On Sunday 16th of November, an intrepid and fighting fit UoB team arrived in Leicester with all 8 players making their debut for the university after an intensive 2 month training schedule lead by Rick Scowcroft, of the Wales international team. Every player on the team scored at least 1 goal which is really quite rare and remarkable particularly given the lack of experience on the team and is certainly a testament to the coaching at the club.
Emma Tillbrook doubled the other 7 in the team’s effort by scoring 2 and one would suggest she was the star player , having scored with ease and kept the team motivated throughout the match with her calming influence, however, the even split in goals was quite demonstrative of a team all working and improving at a rapid and similar rate.
The Leicester team were somewhat strong and offered a mix of youth and experience with some pacey and skilful players being completely shut down by a seemingly watertight defence from UoB. Their 3 goals were all superb and demonstrated what might have been if UoB’s defence hadn’t been quite as good as it was.
After Tom Burnett scored in the opening minute of the game, deadlock was held at 1-1 for quite some time, a goal spree seemed to truly commence after a storming long range goal from Andrew Spencer seemed to rile the troops and the floodgates opened with several goals being scored in a short space of time. The referee was rather severe, particularly on line calls and an inexperienced but talented UoB 3 fell afoul of this many times, perhaps learning some of the more intricate rules of the game the hard way.
The game was played in good spirits despite a few head on collisions and rule infringements including the ball being accidentally launched at the face of the opposition’s star player by an apologetic Alex Quy. UoB had 0 substitutes but fitness levels were not an issue for the team who have undergone intensive speed, endurance and agility drills with Alex Seabright. It is perhaps fair to say that fitness and enthusiasm rather than tactical nous and gamecraft was the saviour for this inexperienced but adaptable team.
Leicester called a timeout with only a few minutes of the game remaining, in a forlorn attempt to pull things back. This pluckiness encapsulated the attitude of the Leicester team who threw everything they had at the match and made several substitutes in an attempt to break up the UoB defence with continuous fresh legs.
The final result was 9-3 and was hopefully the first of many wins for this newly founded squad who can only get better as they begin to gel as a team. Immediately after the final whistle blew, Allan Stewart was chauffeured straight to Loughborough to play in a lacrosse fixture for the university. It is easy to banter when you’re winning and UoB certainly proved that in style on Sunday, having a great laugh before during and after the match.
Scorers:
Fran Easton 1
Ella Harland 1
Emma Tilbrook 2
Cat Hutchinson 1
Tom Burnett 1
Andrew Spencer 1
Alex Quy 1
Allan Stewart 1
More Information on UoB Korfball
www.uobkorf.co.uk
