Vietnam Hockey Festival Nov 2012

Tornados once again went en-mass to Ho Chi Minh City to celebrate our sister club's annual 6-aside hockey festival. With 3 men's and 3 ladies teams, Tornados were by far the largest participants at the tournament. Looking resplendent in their Tsunami supplied kit (thanks to Boobs for sorting that out) all 6 teams played some great hockey on the first day despite having made the most of the Ice-breaker party on the Friday night at Bar17. At the close of day all 3 Ladies teams had qualified for the Plate competition whilst the Men's 1's were heading for the Cup and the 2's and 3's the Plate.

At the Saturday Night party Tornados once again outperformed all-comers to maintain their grip on the coveted best dressed team award. The procession of  Cops and robbers entering celebrity chef Bobby Chin's restaurant provided much amusement to the watching locals in the neighbouring shopping mall.

Back on the pitch on Sunday the Men's 2's and 3's were eliminated early by strong opposition in the plate and the Ladies 2's succumbed to the might of the Ladies 3's to set up an all Tornados ladies plate final in which the Ladies 1's proved to be too strong.

In the last game of the Tournament Tornados Men's 1's took on the hosts Tornados Vietnam. in a very close game Tornados Singapore edged out their sister club 1-0 to take the title for the first time. A fantastic weekend on and off the pitch and the Tornados players are already planning their return next year.

Ladies Final Match report

The ladies first XI were fully committed with a large squad arriving early to warm up and for the final team talk of the season! We were taking on the Dutch B's in a match that we all knew was going to be tough and physical! The crowds were gathering and the pre match excitement was building.

 

The Dutch managed to snatch the first goal however, a practiced, and text book short corner saw Charlie equalise not long after, kicking off an exciting 20 minutes of Tornados pressure. A fantastic run of quick Tornados passes then ended in Charlie scoring a perfect flick past the goalie, putting the Tornados 2-1 up!

 

However, despite the promising start, it sadly was not to be our day... Three excellent Dutch goals in quick succession and a Tornados yellow card for some impressive, yet illegal, ariel stick skills (Kate) saw us 4-2 down at half time and temporarily reduced to 10 players (quote Charlie: "Rich, do you know we've only got 10 players on the pitch?!" Rich: "yes, that's what happens when there's a yellow card...!")

 

The Tornados continued to battle hard after the restart and we were soon back to full strength with 11 players.  Unfortunately another Dutch goal soon put them 5-2 up, but a spell of Tornados pressure and some silky skills from Rosie followed, forcing the Dutch into scoring an own-goal and bringing the scoreline to 5-3. However, the gap was just too big and another final strong Dutch attack meant that the match finished a fair 6-3 to the Dutch.

 

An outstanding performance from Teej in defence saw her take a well-deserved, unanimous player of the match award. Special mentions must also go to Kirsten and her lightening quick reactions in goal (even head-butting the ball out of danger), Alex (a "breath of fresh air" whenever she was on the pitch), Hils for a solid game in midfield and Lizzie, Suz and Becky for keeping us all well hydrated during (and after!) the game (paddling pool and ice - genius!).  Of course, a massive thanks also has to go to Rich for coaching us all season - we couldn't have asked for anyone more committed who kept us all focused throughout the season and hopefully we did him proud by putting into play the moves that we had been practicing at training!

 

Although the result didn't quite go the way we'd hoped, it was all in all a great day of hockey and a fantastic way to round off what has been an incredibly successful season - congrats ladies!

 

Milly & Sam W

Beez end season with a brave performance

Tornados Killer Beez have ended their first and probably only season in Div 1, firmly rooted to the bottom of the table. However, on Saturday the 11 players available put in a fine and very brave performance in a very hot 3pm game against table topping A team.

Despite playing the first 10 minutes with only 10 players the Beez restricted the A team to a few Penalty Corners, which for once Ben wasn't able to convert. The Beez defended well and made it difficult for the A team to break them down.

Three goals in a 10 minute period early in the second half finally ended the Beez resistance, although they did regroup to prevent any further damage to the scoreline.

The game was a competitive bow for Mother Misso who returns to Oz after many years in the Maroon of Tornados and for Josh who put in a valuable stint for the Beez in his 1 season with the club. He now heads back Stateside so will probably be too fat to ever play again.

The Beez now look forward to a long break, disrupted by the odd friendly, before returning to their normal habitat in Div 2 next season.

First a few beers to toast the season at the POW on the 28th June at the Beez end of season awards night.

9/6/12 ladies 1s game v. SCC

9th of June 2012

 

Tornado Ladies As: 2

SCC: 0

 

Saturday resulted in another eventful day of ladies hockey for the As they squared up against a feisty SCC.  Focusing on 'tidy hockey', the As quickly pressed an offensive attack, playing 11 field (wo)men for the first 10 minutes.  With the goalie taking the field, the As settled into their battled tested 3-4-3 formation and consistently worked the ball up the right side to generate scoring opportunities. 

 

Imagine their surprise to have a ref who found her whistle!  Chris was the first to be sent to the sin bin for 2 minutes due to an aggressive tackle.  It wasn't long after she found her way back onto the pitch that Helen was blown up for a clean tackle and given a yellow.  10 minutes on the naughty chair. 

 

With the first half left at 0-0, the As were nothing less than fired up start of the second.  Majority of play left SCC back pedalling on defence while the As created numerous scoring opportunities.  Inevitably, the As scored their first goal.  Hils fired a high bouncing shot with Kim deflecting off the back line to connect with the back of the net.  Controversial but given.  The As pressed on through interesting calls… 

 

(The best one was a short given to SCC.  Reason: you cannot shadow a player with your stick on the ground and direct her where to go.  Hmmm...)

 

To score their second goal.  Playing one-two hockey up the right side, the ball was laid off to Chris who dribbled through numerous defenders and fired a low, hard shot to hit the backboard.  The As held SCC to win 2-0.  Great job everyone (particularly defence) working through the calls and playing solid Tornado hockey!

 

LOM: Kim Krauze

 

Kim

Ladies 1s vs SRC (inc continuation), 1-0 win!

The match against Singapore Recreation Club started off well for both teams with the ball featuring at both ends of the pitch. Strong support from the tornadoes defence and midfield meant that the forwards were able to have moments of pure brilliance in front of the goal, but frustratingly unable to find the back of the net. A well organised SRC defence and some excellent goal keeping skills meant that going into half time, the tornadoes were left wondering where they were going to get a goal from.

 

Patience paid off and the tornadoes started the second half strong. It was going to take more than a few rumbles of thunder and flashes of lightening in the distance to put the tornadoes off the task in hand.

 

A ball driven down the left wing by Rosie Clarke was hit in to the top of the D. The ball was deflected off an SRC stick and with some excellent timing, skill and luck we saw Charlie White volley the ball into the back of the net to secure a 1-0 lead for the tornadoes.

 

This did not stop the determination from SRC to fight back and as legs began tiring gaps began to show in both teams with SRC having the upper hand. Thankfully for the tornadoes a hard fought short corner for SRC was halted abruptly when the umpires decided that the fast approaching thunderstorm should stop play.

 

With 23 minutes left to play it was the tornadoes who had the 1-0 and due to poor weather the rest of the match would be completed at a later date.........

 

........and on a Tuesday evening as the flood lights were just coming on, a re-fuelled and determined side of 18 Tornados ladies 1's (down to  17 when one omitted to bring footwear...) turned out to play their 23 minute game.

 

Aware that time was of the essence and that we needed to be fired up from the whistle, adrenalin was high. But to raise the game another notch, we hadn't kept things simple for ourselves - finishing the first round of this match on the blow for a short corner, against us.

 

So we began on the ultimate back foot. But shorts practice at training had paid off and our brilliant defenders (led by Sayj doing an ever increasingly seasoned and honed job in goal) rose to the challenge, keeping the sheet clean.

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                           

But we weren't in the clear yet, and three more short corners were conceded under the pressurized start before we took the ball out of our defensive half, shortly after which Teej was struck in the face with the oppositions stick and had to take to the bench (ever committed, she stayed to see the game out before heading off to A&E!!)

 

After a challenging start though, the play returned to our court, and a strong game was played with slick breaks and great team play through the midfield and up both wings to our attackers.

 

No goals were conceded and none scored in the strangely short game of hockey, leaving the Tornado's Ladies victorious on a Tuesday night!

 

Alex & Hilary

Ladies 1s vs Theresians, Sun 3rd June - 2-0 Win!

Sunday evening saw the Tornadoes Ladies 1's pitted against Theresians in a game that kept up its tempo for the full 70 mins. Tornadoes started with a very strong first 20mins, involving lots of left to right switching and visa versa through Meagan the pivotal "pivot" at the back of the Diamond. The defence were put under pressure from some strong Theresians players who although had good stick skills couldn't quite keep vertical. Some dubious calls were made by the umpires however the defence managed to keep any threat they posed at bay. The few shots Theresians put in on goal were deflected in fine fashion by Sharifah who has joined us again for the end of the season allowing Sayj to show off her skills as centre forward.

The first goal of the match was finished off by Elaine when a ball came in from the back-line and was deflected in from the P-spot. It gave Tornadoes the boost they needed to keep fighting for the rest of the half.

The second half saw more of the same with multiple runs up both sides of the pitch by the respective midfields and forwards. The second goal started from the defence with a spectacular 16 from Kate which made its way up the left side to Alex who worked it towards the back line and around the goalie and was finally deflected in by Chris.

Both goals were a perfect demonstration of putting training scenarios into practice during game situations and credit to Richard who has worked hard throughout the year to actually get us to do these 1-2 passes up the pitch and use the baseline in order to succeed in scoring goals!

 

Special mention should go to Helen who played in right mid but who seemed to be everywhere. Her ability to assist the ball from defence up through mid-field to the forwards helped to keep the game mostly attacking for the Tornadoes and earned her player of the match.

 

All in all it was a strong performance from Tornadoes with a good display of teamwork and it demonstrated well the transferability of training drills to match play. This should further emphasis the importance of continued attendance at training despite the seasons nearing the end! Go Tornados!

 

Rosie

 

 

 

Tornados As v Republic Poly, Sat 19th May

Result 7 -0

 

The Ladies Tornado A team opened the game against Republic Poly with wave after wave of attack. It had been a straightforward team talk; it was a must win game with a decent goal difference. The Poly girls were clearly a weaker side and it was really only our inability to slot that goal between the posts which prevented us from reaching double figures.

 

The first half saw a plethora of balls passing the oppositions left post and over–compensation in the second half meant the right post was witness to a similar scenario. However, goals were scored; two from Elaine, a hat trick from Chris, one from Rosie and by far the best goal followed by the best celebratory leap coming from Jenny “boobs” Bloomfield.

 

The decision to move Sage out of goal and onto the pitch did not go unnoticed by RP. There were a few hairy moments and short corners which had us all feeling anxious but the defense was having none of it, and no goals were conceded.

 

This was a game the tornadoes clearly enjoyed. We were confident, our passing was good, we were changing positions and communicating and carving out real chances for one another. Not all of these chances were converted into real money, but then again, we are saving our glorious best for the final…

 

Man of the match – Chris: she is omnipresent on the pitch and yet again graced us with an outstanding performance.

 

Beez vs. SCC A - Beez find their sting!

The Killer Beez faced their 3rd game in 5 days at Sengkang last night. Things looked ominous for the Beez as SCC A turned up en-masse to face only 12 very tired Beez.

SCC started the game strongly and went ahead very early from a PC. The low drag flick had much of its bite taken of it from Garf's stick and it should have been an easy clearance for Harry Houdini on the post but he'd done one of his famous disappearing acts.

To their credit the Beez heads didn't drop and mid way through the 1st half they drew level with a fierce shot (in his words) from Josh, that looked like a tap in to every body else. Only a few minutes later the Beez took the lead for the first time in a game this season. A long ball through the middle found Anton unmarked in the D with his back to the goal. The SCC keeper tried to mount Anton roughly from behind. Although Anton didn't seem  to be complaining about the amorous intentions of the SCC keeper, a stroke was awarded which Anton clinically despatched before asking for the keepers number.

The Beez went into a much deserved and needed break 2-1 but came out sleeping allowing SCC to get a simple back post tap in equaliser after only 5 minutes.

Once again this only spurred on the Tornados team who were in no mood to settle for a draw. With 20 minutes to go the Beez took the lead through a field goal from Nick. The Beez then settled into a counter-attacking game to protect their lead. SCC had most of the remaining play but the few D penetrations they had were dealt with confidently by Garf and his defence. The Beez task was made more difficult losing Wazza to a back injury and temporarily Anton to a hammy/cramp.

Close the end of the game the Beez thought they had made it 4-2 when Nish appeared to score but the umpire ruled that the ball had already crossed the line before any Tornado had touched it.

The Beez ran out 3-2 winners. A fantastic effort from the team who had only managed to save just enough energy to open a few post match Red Rocks.

With games to come against SCC A and B the Beez can still avoid the drop.

Nick was voted MotM for his tireless performance and Nish DotD for wearing a pair of luminous green briefs that have no rightful place in the 21st Century  

Ladies 2s vs IA As, Sat 12th May

Saturday saw the Ladies 2^nd XI take on the IA A’s and whilst there were a lot of positives to take from the game the girls are still searching for that elusive first win of the season.

 

Straight from the first whistle the girls knew they were in for a tough game coming up against a team of young, fit and fast local girls. This was the first time this season that the girls had come up against this type of direct play and for the first half the Tornados struggled to contain the IA with the midfield gaps being constantly exposed by a couple of extremely handy IA players.

 

However, this is not to say that the first half was all one way. Tornados put together some nice moves with Reachelle combining nicely with Annalise to cause the IA defence a few headaches as well as some good strong running from the forwards. Once again the defence looked solid despite conceding a few goals in the first period – as always the SHF refs probably contributed to the score line but I think the IA deservedly went in ahead at the break. In all fairness the girls didn’t react to some of the decisions which was a credit to them – they left all of that to Mitch on the far touchline ;)

 

After a quick team talk from Joran (and after a quick whisper with the officials from Mrs B!) the Tornados came out for the second half and looked like a completely different team. The structure looked a lot more solid and the midfield started to stem the flow of the deep runners coming through from the IA. Lady of the Match Lizzie started to boss the game from the left hand side and linked extremely well with the rest of the midfield and forwards – she showed some slick little dribbles and some strong tackling as well which was great to see! Tornados were unlucky not to nick a couple of goals in the second half with Sara desperately unlucky not to get her name on the score sheet with one of her trademark on the knees sweeps. To add to this there were also a couple of goal mouth scrambles and on another day it could have been a different story....I think it finished 5-0 in the end and most of that damage was done in the first half.

 

If the girls can increase their levels of composure in all departments and start the game at a higher tempo there is no reason why we can’t get a few wins on the board in the next few weeks!

 

Keep up the good work ladies.

 

Coach Kris.

Ladies 2s vs SRC, Sat 5th May

Better late than never I say!

Having read the team match reports I realised that there was no ladies 2's and as the person who misunderstood the question and found myself not only managing, but managing and coaching all on my onesy, I guess that it falls to me.

Saturday's game started out with many of these firsts! First time that you could hear people talking to each other on the pitch, first time coach/ manager, first time Reachelle in between the sticks (for a long time) and last but very definitely not least, first goal of the season!

 

As the first game of the day the first half saw soaring temperatures and a committed opposition who were very early on the offensive. The resounding thud of shots on pads was a common theme early on with Reachelle making some cracking saves only to wrong foot herself and then the game turned into a modern Spielberg special as everything slowed down and the ball rolled ever so slowly into the goal to put SRC up by 1.

 

Not to be outdone Annalise received a ball near the defensive 25 and in an effort worthy of wearing underwear on the outside of her skort (superhero that is) completed an astounding run down the line all the way to other end and pounding home the 2's first goal of the season. The celebrations should have been recorded for prime time airing at the Bull and Bear!

 

1 all at half time and there was some fire in the belly as the girls (whoops ladies) rightly figured that they were in with a really good shot.

 

The second half is all a bit hazy as I struggled to do everything required and take note. However for the better part of the half the scores remained at 1 all, with opportunities at both ends.

 

SRC ended up the better however through another slow motion corner ball that went in when a cross found the defensive group slightly out of position and beat an overextended diving Keeper by millimetres. The overstretch gave everyone a breather with 7 minutes to go as ice and physiotherapists scrambled. To everyone's credit, the heads stayed high and the effort was maintained all the way through to the whistle.

 

Net result a 2-1 defeat that could have very easily gone the other way. Thanks for the great effort and assistance with names and subs! It was a pleasure to be a part of and a credit to Joran and Kris as the team has a great esprit de corps.

Girl (whoops Lady) of the match went to Reachelle with Annalise a close second.

 

Warwick

 

Beez vs. NYP - a Gnat's testicle away from a point!

The Tornados Killer Beez put in their best performance of the season on Sunday night against an NYP team that had run the A team close in their recent encounter.

Despite having some key personnel missing the Beez dominated the first half but rarely made life difficult for the NYP keeper. The Beez were disciplined from back to front and NYP really struggled to find a way through the Beez lines. Nick and Rahul were a constant thorn in the side of the NYP defence but the Beez forwards were unable to get a stick to a number of quality balls that flashed across the NYP D.

In the second half NYP's superior fitness began to show and they threatened the Beez goal on a number of occasions but Al, Nazza and Rego were on fine form to keep them at bay. Unfortunately, mid way through the second half a momentary lack of concentration from the defence allowed the NYP centre forward to sprint into the D unopposed to score a well worked deflected goal.

The rest of the half saw the Beez attacking the NYP D but lacking the clinical edge in front of goal. NYP remained dangerous on the counter.

The game also became quite feisty and Kamikaze Nish was sent for 2 minutes on the naughty chair after a rash challenge that led to a bit of handbags. This clash was marred by racist comments from one of the NYP Players that have no place on a hockey field.

In the last few minutes the Beez lay siege to the NYP D and looked to have snatched a point when Big Jim Wheeler lashed a shot at the NYP goal only to see it hit the upright and rebound across the goal.

A great performance from the Beez who were unlucky not to come away with at least a point.

Next up SCC A on Tuesday night. A game that the Beez have a real chance of winning.

Ladies 1s vs Dutch As MATCH REPORT

This 7:30pm Saturday match against the Dutch As was always going to be tough and physical. We sincerely hoped it would be a battle of the two playing teams with sticks rather than a match controlled purely by poor umpiring. Perhaps the fairly decent umpiring was due to no local teams playing this match. It was good to also see the umpires playing as a team and consulting each other on a couple of crucial occasions.

We went into our familiar 3-4-3 game plan solidly with some great midfield passing combinations and solid defence, from everyone. Aussie Charlotte took one for the team early on with a beautiful thigh stop. Little were we to know that the best was yet to come, with Charlotte then taking a mighty strike in the stomach in the second half that saw her retire from the match.

Play continued up and down the field for the remainder of the first half with the Tornadoes just unable to put the last couple of passes together in the 25 to effectively penetrate the circle. The Dutch managed to slip one in so we went into the break one down.

We regrouped at half time with plenty left in the Tornado tank to take it to the Dutch for the second half. The Dutch managed to sneak another one away. The Tornadoes replied with a goal from Chris that bobbled between the goalkeeper's legs and just over the line. The defence did well to repel a number of short corners during the match but unfortunately the attack just couldn't connect well in field play to set themselves up for effective finishing.

Cynthia played a solid match, vocal and supportive as ever; walking away with the player of the day award. Helen continued to provide stability at the back of the diamond, especially in the transition to attack, changing the direction of play to put the Dutch on the back foot regularly. Sayj continues to grow in confidence with every match and is really taking control of the goal, making some great saves and clearances in the match. We continue to put our training drills into good practice, finding new goals for the future to continually improve and refine our game.

Beez vs ORA - Much Improved Preformance

After succumbing 8-1 to ORA only a few weeks ago the Beez faced an uphill task against them last night at Sengkang but really stepped up to put in a strong performance against a far younger fitter team.

 ORA started quickly and once again an opposition decided to use Garf's huge head for target practice. Such head shots would be dangerous but as we all know keepers don't have any brains to get damaged! 

Some fine defending from the back 3 shielded by Rego managed to keep ORA at bay but the deadlock was broken after around 15 minutes from a penalty corner drag flick that beat the diving keeper. The resultant tremors from Garf's landing resulted in a region wide Tsunami warning and had Indonesians running for high ground.

 ORA continued to dominate possession but the Beez had chances and quickly drew level when Nish slid in to get a stick to the ball before the advancing ORA keeper. The Beez then had a chance to go ahead. A great pass from Ralf should have put George clear to race in at goal but according to George the ball was deflected by an ORA supporting ant on the pitch. Nobody else saw the ant!

 The teams then looked to be heading to the half time break level until the Beez were caught sleeping at the back allowing a simple goal to be scored.

 ORA's extra fitness showed in the second half with them going up 4-1 with 2 goals that were from rebounds after saves had been made. Wazza got in a good position to stop both but appears to have bought a stick with a hole in it. Must be a Tasmanian special.

The game was not one sided though and Rahul in particular was troubling the ORA defence with some sublime stick work. The Beez gave themselves a glimmer of a chance with 5 minutes to go when father-to-be Nick got his first goal for the team.

 However, it was not to be and the game needed 4-2. Another much improved performance from the Beez.

The highlight of the match had to be Rahul's 40 yard pass in the 2nd half. Unfortunately it was his stick rather than the ball. He must have had lessons from Fizzi Izzi. Next up NYP on Sunday.

Time for the Beez to get some points on the board.

MotM: Rahul
DotD: Rahul

Tornados Ladies A vs Jansenites: 2-2

Saturday May 5th, 2012
Having reviewed the Div 1 league table we were feeling the pressure as we went into this game, fully aware that we were joint top of the table with Jansenite and needed lots of goals! So, we started with our familiar 3 - 4 -3 formation and pressed hard. Jansenites 1st goal came after 10 mins, after a lot of 'interesting' and 'surprising' calls from the umpires, especially as this team seems to use their bodies as well as their sticks! We then moved into our new attacking 'high 5' formation of 5-3-2, which produced lots of shots on goals. Unfortunately, it wasn't until just before ½ time that we finally got one in the net. This was scored by Gemma, and supported by the other forwards who had fought hard to get it there.

Jansenites 2nd goal came in the second ½, after an extremely contentious short corner call, which lead to a great strike into the goal. But we fought on and started working particularly well as a team, which lead to our 2nd goal at the 20min mark. It was scored by Sam, but assisted by some great teamwork down the pitch to the goal. This seemed to gives us a boost, which produced some great team play in the final 15mins.

So, despite some very 'interesting' umpiring we came away with a draw, so the competition is still on between the two of us! But I am sure with the growing confidence and consistency of great players on this team, we will go on to rack up the score lines, especially as we get a chance to play some of the weaker teams in the league.

Player of the match, was the consistently hard working Charlie White battling hard for us up front!

Thanks also must go to Rich who rushed back from Bangkok to support and advise us, and to Helen for pulling us together pre match. Plus, a special welcome to our newest addition Lauren who survived her 1st match in the tropical heat of Singapore!

Tornados Mens 1s 4 NYP 2

The Tornados Mens 1s team continue their unbeaten run with a win over NYP in a game of 2 halves - but aren't they all?

Torndaos started strong, opening up a 2-0 lead in the first 20 mins with some well taken filed goals by both Cameron Black and Rene Severin. The structure started to weep a little from there, and changes to the NYP set up soon started making in-roads to the Tornados D. A tight last 5 mins of the first half had NYP pressing for goals, with PCs seeming to be pulled from all over the shop. Tight work by the 4 defenders and goalie kept the clean score sheet and the half time whistle was welcomed by the fat bloke in the helmet (and all other fatties on the the team!)

NYP started the second half as they finished the first - a short corner leading to a score after a deflection first off the keepers foot guards and then via his pad tightened the game to 2-1. The Tornados attack had other ideas,who quickly took control up front and forced PCs at the other end. A sharp PC which rebounded off the prone keeper led to a well taken shot by Cameron Black, whilst a drag flick moments later from Rene, again from a shortie, gave Tornados some breathing room with a 4-1 advantage.

NYP remained resolute to reduce the deficit, and struck goal after a good run by their forward, followed by a  deflected ball just under the keeper's arm pit - proving that though keepers smells are powerful, they just aren't strong enough!

With a final score of 4-2 to Tornados, the 1s have some positives to continue to improve and negatives to work even harder on - some well taken goals and good PC work was in fine form for some of the match, but structure and discipline needs to be played throughout the game. 2 yellow cards and one green card means we were down to 10 players for about a quarter of the match.

Spirited Beez Performance vs. Hollandse Club.

In what was always going to be a tough game the bottom of the table Beez took on the table topping Dutchies at Sengkang. The Dutch started quickly and would have gone ahead early except for Garf getting his planetoid sized head in the way of a rocket from the Dutch Centre Forward. The Dutch however, did soon take the lead though from a penalty corner drag flick that squeezed between the keeper and Wazza on the post. The Beez battled well for the rest of the first half and can count themselves unlucky to be 3-0 down by half time. 

After another Churchill-esque half time talk from kotters, in which he hinted at Ralf being a fifth columnist, changes were made with Towners moving back to sweeper in place of old-man Yoda who had to get back to the Retirement home before they locked the doors for the night. Towners slotted in well at the back and even managed to keep some of his 16s below head height, before rashly deciding to give a Dutch player a Runcorn Hug. After a 5 minute recess both players shared a taxi to A&E where the big fella won 21-8 on the stitches count.

 The game ended 5-0 but the Beez should have a clear Penalty stroke when a blatant push in the back in the D on Nish was missed by the usually myopic men with the whistles. The final score was perhaps a bit harsh on the Beez who can be proud of their efforts.

 Next up 3 games in 5 days, so if you want to catch up with any of the Beez after 15th May I suggest you look for them in local physioterrorist practices.

 MotM : The Fat Cat
DotD: nobody.

Tornado Ladies A's vs Vijayanti 4-1

Saturday afternoon’s game brought sunshine and a good fast match against Vijayanti. We managed to have our biggest squad of the season so far, with 18 players turning up, yet no coach who was tucked up at home in bed. Our captain Helen produced a rather interesting yet very fair sub schedule that gave us all similar playing time and kept the legs fresh. A special thank you to Kirsten who kept on top of this and made sure we went on and came off when we were supposed to. The game started quickly and their number 11 proved early on to be someone who we needed to keep an eye on. However our girls held their own comfortably and it wasn’t long until Charlie opened the scoring with a very satisfying smack against the back boards.

 

Second half saw us start 1 up and Rosie quickly doubled this with a goal that felt like it was going in in slow motion, as it rebounded off the boards and slowly dribbled back towards the circle. Given some of the umpiring decisions that had already taken place Rosie wisely ensured that it stayed in there, she didn’t want it be disallowed. Chris decided it would be a good idea to fall over an opposing player who had tripped and she rolled her ankle well enough to stop play and require ice.

 

Obviously when play resumed the free hit went to Vijayanti…? We are still trying to work out why.

Helen scored our third goal with some lovely play in the circle and then their number 11 finally struck and hit in a great, unstoppable goal. However it didn’t get the team down and we quickly resumed control of the match, with Charlie scoring her second of the day, off a spectacular push out by Rosie on a short corner.

 

Helen was awarded Lady of the Match, most deservedly and a big thank you should go to our very vocal supporters from our Men’s and Ladies teams.

 

Aussie Char

Tornados Mens 1s Season Finally Starts

At last - after 3 postponed games due to the Hand of Thor, the Tornados Men's 1s finally pushed back on Saturday 21st Apr with a game against the Tornados 2s. And exciting match was in store with club pride at the top of the list, and with follow up games with tornados Ladies 1s and 2s, the support was at a high for this game.

The 1s came out as eventual winners, with 5 goals to nil, capping a strong performance by the 1s, who had a full bench on the day. Goals by Ben (1 PC, one open play), Mitch (a fluffer shot beating the goalie by chance and luck - but we know Mitch will say it was planned that way!), Marcel (on the end of Joran's "dummy" more of that later) and Joo Seuk (PC) meant the 1s get their first points in the league and start playing catch up with the other clubs. Ben took Man of the Match (great game - almost detroyed the cross bar on one PC) whilst Joran the air-hitter/mis-shot ("it was a dummy follwed by a pass") took DoD.

On Sunday, 22nd April, the 1s had a game planned against ORA. As team members made their way to Sengkang, it was true there were dark storm clouds, heavy, black and pendulous, toward which they
were driving. Many arrived with a look of dispair as we expected our 4th game to be called off. The 2s (due to start at 6pm) sneaked off to the pub, whilst the 4:30 game had been called off at half time with the players well into the eski of beer. Thor calmed down, and by 7pm we knew we would be playing. ORA had gone up against the 2s recently and come away with some glowing references by those who played or watched, so this was not to be an easy game.

I would say that Tornados had the better of the opening parts of the game, good pressure throughout the first half however did not lead to a score. A few PCs, a well ordered defence and plenty of shots on- (and a couple off-)goal were all we could come away with. Wise advice from our coach/guru Roy ("the goals will come") helped us get back on the pitch for the second half. Roy's advice proved correct, within the opening 5 mins of the 2nd half, a fantastic run down the right by Marcel (I think!) saw a cross into a congested area, where Jan's stick touched the ball into the net.

What followed was more of a contest - ORA pushing hard for the equaliser but not quite getting shots on goal too often. A nervy PC saw ORA hit the post, keeping the lead to Tornados. With the clock ticking away, Tornados got another PC, this time converted well by Ben, taking Tornados to a 2-0 victory. MoM and DoD tbc

2 games - 2 wins - 2 clean sheets. The team is now chomping at the bit for the next push backs- both the scheduled plus the 3 postponed games.

Next games - versus NYP at 4:30pm, 5th May, Sengkang Pitch 1.

Tornados Ladies A vs Dutch Bs 4 - 4

Saturday’s match proved to an exciting one for all involved, whether on the pitch or on the side-lines, as Tornados As faced their toughest opponents yet, Dutch Bs.  A goal from Gemma saw the Tornados settle into an early lead however the Dutch quickly responded with 2 goals and Tornados had their work cut out for them to get back on top.  The Dutch tried ‘new’ ‘surprising’ and ‘inventive’ ways of preventing us from scoring using a variety of different body parts to stop our shots on goal without much reaction from umpires (standard...)!  Despite their efforts however this did not stop Gemma from getting another goal to tie up the game 2-2.  The Dutch scored another goal in the second half but we were quickly able to tie up the game again after Chris stepped up to take a penalty flick which was awarded for yet after one of the Dutch's 'clever' attempts to prevent us from scoring.

 

The final quarter of the game was a tough one seeing both sides having chances to score and secure the win.  The Dutch scored with just a few minutes remaining but the Tornados As proved themselves to be strong opponents as Chris' strike on goal levelled up the score to 4-4.  After the weekend’s results Tornados As are currently second in the league and ready to take on Vijayanti this week.

 

LoM: Chris

 

Charlie

Ladies 2s vs Dutch Bs, Sat 31st Mar

Physical. Tough. Dirty.

 

Strong words usually reserved for the Dutch team but not on this occasion – more on this later though! J

This was the Ladies 2^nd XI's third outing of the season and they have now played (arguably) the 3 toughest teams in the division in the THC Ladies 1's, SCC and now the Dutch. In all three games the girls have applied themselves admirably gaining invaluable experience and improving with every minute played. This game was to be no different.

 

Once again the sun was shining for the pushback and both teams came out with the intention of playing some sexy attacking hockey. The Dutch, playing without a keeper, had the extra man in the hotly contested midfield area and the Dutch number 8 was pulling all of the strings in the opening exchanges. A short period of sustained pressure produced a goal for the Dutch and it was definitely their reward for some slick passing and movement.

 

The goal seemed to knock the Tornados up a gear and the girls started to pass the ball around nicely, building up from the back, through to the midfield and up to the front line. Chloe was an ever present menace running at the Dutch defence, turning them at every possible opportunity. At this point the game was finely balanced and THC had the opportunity to capitalise with a short corner routine but alas it was not meant to be. Unfortunately for the girls the Dutch put together another tidy move together which resulted in a composed finish from the Dutch centre forward – 2-0.

 

Some teams would have got their heads down after this but not the THC 2^nd XI – they battled on and really mixed it with the much bigger Dutch team. Joran had asked the girls to be more physical before the game and they did not disappoint....

 

The first incident of note occurred after a short corner for the Dutch – the details were sketchy but after a little bit of verbal with our skipper Jane, the Dutch left forward was next seen crumpled into a heap on the far side of the pitch. We still don't know what happened (and probably never will!) but the Dutch gave Jane a wide berth after that!

 

At 2-0 the girls continued to push and we're almost rewarded with their first SHF goal of the season. Chloe broke free, skinning the Dutch defence for pace and advancing into the D but was cruelly denied her goal as the umpire had already blown for the short corner. I think the most disappointed person at SK was Joran who spent the next 5 mins rolling around on the floor like he had been shot in the chest. Don't worry Joran – we'll score this season! Tough on the girls too but ultimately a fair decision – at this point it is worth noting that both umpires were excellent on Saturday.

 

The second half did not go according to plan unfortunately and some tired legs under the hot sun resulted in more goals for the Dutch ladies but we don't need to dwell on that. Suzanne kept up her superb form with some great stops and the back line again put in credible performances.

 

Now for a special mention to Shirley Lee. As you know, Shirley is no giant and was easily the smallest player on a pitch full of Dutch girls who are bigger than most of THC's men! Despite this physical disadvantage she still managed to almost KO one of the Dutch defenders with a head butt worthy of an MMA fighter. Shirley tells me it wasn't deliberate but I could see the glint in her eye. SHF beware – she may look like butter wouldn't melt but under that exterior is a vicious beast. Top skills Shirl.

 

On this showing the girls will absolutely pick up points this term providing the effort and commitment remains high. Both myself and Joran were impressed with the level of aggression too – something that has been missing from previous games.

 

As I started writing this report on Monday and it's now Thursday I have completely forgotten who got MVP! From a coaches perspective it could have gone to any number of individuals. I promise that I will mention the recipient in next week's report!

 

Have a great Easter and don't eat too much chocolate over the break J

 

Coach Kris.

Tornados Ladies A vs IA A's : 3 - 0 wooohoo

Saturday 31^st March 2012
The socialites and travelers of Tornados A’s must have been out and about on Saturday evening but we managed to get 11 players on the field for our 7.30pm match. A big thanks to Kirsten who volunteered to play goalie last minute even though she was enjoying her Maccy D’s.
Tornados A’s started off strong with determination to win after been booted out of our goal at warm up time with about a thousand orange hockey balls! Our very versatile goalie Sayj was determined to show off her goal scoring ability and managed to get the first goal on the board. Chris and Sam were on fire and Sam managed to get the second goal with some fantastic passing between the two.
We managed to show Indian Association who’s here to win with a third goal from Kim in the second half. A solid effort from Gem at back of the diamond meant Helen and Teej rarely saw the ball.
A great effort all round, we walked away with a 3-0 win and that leaves us undefeated to date.

Tornados Beez 0 - 1 SCC B - 11 very tired men

Tornados Beez lost narrowly in a game they didn't deserve to lose. With only 11 players available, and all already having played a hard game yesterday, this was always going to be tough but the Beez battled well and should have come away with at least a point. At times the Beez were down to 10 men due to injuries to Nick and Nazza but both valiantly returned to the field to help the team.

Both sides rarely troubled the opposition keepers and in the end it was an unlucky deflection off a Tornados stick at a PC that won the game for SCC towards the end of the second half. The Beez pressed for a late equaliser but were never able to get a stick to numerous dangerous balls across SCC's D.

This result leaves the Beez 5 points behind one of their main rivals in the fight to stay in Div 1.

Better availability will be the key to improved results in the coming weeks. The Beez captaincy now passes into the hands of Anton.

Big thanks to Sanjay and Nazza turning out whilst injured. To Rego for making a big effort at the last minute to make himself available and to Sayj for filling in as manager.

also to Lynn, Mitch and Becky for turning out to support.

MotM: Rego

DotD : Nobody

now thats over with I can just go back to being the noisy fat bloke at the back :)

Tornados B 0 - 3 NYP : Flat Performance from the Beez

After their monumental effort last week the Beez looked very flat this week against a young NYP team anchored by some experienced heads. Once again availability was a major problem. Despite Rahul and Misso returning early from injury the Beez lined up with only 12 players against an opposition with a full bench.

The Beez dominated the early exchanges but lacked any real punch up front and soon fell 1-0 down after some sloppy marking. This was made 2-0 close to half time when Garf was only able to force a 1 on 1 wide and the NYP forward coolly slotted the ball in off the shoulder of Towers who had made a valiant slide across the goal.

In the second half NYP frequently caught a tiring Beez team on the break but the defence held firm until 10 minutes from the end when NYP scored with a very well worked deflected PC goal.

Tornados did have a few chances to grab a goal back but never really troubled the NYP keeper.

The Beez will be looking for a better performance tomorrow against SCC B

MotM : George

DotD : none really but Towners can have it for his yellow card

Ladies 2nd XI vs SCC

The second game of the season saw the Ladies 2^nd XI facing a typically strong SCC outfit on a hot and muggy afternoon down at Sengkang. Fresh off the back of an encouraging game against the Tornados Ladies 1^st XI the week before the 2's were fired up and ready to give the SCC a real test.

SCC probably started the better of the two teams but the Tornados defensive line and midfield quartet broke down play well and started to knock the ball around extremely nicely in patches. Once again Suzanne looked to be on form as she saved a number of fine shots from the SCC strikers and she was ably supported from an impressive back line of Abi V, Jennie, Debs and Pei Ling. The girls also looked strong on the counter attack and had some strong shouts for short corners turned away by the (dare I say it biased) SHF umpires. It was tough for the girls not to get their rewards after so much hard work (Lynn even pushing herself to the brink of cardiac arrest!) and even more frustrating that they were also playing against the umpires as well. Despite all of their efforts the girls went into the half-time break 2-0 down – and in fairness the goals that were conceded were nothing special either!

Half time came at a good time for the girls and it gave them the much-needed opportunity to re-group and re-set themselves for the second half. Whatever Joran said in the changing room at half-time seemed to have an immediate effect as Tornados came out of the blocks quickly and looked to capitalise on some aggressive pressing and forward momentum. Special mentions go to Annalise, Samantha & Doro who started to boss the midfield portion of the pitch distributing nicely to the wide players and forwards whilst under a great amount of pressure from a dogged SCC team. However, probably against the run of play at the time, SCC fashioned another opening and punished the Tornados again. 3-0.

Even at 3-0 down the girls never once moaned about the heat, about losing the ball away or indeed the umpires complete lack of competency. I'm not sure how they did this especially in reference to the last point as in parts it was bordering on ridiculous. The last goal which made it 4-0 will be put down to horrific umpiring and discounted in the THC result archive. If anyone wants a description of it ask Mitch – he was still annoyed about it on Sunday evening! In short the SCC girl hit the ball from around half a mile outside the D off a short-corner and the goal stood. I spoke to the goal scorer after the game and she was embarrassed about scoring it – not as embarrassed as the umpire should have been though. Anyway....

A loss at the end of the day but another major stride for the girls who keep impressing with each week that passes. From where they were last season to where they are now is testament to all of the hard work they are putting in at the training ground. Keep it up girls!

Congrats to Abi V who was voted MVP by the rest of the team – a long time overdue and a big improvement on her green card exploits from the week before!

Coach Kris

Tornados Beez 0 - 3 Hollandse A

The Tornados B's put up an admirable performance in their first game since stepping up to Division 1. Cut down late to just 13 players due to an injury to Rahul and with Simmo and Anton both having the lurgy, meaning that it was always going to be a tough day.

Starting slowly as ever the Beez carelessly gave the ball away in the first few minutes allowing the Dutch to grab an early goal. After that the Beez really stuck to their task and held the Dutch to 1-0 at half time. Josh, Nick and George fought hard in the middle of the pitch and the back three of Towners, Yoda and Rego thwarted the Dutch time and time again. The Dutch managed 2 second half goals but this was a really promising performance from the Beez.

MotM - the Fat Cat

DotD - Kotters

Ladies Derby - Ladies 2s

On a typically stinking hot day down at Sengkang we saw our new look Ladies 2^nd XI taking on our Ladies 1^st XI in the opening game of the 2012 season. Over the past few months the girls have put in a tremendous amount of effort with a large majority of them never picking a stick up before and a few returning from a good few years out of the sport as well.

 

It's always a daunting task playing against your own clubs first XI but the girls were well prepared and raring to go on what would go on to be an extremely positive and rewarding first outing. Last season the ladies 2's turned out to be the 'whipping-girls' of the division and it is safe to say that this will not be the case this term. Defensively we looked very strong backed up by an awesome display from our new star in goal, Suzanne. I've never seen somebody take to a position so quickly and look so natural – even with all of those pads on! Despite being a little bit short of numbers in midfield we battled hard and closed down space well – reducing the threat of the Ladies 1's playmakers. Reachelle looked equally assured up front as well as in a defensive role and she is going to be a constant threat this season for the 2's.

 

Last season the girls were extremely limited with options going forward but by winning a short corner in the second half we have beaten our previous seasons best already. I'm going to predict that the girls will cause a few upsets this season and when we have our full quota of players we will be a difficult team to break down.

 

Great start to the season girls and keep up the good work!

 

Ps. We lost 3-0 but that was the only negative of the day J

 

Kris Emerton

Ladies 2s Coach

THC Ladies 1s 1 - 0 SCC

The Tornados Ladies 1s continued their promising start to the season with a 1-0 victory over SCC in a pre-season friendly.

Meagan was voted player-of-the match after a virtuoso performance in mid-field. Charlie's impact on the frontline was evident again as she scored the only goal of the match after 65 minutes. Her influence was impressively equalled by Sayjan's presence in goal, which goes from strength to strength with every game she plays.

With promising performances from Dewi, Elaine and Kirsten, the more established members of the squad might even be tempted to think of a repeat of their Invincibles season in 2010.

There is a long way to go, but THC have every reason to be looking forward to the season.
Sent via BlackBerry from SingTel!