Men's 2s Round-up & Review

So the season is done. And we’ve not seen a match report for a while. So in a few short lines (fact may be blurred with hazy fiction as some time has passed since the earlier games) here’s a few games/incidents of note:

Trinity Midwives 4-4 Cheam 2s
The 1-1 draw on the home leg suggested it might be another dull and tight affair. Not so. The opposition featured a number of players not seen in the home fixture – including a half time arrival (but still in kit and talking about his previous game) and there was a suggestion at one point that bad light could stop play until someone found the switch for the floodlights.
The game was a scrap from the start, with Cheam coming back each time they went down a goal until the final result of 4-4 was settled.
This was a start of the post-Christmas revival for the Cheam 2s.

Cheam 2s 3-0 Surbiton
Surbiton teams are probably the least predictable in Surrey – if only in that the movement of players between the teams is often particularly fluid.
Cheam putting 3 past them was probably one of the most satisfying games of the season, and in fact there could have, maybe should have been more goals.
Cheam’s dominance was reflected by the fact that their keeper only touched the ball twice in the second half. And one of those was an entirely unnecessary save.

Highlight of this game (and maybe the season) was Harry Reynolds being floored by a youth noticeably smaller and slighter of stature than him.
Along with this Robert Caulkin’s whining about “not sharing short corners” is also not to be forgotten.

Wanderers 2-2 Cheam 2s
Wanderers had run away with the league and comprehensively stuffed Cheam in the first leg 5-0.

Cheam dug out another strong defensive effort and “welcomed” sorry… they saw the return of exiled Mathew Oliver (Molly) - who did a pretty solid flat stick job for the morning.

Every player put in a shift in this game, and this is probably the weekend that Cheam 2s ensured their existence in the league for another season.

Cheam 1-2 Merton
Always a fractious affair and this one proved no different. Probably the least enjoyable game of the season and it little to do with the hockey.

Captain Andy Cooper aging hearing has proved an issue on a number of occasions. In this case unable to hear a call to move to one side from his keeper, he wore a strike from no more than 5 yards that made quite the mess of his eyebrow. Once he’d been convinced to get in the ambulance the D looked like a scene from The Hostel.

I suspect the faculties are still scrambled as he apparently has something better to do than go to the end of season do.
This game aslo proved that Harry Reynolds’ South African accent is truly terrible.

Purley Walcountians 1-2 Cheam 2s
There was a distinctly end of term feeling to the build up to this game. Made even more so by Harry Reynolds (featuring heavily in the cock-up stakes) forgetting the shirts.
The oppo kindly provided bibs and Cheam stumbled to a 2-1 win.

The game had a smell of tweed about it; with appearances from James Mantle, Dom Beales and Joe Oddy.

Oddy spent quite a lot of money on a new “specialist” aerial/drag flick stick. So it stands to reason that his first effort was an abject and wholly unnecessary squarial that cleared the pitch-side fence.
He still hasn’t gone to get the ball.

All in all though, a win is a win.

Also a farewell to Harry Reynolds who is heading off to uni – all the best mate!

And a huge thanks to Andy Cooper for his stint as captain. Big shoes to fill. #voteforticker