Gritty Buckingham go down against a slick Bedford HC side.

Buckingham HC U16s travelled to Bedford Hockey Club to complete their reverse England Hockey U16 T2 fixture. The original fixture, which fell on the Jaffa Super 6s finals day and was subsequently moved, started at a fast pace with Skye Kay and Sasha Wakeford in the midfield propelling Buckingham forwards at every opportunity. Orianne Neyroud provided some calm and stability in the middle of the pitch, allowing Skye & Sasha to play with flair and exuberance which became a real trademark of Buckingham's evening. Travelling with a bare 11, including 2 outfield GKs, Buckingham carved out some good opportunities and were well in the match matching Bedford across the pitch.

Buckingham were unlucky to not go ahead after some great play down the wings from both Gwen Grovit and Rowan Marks, the latter playing her first ever club match and first match for Buckingham! With Gaby Evans and Florrie McKinnon patrolling the middle of the defence and thwarting any Bedford attacks for the majority of the first half, the girls played with a freedom which was refreshing to see. Skye particularly shone in the midfield, linking the defence to the front three of Annabel Starkey (as the loan ACTUAL forward) and Millie Giles & Captain Tyler Wilson who are normally used to saving the shots rather than taking them. Starting in goal was Darcey Moran who, playing against her old club, pulled off some brilliant saves and looked strong throughout. A neat deflected goal by Bedford took them into the 2nd half with a slender 1-0 win.

A quick GK swap (Wilson and Moran swapping at half time) and a gentle remind from the coach that they had NO subs followed.

Buckingham went out however with the same determination, spirit and passion that they had throughout the first half and continued to pepper the Bedford defensive circle. Chances came for Skye, Sasha, a brilliant solo run from the heart of defence from Florrie and nearly a debut goal from Rowan of note. Bedford manage to score another after some loose marking which rallied Buckingham to get themselves on the scoresheet - Sasha's persistence overcoming some superb goalkeeping from the Bedford player. As Bedford rotated their players, Buckingham kept their intensity and increased their ball handling to ensure they had the legs to last the game.

Gwen took control of the defence and helped start the build of the next goal, superbly finished by Millie GIles to the shock of everyone at the pitch - a real highlight for us all and no doubt something Millie will remember for years to come.

The game finished 4-2 to Bedford but the Buckingham girls can take real heart from not dropping their standards and all developing their own goals/targets throughout the game. Each player played with real passion, determination and showed the spirit that has become synonymous with the club of late. They will face at least one more match this season, at home vs Khalsa Leamington, a rearranged fixture from the recent awful weather we've experienced.