Magpies 5th match against Norwich Dragons was heading to be another hard fought encounter but at 1-1 the ball was taking on more of the look of a snow ball and the game had to be abandoned at half time.

Dragons had opened the scoring following an initial period of pressure but Magpies could have been comfortably on top with a half chance that was well saved and a missed flick opportunity before finally levelling via a short corner just before half time and the snow build up.

Hopefully the same form will be on show in March for the rearranged match.

Dereham Men’s 4ths 3 Harleston Magpies Men’s 5ths 6

What sounds like a comfortable win was anything but. Magpies quickly gained the upper hand and were 5 minutes away from going into the interval two goals up but a mini collapse and loss of shape lead to a Dereham fight back and at half time the scores were level at two a piece.

This comeback gave Dereham hope and it wasn’t long before they found the back of the net again, completely turning the tables on Magpies with a 3 -2 lead. However, the team rallied, regained composure and shape and slowly pulled the score line round, finally established a lead that Dereham just couldn’t fight back from with Rob Bensly, Rob Neal, Pete Dolton, Simon Newbery and debutant Jamie Hinsley finally getting the better of the Dereham attack and restricting them to only speculative shots as time ticked away.

Magpies scorers were Matt Bensly (2), the returning Jack Newbery (2), Andy Caston and Stuart Peters.

Harleston Magpies Mens 5ths vs Harleston Magpies Mens 6ths

Saturday 29th November

A very enjoyable club derby saw the mens 5ths come out on top but only just. Magpies defence had to stand considerable pressure throughout the match and the returning James Lane in goal kept Magpies 5ths in the match for long periods of the game.

However, it was the 5ths regular scorers of Matt Bensly and Sol Barker who kept their goal scoring run going grabbing one a piece at the end of each half to steel the win. Bensly capitalising on a loose ball in the sent the keeper the wrong way and was left with an open goal to push the ball into. Sol Barker striking the ball cleanly from the top of the D rising above the diving keeper.

With several regulars missing and injuries to James Smith and Jerry Blackmore in the last few minutes the work rate of the youngsters was first class. Jonty Herschel-Shorland tirelessly linked midfield to defence, Alex Lawrence tested defenders wits all match and Rob Neal had his best game yet for the team, solid in the heart of defence and even had a 5 minute sprint up front to finish.

Albeit Magpies 6ths won the better of the injury contest reducing Magpies 5ths team by two but only loosing one of their own!

At the mid point in the season Magpies 5ths are nicely mid table in Division 5NE with a number of key youngster for the future developing very nicely and the old heads just about holding together.

Ipswich & East Suffolk 4ths 2 vs Harleston Magpies Mens 5ths 1
Saturday 22nd November

Another day and Magpies would have earned at least a point from this match but a poor 10 minute spell in the first half saw Magpies give away two goals from which the team could not quite recover. Stuart Peters following good work by Matt Bensly down the right pulled a goal back with 15 minutes to go but despite great pressure and possession which resulted in a number of short corners and the ball whizzing past the odd open goal or two the equaliser could not be found this week and Magpies 5ths succumbed to their second defeat of the season.

Despite starting the match well IES 4ths were just too mobile and direct for the team in the first half. Their style of play caused Magpies problems in defence with players becoming free to often in dangerous positions. Jordan Wiseman dealt admirably with a number of one-on-ones and sharp shots but there was nothing he could do for the two goals which put Magpies on a back foot.

However the second half was a much better team performance with the defence settled, David Cadman, Rob Neal and George Ayling matched the IES forwards which gave Magpies midfield much more licence to roam and probe. Jonty , Matt, Keiran and Tom ran their socks off in the search of goals and on another day would have been playing against 10 men for longer parts of the game.

Hopefully the team will show their true character by bouncing back for the interclub derby match against the Mens 6ths this coming weekend.

Our best performance of the season so far – thanks to George Ayling keeping us in the match with a number of last ditch defensive tackles in the first 10 minutes as Ipswich 3rds look to over run Magpies defence. However sadly George couldn’t resit the onslaught for the whole half and Ipswich with another numerical advantage did finally find a way round him and they took an early lead.

Unfortunately for Ipswich this seemed to galvanise Magpies and with a few minor formation tweaks Magpies settled and began to dominate with Magpies midfield particularly getting control of the ball and winning back possession at their will when Ipswich attacked. It wasn’t long before Magpies started to get scoring opportunities, Jonty Herschel-Shorland having the best of the bunch with only the heroics of the defender on the line preventing the equaliser. At which point Sol Barker took control and fired in a delightful short corner to equalise and then had the ball in the back on the net only a few minutes latter from another set piece but this time the umpire cancelled out his strike on a technicality.

In the second half Magpies continued to look composed restricting Ipswich’s opportunities whilst probing for a second and when this came what a goal it was. Matt Bensley was set free behind the last defender and from the top of the circle fired the ball past the on coming keeper. His rising shot only just being contained by the goal netting.

All Magpies now had to do was close the match out for a well earned win and 3 more Division 5NE league points but a last minute rush of blood to the Magpies sweepers head and then his feet lead him to receiving a yellow card reducing the team to just 10 for the last 5 minutes. Ipswich threw everything at Magpies but it wasn’t to be there day and the final whistle arrived confirming a 2-1 win for Magpies 5ths.

A blustery day at the seaside caused Magpies 5ths problems from the outset with a condemned dug out meaning know where to assemble the kit or shelter from the North Sea breeze.

However the game started more promisingly with a lot of good possession and movement on the right albeit the heavy sand covering slowing Magpies game to a more pedestrian pace. In return Lowestoft Railway went long and fast at every opportunity and this was causing Rob Neal and George Ayling difficulties and just as we felt our defence was settling Railway managed to force the ball past all at the back leaving Jordan Wiseman in goal one on one with the Railway forward.

Jordan stood tall and came out to meet the on rushing forward but I his attempt to reach the ball just clipped the forward and brought him down. Railway converted the resulting flick.

Magpies heads didn’t go down and possession was restored and equalising opportunities created but it wasn’t until the intervention of Tom Norton and short corners that Magpies found the pack of the net. Smith injected the ball to Sol Barker who unleashed a great shot from the top of the D which Tom made certain of going into the goal deflecting the shot into the roof of the net.

At half time the game looked to be anyones and Lowestoft Railway pressed hard to find the winner but Magpies had settled and defended strongly breaking play up and counter acting at pace. On another day a number of such attacks would have lead to goal scoring opportunities, further short corner goals would have come and in the final minutes of the game the Railway keeper wouldn’t have pulled off a blinding save.

In the end a 1-1 result was a good point away from home.

Magpies 5ths were back on the road again this weekend over at Bury St Edmunds playing their Mens 3rd XI. From the moment Magpies arrived it looked a difficult match, Bury had an experienced club team on show against Magpies much more youthful look with 8 former development team boys on show.

However, Magpies, despite their inexperience from the start took the game to Bury, keeping their passes short and sharp resulting in a lot of early possession. So much so that within 10 minutes of the start Matt Bensley was able to work his way round the back of the Bury defence and pull the ball back across the face of goal for Tom Norton to score his first senior goal.

However, at the other end of the pitch Bury where causing Magpies as many difficulties with two very pacey forwards and deservedly they combined to pull back an equaliser before the break and then added a second when Magpies defence failed to clear their lines sensibly.

At half time and just 2-1 down Magpies had everything to play for albeit they knew it was going to be a difficult half against a strong opposition. Bury started strongly but Magpies held firm and then started to exert some pressure gaining a series of short corners. Sadly an equaliser could not be found at this time and Bury were able to use this opportunity to mount a fast counter act resulting in their 3rd goal.

With 5 minutes to go and despite being 3-1 down Magpies youngsters were still trying to do the right think and finally a bit of good fortune came there way. A Bury defensive clearance struck a team mate and fell kindly into the path of Norton yards form the D. The umpire waved play on and Norton slipped the ball pass the last defender to Stuart Peters who’s shot was kindly turned into the goal by the Bury keeper. Then with just a minute left to play Cameron Woodcock was set free behind the last defender. He confidently drove towards the D and with Keeper and defenders bearing down on him he slipped the ball across the goal for Peters to add his second and earn Magpies a point from the enthralling match.

Dragons 4th team are riding high in Division 5NE at present and therefore Magpies knew this was going to be a tough game from the start and indeed it was. Dragons pressed hard from the off and had a number of good chances to take an early lead but some good and sometimes last minute defending kept the game finally balanced at 0 – 0 at half time. In the second half Dragons continued where they had left off and finally found a goal forcing their way through the middle of the park and had men in the right place at the right time to follow up the rebound from Wiseman’s initial save. This lead could have been doubled but Wiseman pulled off a great penalty flick save to give Magpies hope.

Magpies, despite defending deeply were not out of the match and a good spell of attacking play late in the second half lead to a short corner from which Kieran Peters showed his father what to do and dispatched the ball over the keeper and into the corner of the goal.

Dragons were not happy and pressed hard for a winner but Magpies soaked up this pressure and tried to counter attack whenever possible using their pace to set up an exciting finish with a couple of short corners but the quality of the first could not be matched and the game finished deservedly 1 – 1.

Rob Neal, made his debut for the 5ths from the development team showing what a cool temperament he has under pressure and a real willingness to battle hard which will stand him in good stead over the forthcoming weeks.

Magpies Mens 5ths should have won their game against Dereham 4ths comfortably but as can so often be the case in sport early pressure and possession if it doesn’t lead to goals can be the undoing of a team.

Magpies threw everything at Dereham from the outset, Andy Caston just missed the mark twice, Jonty had a number of good short corners shots saved by the keeper, including one which involved the help of the post and Sol saw his well placed flick turned round the post by the outstretched boot of the inform Dereham goalkeeper.

And then Dereham had their shot and of course as so often happens in such games it went in.

The good news is that in David Cadman, Tom Norton, George Ayling, Cameron Woodcock, Jonty and Sol the club have a group of players who never give up and Magpies continued to press for a goal, moving the ball swiftly, taking on the last defender and battling against a team set on defence and defence only. Magpies finally got their reward with a goal five minutes from time when a short corner variation gave Stuart Peters the opportunity to squeeze the ball over the goal line between the goal post and last defenders foot.

The final result a hard fought and well earned 1-1 draw.

Magpies Mens 5ths tasted their first defeat of the season and got a thorough soaking at the same time away to Sudbury 3rds.

With one or two regulars not available the new look 5th XI struggled to settled in the first half and had to withstand a lot of early pressure from a well organised and determined Sudbury 3rds. However it was actually Magpies who opened the scoring. Against the run of the play Magpies broke quickly and the keeper could only parry the initial first shot back to John Pope who calmly lifted the ball over the keeper to open the scoring.

Sadly as the heavens opened Magpies shape and fluidity failed to hold together and Sudbury looked the stronger eventually forcing an equaliser when a ball struck outside the circle took the faintest of touches off the Sudbury forward. The lack of Sudbury celebration confirming the view of all but the umpire that there maybe wasn’t a touch and this gaol should not have stood.

Their second goal was equally as perplexing a cross turned into a shot taking all by surprise and leaving Wiseman to parry into his own net.

The second half was more promising from Magpies, a slightly re-shaped team and some improved passing saw a number of short corners gained in the effort the find an equaliser.

However it was not to be Magpies day. Magpies did get the ball over the goal line but an earlier infringement saw the goal not count and Magpies had to treat this game as one to learn from.

An entertaining match for the neutral with 12 goals scored and eventually another win for the Mens 5ths, 7 – 5, against Norwich Exiles although not a good game for the stress levels of the team manager!

Two different styles of hockey were on show, Magpies dominated midfield and passed their way up the field to generate many chances whereas Norwich Exiles favoured fast, direct counter acting hockey which ensured goals came thick and fast at both ends.

Magpies opened the scoring after just 5 minutes from a short corner, John Pope turning in at the back post but Exiles responded with a brace in the net 5 minutes. Magpies reshuffled their line up to find a more stable back line which worked enabling the midfield to dominate a create chances for both Caston and Bardwell resulting in a slender 3 – 2 lead at half time.

The second half started in a similar vein, Magpies passing through way up the pitch, Exiles responding with direct counter attacks but Magpies kept the advantage and nudged further ahead with goals from Caston (who ended up with a hat-trick), Cameron Woodcock and Jonty Herschel-Shorland but every time Magpies nudged further ahead Exiles managed to pull a goal back ensuring with just 10 minutes to go their was still plenty to play for.

However carefully guided by the older heads the youngsters kept possession and deservedly claimed a second win of the league second.

The match also included Alex Lawrence’s first home match and debut game for Tom Norton, both impressed.

The Mens 5th team got back to being a youth development set up this weekend with 6 youngsters gracing the field and 6 older heads working hard to keep up.

Magpies were promoted to Division 5NE at the end of last season piping Bury St Edmunds 4ths to the title and as luck would have it our first gaem of the 2014/2015 season was against Bury 4ths. Therefore both teams know each other well but both looked somewhat different to last years sides. However, as per last year it was Magpies who took hold of the game and dictated the pace. The first half saw Magpies dominate possession but sadly not deliver a goal.

The second half started in much the same vein. Magpies attacking, Bury pulling out last ditch clearances and saves but eventually Solomon Barker made the breakthrough finding time in the circle to fire the ball past the keeper.

With the intensity of the game getting to both players and officials Magpies then had to endure a period of play with only 10 men. Depending on the angle you saw Bardwell’s foot connect with the ball depends on whether you felt the yellow card was harsh or not but thanks to a real team defensive effort Bury were kept at bay and in fact Magpies should have extended their lead with a second goal. Stu Peters did all the hard work and with an open goal his reward fired into the side netting. Kieran Peters on the bench at this time was not impressed.

However with the team back to full strength Magpies youngsters got back on the front foot and took control of the game adding a second goal when Jonty following up Solomon’s shot picked up a rebound off the goal post to pop the ball home. Bury reduced the arrears 3 minutes from time with a well worked short corner but Magpies held on for the win.

Norwich City 5ths vs Harleston Magpies 5ths
Won 0 – 1

After a last minute team organisation nightmare and some very generous help from Fabien Mitchell and the Grahams – Murray and James – a full 5th XI assembled at Taverham.

Admittedly the team ethos of youth development could not be fulfilled this weekend with just Kieran Peters and Alex Lawrence available but nevertheless the older heads gave lots of encouragement to the younger generation of Stuart Peters, Roger Kent and Simon Bardwell.

However, it took some good goal keeping by first James Graham and then in the second half Murray Graham to keep Norwich at bay but they were out shone by the City goal keeper who stole the show thwarting attack after attack finally being beaten just 10 minutes before time when the ball was finally worked round him and turn in at the back post by Fabien Mitchell.

A well deserved victory with very competent and promising displays from both Kieran Peters and Alex Lawrence on his debut for the club.

Harleston Magpies Mens 5ths vs Norwich Dragons 4ths

Result: 2-2 draw

Following the reorganisation of the mens teams, this years mens 5ths is in fact the junior mens development team or in other words the first mens teams the boys stepping out of the development system are likely to play in.

As a result the team had a new look, many of last years team had moved on up the system which meant debuts could be given to George Ayling and Cameron Woodcock who both showed great potential. Whereas the older heads martialling the team all looked a little greyer and slower but fortunately had remembered where they had left their hockey sticks at the end of last year. Although Jerry Blackmore had forgotten his shoes had perished and over the course of the match had to retire to the bench as his shoes finally failed.

However, more importantly on to the hockey, much to learn but much to be positive about was the conclusion of this week. The youngsters showed considerable promise and fought back twice through Jonty Herschel-Shorland and Sol Hart to earn a draw out of this match against an experienced Dragons XI. The equaliser 10 minutes before time a diving reverse stick shot, the pick of the bunch from Sol.

The league match I am sure will be eagerly anticipated by both teams.

Magpies welcomed high flying Felixstowe 2nds having been well beaten in the corresponding fixture earlier in the season. Despite this Magpies had all the early play and it was very much against the run of play when Felixstowe broke quickly and took the lead after 10 minutes. Magpies quickly regrouped with every single player turning in a hard working performance in what has to be the best performance of the season to date.

Half time arrived with the score remaining 1-0 to Felixstowe though Magpies continued to have the better of the exchanges and had forced a number of short corners. The pattern continued in the second half with Magpies looking the most likely to score. Matt Brand had a short corner ‘goal’ disallowed for a combination of height and going in via Greg Jagger’s leg. Greg hobbling away did nothing to cover his inadvertent involvement!! More Magpies’ short corners came and went though from one the Felixstowe skipper was shown a yellow card for deliberately kicking the ball away. A repeat offence was to result in his early removal from the game with a little over 5 minutes remaining.

Felixstowe almost wrapped the game up with 10 minutes remaining but the shot was deflected high and wide by a sprawling keeper. The importance of this save became clear at the very end of the game. A short corner was awarded to Magpies and the final whistle blown. Brand’s strike was goal bound but stopped by a defender’s foot. Cue a penalty flick being awarded and uproar in the Felixstowe outfit. Will Main calmly scored from the spot and wisely chose not to celebrate too exuberantly!!

Once tempers had calmed Felixstowe were gracious to admit that this was a fair result and one which Magpies thoroughly deserved. James Goodson’s display at the heart of the Magpies’ defence deserves special mention though all players can be rightfully proud of their performance. Another 70 minutes like this must be rewarded at bottom side Norwich City 5’s next Saturday with the long overdue first win of the season.

Where are you…? Lets be having you…

Pelicans 2s v Magpies 5s
Saturday 25th January

With Pelicans beating Thetford 17-0 the week before, the task of visiting the league leaders was certainly a daunting task, especially daunting when only 3 members of the regular 5th team were playing. The location of the majority of the other 5th team members was unknown. Luckily the 7th team dedication was once again shown, being forced to concede their own league match to make sure the 5th team match went ahead. So the 5th team consisted of 5th team captain and two, the 6th captain, and the 7th team captain and seven.

The first half was pretty good to be honest, we quickly learnt after no more than a couple of minutes that Pelicans had a striker who didn’t need telling where the goal was, scoring the first of I think his 5 goals. The team with massive effort managed to keep the score line to a respectable 3-0 at half time. The 2nd half unfortunately was a different matter, quickly it was 6-0. Then the team had a period of loss of concentration, meaning the game ended 10-0 to Pelicans.

On the major plus points, of the 12 players Magpies took to Kings Lynn, 6 were aged between 15-17. These youngsters were a credit to the club and themselves, 4 of them have never played higher hockey than Division 6NE. So the experience although disappointing, and potentially embarrassing, was a good lesson in how to play hockey, and will hopefully be a useful experience in their hockey developments.

Lets hope the wandering 5th teamers can muster enough energy to represent their team for the rest of this season, making Captain Steve’s job much easier, as up until now, this season, has generally been a nightmare for him.

Stand out performances were from Roger Kent, energy and creativity never waning, and a must in our midfield. Tom Yallop in goal, making some brilliant saves to keep the score as low as it could be. And James Smith making tackle after tackle at the back. MOTM is awarded to all 3 of these players, as they made a big difference to the team on the day.

MOTM; Tom Yallop, Roger Kent and James Smith
Reporter; Tom ‘Magic’ Miller

Watton 6 Magpies’ 5ths 2

A young Magpies 5’s travelled for this rearranged fixture with Watton more in hope than expectation still looking for the elusive first win of the season. After a bright an evenly balanced opening 10 minutes Watton broke the deadlock with a terrific effort into the roof of the net over the diving keeper. Tim Allen equalised with a drag flick short corner but Watton immediately retook the lead with a reverse stick effort going in by way of the post. Two more Watton goals followed shortly after the restart before late call up Sol Barker put Magpies back in the game.

The second half saw some slick passing from Magpies and some of their most pressing and enterprising play of the season to date but the Watton keeper proved to be a very resilient last line of defence. With Magpies pushing on they were left more exposed at the back and a goalkeeping error followed by a one-on-one with the centre forward rounding the keeper to find the empty net made the final score 6-2.

The one-sided scoreline does not accurately reflect what was for most part an evenly balanced game. If Magpies can continue to produce this sort of hockey the goals, and first league win of the season, will surely come.
Steve Halliley

Lowestoft Railway – 2 Harleston Magpies – 3

The Men’s 5ths traveled away to Lowestoft following a disappointing performance the week before at home against Norwich City. This weekend saw the welcome return of Rob Goodson but the loss of regulars Phil Good, Joel Nelson, James Goodson and George Moore. Due to the number of regulars out, a change to the usual starting formation was required. Chris “Moyles” Thornton dropped from his usual forward position to sweeper and Will Main moved to central midfield.

The game started evenly with neither side dominating possession. Both teams were creating chances, but the breakthrough was made by Lowestoft as a ball was drilled into the Magpies circle and a well taken deflection into the back of the net gave Railway the lead. Magpies continued to create opportunities and the defensive organisation from the whole team was keeping Lowestoft at bay. A breakaway chance provided Lowestoft with the opportunity to make it 2-0 which they capitalised on and the game seemed to be slipping away from Magpies. Determined not to let the heads drop Magpies kept plugging away and continued to put together some great passages of passing play. The defence was playing well and quelling any Lowestoft attacks and linking nicely with the midfield. Not long before the half time break the new own goal rule allowed Magpies to peg one back as a retreating Railway midfielder deflected the ball into his own net from a ball crashed in from just inside the 25. Just after the half time whistle had blown a Railway player was binned for continued arguing with the umpire. Half time, 2-1 to Railway.

Eddie Thorne made an appearance at left midfield for the second half, replacing Adam “Posh Willy” Williamson who had provided a solid first half performance. As the heavens opened, and the sleet battered the players, Magpies made the most of the man advantage and continued to put together some great passing play and the equaliser came in the form of a back post tap in from Will Main. Jonny Wells and Roger Kent continued to frustrate the Lowestoft defence and Eddie Thorne was linking well with them both down the left side. Defensively Magpies were solid with Chris “Moyles Thornton adapting well to his change of position, Deben Nelson providing his ever reliable tackling and Rob Goodson providing solid midfield cover as usual. Tim Allen was marshalling well at left back and Adam Lascelles (on the return from an ankle injury) was linking well up the right hand side with Jake Morton who was then troubling Lowestoft with his stick skills. The chances kept coming from Magpies and a well worked move saw Will Main with a shot on goal which was converted to take Magpies ahead for the first time in the game. Chances kept coming and Will Main should have had a hat trick when he was clear through 1 on 1 with the keeper, a second bite of the cherry fell to Jonny Wells after the keeper saved the initial shot but the ball came awkwardly and the chance to make it 4-2 slipped away. Railway lost a player for the final 10 minutes of the game, again due to poor discipline. The game finished 3-2 Magpies.

A good performance and strong win from the Men’s 5ths. They hope to continue this form into this weekends home match up against Sudbury.

I start this week with an apology to the UEA umpire who visited Weybread last week. Upon reflection it appears that my comments in last weeks match report were both misplaced, a little harsh, and may have taken things a little to far. In fact I should have been extending a thank you to the UEA umpire who had to step in last minute to pick up the whistle as the original umpire pulled out quite late in the day. So, my apologies and thank you for overseeing what turned out to be quite an exciting game of hockey.

Moving on then, and the 5ths travelled to Copleston Sports Centre to face top of the table IES 1sts. Magpies were in no doubt that they were going to face stiff opposition considering IES were relegated from the league above last season and were used to playing at a high level. It was clear from the first whistle that IES were organised and well drilled. Their whole team pressed high up the pitch not allowing any room for error from the visiting Magpies. Magpies struggled to find a rhythm under the constant pressure from IES. That said Magpies battled hard, marking tightly and defending well. The whole team had to work at a very high intensity and fitness was tested but Magpies were up to the challenge. With the pressure that Magpies were under it was only a matter of time before IES made a breakthrough and it came from open play. I must confess that I cannot give you too much detail on the goals scored in the first half as it was all a it of a blur, what I can say is that as the half time whistle blew it was 5-0 to the home side.

The half time talk was positive and Magpies had been defending well. The consensus was to continue marking tight, keep the ball through shorter passes and press IES a bit higher up the pitch. The second half started well and the tactics in the half time talk were followed and Magpies were keeping more of the possesion. George ‘The Terrier’ Moore picked up his work rate and started hastling higher up the pitch causing the IES backline to rush on the ball. The midfield of Gus, Rob, James, Adam, and Will continued to run hard and on a break away attack Gus struck home a goal to make it 5-1! IES were furious, as this was the first goal they had conceded at home all season. The defence of Eddie, Deben, Robin, and Tim worked very hard and, with the help of midfield, made many goal saving tackles. Steve in goal was under constant pressure and made some great saves during the game.

IES took two more goals in the second half to make the final score line 7-1.

Although a large defeat, Magpies came away with their heads held high. Everyone worked tirelessly as we had a changed squad once again and no subsitutes this week compared to IES’s four on the bench which made a huge difference. We were pleased to end IES’s home clean sheet record and take a deserved goal.

This week the Mens 5ths host Norwich City 3rds.

Second placed UEA 1sts arrived at a soggy Weybread off the back of a 7-2 win over Pelly’s the week before. Magpies knew that they would be facing tough opposition but felt that they would be able to put on a good show against a quality side. Magpies did have two subs this week although they did come in the form of Eddie Thorne who is still nursing an achilles problem and Richie Smith who was out of retirement after 5 years but still having issues with his back.

The game started brightly and up tempo with both sides attacking and defending well. Magpies were extinguishing any UEA attack with solid marking and good communication between the backline and midfield. Early on it was evident that an 11 man defence was needed and Chris ‘Moyles’ Thornton and George ‘The Terrier’ Moore did not let the UEA defence settle. ‘The Terrier’ put on one of his best performances which earned him the man of the match award, well deserved, with his constant running and skilful drives through the UEA defence. Both sides were creating opportunities, although it has to be said that UEA were creating a few more than Magpies. One chance is all that it takes though, and Chris ‘Moyles’ Thornton did just that from a short corner opportunity to make it 1-0.

UEA responded well and soon took and equaliser. Unlike the weather, this did not dampen Harleston spirts and continued battling resulted in Magpies taking the lead again through another Chris Thornton goal. UEA took an equaliser before half time and at the break the teams were even at 2-2.

The second half started just as positively and it took two very well taken goals by the UEA to separate the teams. Two yellow cards for UEA players were not enough to give Magpies the advantage needed to win the game.

Magpies were not disappointed with their performance. Everyone in the team battled hard. The defence of Deben, Dan, Robin, Tim and Eddie was solid and the workrate of The Goodson’s, Adam and Will in midfield was great. It was a real team performance on Saturday. Magpies will need to take some of this positivity into their game this weekend against IES 1sts who sit comfortably at the top of the table with 7 wins out of 7, having scored 50 goals and only conceding 5.

A big thanks, as always, goes to Mr Mike Denham the only person who braved the weather to give the 5ths some sideline support. Mike we salute you.