GILBERT SHOWS THEM HOW ITS DONE

BEHC Highwaymen 1 Burnt Ash XI 4

This was not a sparkling performance by any means, and judging by the performance of the "combined" men in red in what was very much a low-key game with a trial feel about it, there is still a fair bit of work to be done before the league season opens in earnest in two weeks' time, if either team is likely to prosper in the months ahead.

Unfortunately the "Dynamen" or "Highwaymos" were caught like a frightened cat in the headlamps of the opening excehanges, somehow conceding two soft goals in almost as many minutes, before settling down into a display which at times showed some promise, but at others only served to underline the slight sense of confusion which pervaded proceedings in general.

Burnt Ash had clearly kept on two or three of the team which had just played the Heathens, so the opposition was good, but this did not stop the youngsters in the home squad from taking the game to their opponents, although the BEHC men did not manage to create anything worthwhile in terms of short-corners or shots-on-target. In the end it was left to Stephen "if you want something doing, do it yourself" Gilbert to tuck away a fine opportunist effort to put the home team on the scoresheet, but sadly that was it in terms of home goals.

Mssrs. Miller and Baker, two fine tradesmen by name, but hockey connoisseurs by nature, caught the eye, the former for some resolute defending throughout, the latter through an energetic display, particularly in the second half. In follicle terms the similarities ended there, however, with the more hirsute Baker's corkscrew curls just about able to survive the constant rain on a miserably cool afternoon (see picture above).

Once again the star of the show was keeper Tom Conway, who has now conceded more goals in three pre-season friendlies than he did in the first two-thirds of the whole of last season. That says far more about the people in front of him, however, as the team needs to work on its ball-retention and closing down of opponents in order to prosper in the coming 2018-2019 season.

Next week's friendly between the Dynamos and the Highwaymen may give a better picture of where the two teams stand, but four week's of stern preparation has been an excellent initiative by the Club.

Team:
Conway, Gilbert (C), Walters, Wickramasuriya, Robinson, Kinch, Dowse, Cleall, Miller, Southgate, Jake Lewis, Danny Lewis, Baker and Bertioli.

Man-of-the-match:
Tom Conway … yet again. The damage would have been worse without him - another great performance.

Umpires:
Fenno Outen and a visiting umpire both did a grand job in the rather inclement conditions.