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Welwyn Garden City A & B v Hawks & Harriers U8

Saturday, September 16 2006

The first away match for the U8's saw a trip down the A1 to play Welwyn. Although new to the league, Welwyn have been together for a season and this familiarity, along with a large pitch - with its 'gentle' incline - was always going to play a large part in both matches.

The Hawks started at a frantic pace and both sides were called upon to show good, solid defending. Having learnt lessons from last weeks game - in particular the first few minutes - the Hawks showed again that they were able to compete at this level and went into the break all square at 0-0. A strong start to the second half saw a similar style of play and it looked like a draw was on the cards, until a Welwyn shot through the crowded Hitchin area squeezed through to make it 1-0. This is how it remained - though not for lack of effort on Hitchin's part.

The Harriers also started their match at a fast pace. Halfway through the first half, they conceded a goal, which was the follow-up to a brilliantly saved free kick. As usual, heads did not drop and they all played well for each other It was harsh on them to concede another goal late on in the half, which came just after a substitution and drop ball had unsettled them. This was how the match went on to finish. A good, solid second half performance saw Hitchin having to defend very deep against Welwyn pressure and it was another lively, spirited performance.

Tiredness played a part late on in both matches, but just like last week, this was an encouraging performance from both teams, which shows that if they continue to improve each week they will not have to wait long for a win.

Hawks: Alistair; Ryan C; Oliver; Tyler; George F; Elliot; Ben; George R; Daniel.

Harriers: Alistair; Tyler; Matthew; Danny; Ryan D; Joe; Juan-Andres; Zac; Dean; Luke.