Match Reports 13 Sep 2025
- Peter Latimer
- Sep 15
- 6 min read
A wet day for the return to league hockey with wins for the new-look Men's team and both the Ladies 3's & 5's.
Fylde 1 2-0 Keswick 3
There was a new look to Fylde Men’s 1st team with several changes from last season. There was a debut for 14-yr old Josh Bywater, a long-awaited league debut for Will van Rijn now he’d turned 13 and able to join his older brother Oli and father Tim in the same team, returning faces Harry Gordon and Simon Holt now they’ve finished Uni, and finally captain for the day Jay Mayne’s league return following his knee surgery.
The team dominated possession against 11-man Keswick, passed the ball around and tackled well. In the first few minutes the ball was crossed to the front of the D where left back Ed Jefferson had run into space and he half-volleyed the ball, which narrowly missed the top right corner of the goal, for what would have been a screamer.
It was Oli van Rijn who scored the first goal within ten minutes with a great shot from a tight angle on the left, having been instrumental in dribbling into the D.
Fylde had many more attempts and should have scored more, but couldn’t quite convert, with Jay Mayne becoming frustrated with himself. In the main the defence were secure against the Keswick attacks, although there were a couple of hairy moments.
More of the same in the second half, with Fylde constantly rotating their 3 subs, to keep everyone fresh and energetic. More frustration in front of goal, and it was another 15 minutes before Fylde could feel more relaxed with a second goal. After some good play by Charlie Oliver entering the D from the right, he passed to Tim van Rijn within the D who found Jay Mayne in front of goal for a relatively easy tap-in.
Fylde kept pushing, but couldn’t quite find another goal, although Pete Latimer had a rare shot on goal saved, after a pass from fellow defender Paul Thomson into the D.
The game ended 2-0 and Fylde were happy with their performance. Charlie Oliver was voted man of the match.
Didsbury Northern 2 2-0 Fylde 2
First league match of the season saw Fylde 2s with a confident, new and determined team!
After an informative team talk from Laurence we understood the play and executed this well in the first half with solid defence set up and Didsbury struggling to get through. We had to soak up a lot of pressure but as a group we held strong! However nearing half time a smart ball through the middle saw Didsbury break through and after an initial excellent save by Sophie, Didsbury managed to open the scoring!
Half time team talk was super positive and we knew what we had to do!
Fabulous work down the left created us a few opportunities to get in the D and after some questionable stick tackles Fylde are awarded a short corner. Unfortunately this attempt on goal was unsuccessful. Didsbury continued to play the ball around well and looked strong in their attack. After a break down the right Didsbury managed to get the ball into the D, after the initial shot was blocked Didsbury were first to the loose ball and put away their 2nd.
With 10mins left Laurence's instruction was clear, push up and continue our play! Another excellent link up down the left saw Emma Savidge get the ball into the D and with a shot on goal hitting Didsbury foot on the goal line a flick was awarded! Emma Dunkerley stepped forward confidently unfortunately a great save for the Didsbury keeper denied the chance to score!
Fylde weren’t disheartened even after the final whistle as we knew we’d come up against a well organised talented team and we made it very difficult for them! A great team effort all round!!
Southport 1 3-4 Fylde 3
Fylde 3rd XI travelled to Southport for their first league game of the season. Despite a busy morning of school fixtures, the team managed to field a strong and determined squad.
From the first whistle, Fylde set the tempo with an aggressive high press that kept Southport pinned in their own half. Their early dominance paid off just four minutes in, when a well-executed short corner routine led to Natalie Smith opening the scoring with a confident finish.
Fylde continued to build on their momentum, playing the standard of hockey they’ve been developing since last season and refining in pre-season. Passing round our players, strong communication, and intelligent positioning from every player on the pitch created numerous attacking opportunities, particularly down the right hand side from Abi Wensley. Her persistence was rewarded around the 20-minute mark when she capitalised on a rebound from the Southport goalkeeper to double Fylde’s lead.
Southport responded with a goal of their own before half-time, narrowing the score to 2-1. However, Fylde entered the break feeling positive and focused. The half-time team talk highlighted key strengths, such as Hermione Edwards’ accurate line balls feeding the forwards who ran into the gaps created, and the team’s ability to force play wide to break up Southport’s attacks. Areas to improve included simplifying play and ensuring more decisive outcomes in the D.
Fylde resumed the second half with control and confidence. Their passing game continued to unsettle the experienced Southport side, with forwards Sophia Melling, Abi Wensley, and Megan Hartley-Smith making intelligent runs to stretch the defence and create space.
The team’s hard work was rewarded when Natalie Smith struck twice more in the second half, completing a well-deserved hat-trick. Both goals were the result of fluid team play, moving the ball calmly from the defence through midfield and into the D.
Southport fought back and earned two short corners late in the game, converting one with a drag flick and another from an individual run by one of their more experienced players. However, goalkeeper Emily Byers made several outstanding saves throughout the match to keep Fylde in control and protect the lead.
The final whistle blew on a 4-3 victory for the Fylde 3rd team. We are super proud of every single one of the girls in today’s team, we left absolutely everything on the pitch, worked everything we have been taught in training and fought till the very last minute. We can't wait to see what the season brings for this amazing group of girls.
Player of the match this week was a draw and was awarded to four different players: Abbie Southern, Natalie Smith, Emily Byers and Olivia John-Haslam.
Fylde 4 1-4 Longridge 2
The Ladies 4s kicked off the new season welcoming coach Sharron Bolton. Sharron has brought new ideas and plenty of energy to our training sessions and the team is learning to work in a new formation.
Play commenced as the forecast rain held off, Fylde started with the ball and were met with a strong Longridge midfield. Adjusting to new positions, Fylde did their best to keep pressing up the pitch and intercept Longridge’s long balls from their experienced players. Whilst Fylde were committed to the defence, Longridge were able to break through and score. Fylde regrouped and made attempts to move the ball down the wings using Alys Williams as a screen to help direct play. Longridge evaded our attempts at marking in the circle and a foot meant a penalty corner was awarded. A slick routine saw a second goal for Longridge, swiftly followed by a heavy rain shower. Visibility was poor but 3 subs arrived before half time to ease the strain on the team.
Fylde restarted after half time and made renewed efforts to reach Longridge’s circle. Good skills were displayed by our younger players and a number of penalty corners were awarded but Fylde failed to convert. Despite best efforts of the defence and new club goal keeper Laura Troth, Longridge scored from another penalty corner and then again from a ball played on the floor. Fylde didn’t lose focus and plenty of pressure was applied in the second half to move the ball around Longridge and create chances. Sophia Taylor took one such chance, collecting the ball on the left side of the circle, carrying across to unbalance the goalkeeper and neatly slotting the final goal of the game into the net.
Both Fylde and Longridge fought hard until the whistle but a win was not on the cards today. Not a poor performance from Fylde 4s, who are eagerly learning new principles from coach Sharron, simply a more experienced opposition on the day.
Brookfield 2 1-2 Fylde 5
Fylde Ladies 5th team pulled off a fabulous win against the odds on Saturday against Brookfield 2nd, considering they started their match with seven players and no Goalkeeper! School fixture clashes seriously disrupted club preparations this week whilst the early Ladies 6th Team match had to be cancelled.
The game was delayed at Fylde’s request but eventually the seven brave players, a mixture of experienced adults and youth, had to take the field! They weathered the storm and with relief the late arrivals completed the 11-player team about ten minutes into the game.
Fylde conceded a goal in the first half but fought back with goals from young players Alyssa Woodman and Birdie Singleton to take a great win in their first match of the season.
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