — alongside some incredible tracking back to support defensively. One exquisite overlap produced a delivery that looked certain to drop perfectly for Peanut, but it just wouldn’t quite fall. Moments later, again against the run of play, Faversham doubled their lead.

Rather than heads dropping, the response was immediate and emphatic.

Anchorians pinned Faversham deep for sustained periods and were rewarded right on the stroke of half time when Evie unleashed a superb strike to pull it back to 2–1.

The second half picked up exactly where the first ended, with Anchorians dominating both territory and tempo.

Freya delivered a defensive masterclass at times, breaking up play and allowing the team to maintain momentum. In central midfield, Panda was outstanding — her quick free hits repeatedly finding Sian and Jess and creating wave after wave of attack.

Peanut’s new-found poacher’s instinct saw her constantly in the right positions. Although the finishing touch proved elusive, her movement and work rate were relentless.

The pressure finally told when a perfectly weighted ball to the back post found Jessica, who calmly slotted home to level the score at 2–2. Game on.

What followed was a nine-minute spell of complete Anchorians control, producing some of the best hockey played this season. Slick movement between Lila, Panda and Sian carved out what looked like Jessica’s second, only for the goal to be ruled out for a foot in the build-up.

Still level, Anchorians pushed higher in search of a third. Unfortunately, Faversham’s pace on the counter proved decisive, restoring their lead at 3–2. As the 4s continued to chase the equaliser — winning four consecutive short corners — another counter attack allowed Faversham to add a fourth.

With Izzy, Evie and Jackie all picking up injuries, and spells where the side was reduced to ten players, the effort and commitment never wavered.

The scoreline may raise eyebrows, but the performance was full of character, quality and pride.

Player of the Match — rightly so — went to Lila.

Special mention to Peanut.

A hugely encouraging display that gives the 4s real confidence heading into a tough test against Marden next week.

2-0

Ladies 4s travelled to Burnt Ash with the bare 11 again — becoming something of a habit 🙃😂

The weather was grim, and we knew it would be tough.

First Half

We started well, playing some lovely balls through and defending beautifully. Jackie, Freya, Frances and Hoppo at the back, with Char in goal, were outstanding. Goal-line stops, huge clearances and some brilliant saves from Char kept us in it.

Sophie was unfortunately forced off early with a high stick, leaving us with 10 while she recovered — but true grit saw her return not long after, giving everything.

Jess and Frankie found great spaces, Denise filtered balls through the right effortlessly, and Lila’s positioning on the left allowed Frankie and Freya to switch play nicely.

Despite all that, we went in 2–0 down.

Second Half

The pattern continued — strong play from us, Burnt Ash pushing hard, and their ability to rotate subs starting to show.

From numerous short corners, they only managed to convert one. A penalty flick was later awarded against us (despite Hoppo’s stick being yanked out of her hand moments earlier 👀), but Char produced an incredible save 🥳

By the end we were blowing hard but still fighting. I forced a save with a shot I should’ve done better with, and Jess made some fantastic runs to create pressure, though we couldn’t convert.

Final score: 5–0 — but far closer in effort than that suggests.

Other Highlights

Sophie & Frankie distracting opponents by pointing out helicopters and planes 😂

Jess bravely receiving hurtling hits from Hoppo 😁

Frances doing her best Pelé impression 😝 

Me acquiring several cheese-based nicknames 🤣

Player of the Match: Jess (7 votes) 🥳

Special: Me (8 votes 🤣)

2-1

2-0

1-2

Report by Sian

The Ladies 4s made the soggy journey down to a very wet Canterbury to take on Uni of Kent. The pre-match talk went really well, with the juniors giving us confidence by remembering everything we’d taught them — always a win.

There was some pre-pushback uncertainty with only one umpire and just ten of them until five minutes before the start, but despite the rain (and ongoing glove-related issues), we went forth!

First Half

The first half was genuinely brilliant. We had some excellent breaks, with all the juniors in midfield and up front showing just how much their games have developed. I managed to fluff a shot (obviously), but we were straight back in again with Jess and Peanut causing problems for the keeper. Lila and Charli followed up brilliantly, always in the right place for rebounds.

We created several more chances like this — some from Hoppo smashing precision balls through the lines, others from great play out of defence. We were unlucky not to find the back of the net.

All of this happened while dealing with constant interruptions from footballs flying across the pitch. Poor Hoppo had to look where she was hitting the ball and check behind her at the same time to avoid clattering an unsuspecting human wandering across the pitch.

Despite that, the first half showed just how much our juniors have progressed since the start of the season — massive pride 😍

Second Half

With only the bare 11 against their 13, legs understandably started to go. That said, we stayed strong defensively, with Char making some excellent saves and Hoppo, Denise, Frances, Jackie and Freya being rock solid at the back.

Some of the clearances were outstanding, and our tackling clearly frustrated them. They didn’t have many shots, but did manage to sneak in two questionable goals, followed by a third not long after 🙃

Even then, we fought right to the final whistle. Charli, Lila, Jess, Peanut and myself ran ourselves into the ground, tracking back and pushing forward again and again.

Final Thoughts

Proud moments all round:

Several older players managing not to get carded 🙈

Denise having to explain a few things to players on both teams 🫣

Our young players dealing brilliantly with rudeness and some very expressive facial reactions 👌🏼

Player of the Match could genuinely have gone to anyone, but this week it went to Charli 🥳

Special mentions to Lila for an outrageous comment 😝 and to me for being… me 🤷🏻‍♀️

Onwards and upwards to next week 🤩💜

The Ladies 4s travelled to Sutton Valence in a sadly depleted state, taking to the field with just 10 players, including a very poorly Jessica whose resilience simply to be there was nothing short of exceptional. Their opponents, meanwhile, lined up with a youthful squad complete with a strong bench.

Despite the numerical disadvantage from the first whistle, the first half was a remarkably tight affair. Every player worked at an incredible level, covering ground, doubling up, and making life difficult for Sutton Valence at every turn. It was genuinely a joy to watch the effort and commitment on display.

A standout performer in the opening period was young Charli Pitcher, whose calmness on the ball and decision-making were assured well beyond her years. She was joined by her mum, Francis, making her return to the pitch for the first time in over three years and instantly showing that class and composure never truly disappear.

Despite all the grit and organisation, the physical toll of being a player down eventually told, and Anchs went into the break 3–0 down.

A midfield reshuffle and change of formation at half time brought renewed structure, but against a large and energetic Sutton Valence squad, the second half became increasingly challenging. Energy levels inevitably dropped after the extraordinary work rate of the opening 35 minutes.

Sian found herself in several promising positions going forward, but with legs tiring across the pitch, Anchs simply could not get numbers forward quickly enough to support the attacks.

The adversity did not stop there. Peanut was forced off for five minutes after a knock, and Hoppo was also briefly sidelined following a painful foot smash. This meant Anchs played two spells with just nine players. With so many players running on empty, the pressure eventually told, and Sutton Valence were able to convert their chances.

The match finished 7 to 1 which is a scoreline that flatters Sutton Valence massively. Despite playing the entire game with 10 players and periods with only 9, the Anchs players out fought, out worked and out hearted their opponents from start to finish.

An immense amount of pride should be taken from today’s performance. The spirit, resilience and togetherness shown were outstanding. On to the next one.

Anchorians 2-4 Marden

Faversham 3-0 Anchorians

Anchorians 2-4 Burnt Ash

Anchorians 3s 1-0 Anchorians 4s

Fresh from a 6–0 win the previous week, Gore Court arrived confident and ready. For Anchorians Ladies 4s, this was their competitive league debut and they showed right from the off that they were no easy opposition.

A very thorough pre-match team talk set the tone, ensuring everyone knew their role and what was expected of them. The first half was a cagey affair, both teams not really testing each other. Anchorians, in their usual white and purple, were exceptionally disciplined and organised, limiting Gore Court to virtually no chances. The only real threat came on 30 minutes with the first short corner of the game, but the defence held strong and Emily in goal was outstanding, a theme that continued all afternoon.

After the break, tactical changes brought a more dominant midfield display. Denise and Sian combined to form a dynamic and tireless central pairing, while Hoppo in her familiar sweeper role and Jackie who was making her first start in the centre of defence were she impressed and a wonderful calmness, stood firm. Rosa and Carrie were equally reliable on the flanks of defence, coming up with some incredible goal line saves and playing with real determination.

Anchorians’ resilience shone through in a spell of four consecutive short corners, where every player dug deep to keep Gore Court at bay. As the game opened up, Jessica and Peanut began to find pockets of space on the right, with Sian and Charli pushing hard on the left. Despite heroic defending from Hoppo, Anchorians were finally undone from a short corner sequence, Gore Court breaking the deadlock 18 minutes into the second half.

Heads never dropped. If anything, the goal lifted Anchorians further. Their work rate and togetherness was clear for all to see. In the 33rd minute, a slick move starting from Hoppo’s inch-perfect pass to Sian nearly brought reward. A sharp one-two with Charli released Peanut through on goal, with Sian bursting into the D and Jess darting towards the back post. Sadly, the final pass just slipped away, but the move itself was a glimpse of the quality this side is building.

Special mention must also go to Lila, whose selfless work in shackling Gore Court’s number 16 completely nullified their playmaker.

The game ended 1-0 to Gore Court, but the performance was far greater than the scoreline suggested. This was not just a group of individuals, it was a team fighting for each other, working tirelessly and showing the potential to become a real force once they settle into their roles.

Players of the Match (as voted by the team)

• Sian for her relentless energy and work rate in midfield, a true player of the match performance.

• Jessica for her clever movement and creation of space up front

• Lila for her tireless work rate and excellent man-marking display

• Special Mention: Peanut, for briefly losing her head and concentration in attack but making up for it by looking stylish with tape stuck to her head

Game not played.