Hockey was finally able to return to Chester Road at the weekend after several weekends of cancellations due to frozen pitches, with all scheduled away fixtures also taking place.
The Men’s 1st XI came from behind against Blueharts to claim a vital 3-2 win.
After taking the lead in the first half, Bedford fell 2-1 down in the second thanks to two converted penalty corners by Blueharts, only for Bedford to pull level again.
As it looked like it was heading for a draw, Bedford bagged the victory when Vincent Pretorius found the back of the net with just 4 minutes left to play.
This coming weekend, they head away to Dereham.
Bedford vs Bedford sees victory for 2nd XI
The Men’s 2nd’s v Men’s 3rd’s match was the second fixture of the season where the two Bedford squads get to play each other, as both teams play in the same division.
A hat-trick by Adam Priston helped the Men’s 2nd’s to a 7-0 victory over their clubmates, with the 2nd’s following up their Saturday win with a rearranged Sunday fixture away to St Albans, when another 4 goals by Adam aided Bedford to a 5-1 triumph.
The 2nd’s sit second in the table, just 3 points behind Luton, whilst the 3rd’s hold a healthy 6th spot.
A struggling Men’s 4th XI suffered a 5-0 loss away to Blueharts. They will hope to get some points on the board this coming weekend, taking on bottom of the table, Cheshunt.
The Men’s 5th XI got off to a strong start against Stevenage with a powerfully struck goal by James Logan seven minutes into play, giving Bedford the early lead.
An equaliser by Stevenage as half-time approached saw the teams start the second half level-pegging. It was Stevenage who finally grabbed the win, with a goal from open play with minutes remaining on the clock.
For the 6th’s, it was an unlucky 3-2 loss at top of the table, Potters Bar.
Bedford took an early lead, just 5 minutes into the match, before Potters Bar levelled the scores 10 minutes later, going on to take the lead.
Bedford pulled the scores level once more, but a third goal by Potters Bar put the chance of any points beyond Bedford’s reach. Third place Bedford host twelfth place Letchworth this coming Saturday.
It was a win for the Men’s 7th XI away to Luton with two goals by Luke Killen contributing to the 4-1 scoreline.
Ladies prepare for National League return
The Ladies’ 1st XI match was a friendly fixture against Marlow to keep the squad match fit for their return to National League action on 1 February.
An evenly balance match finished in a 3-2 win to Marlow. It’s another home friendly for the team next weekend when Witney travel to Bedford.
The Ladies’ 2nd XI travelled to take on top of the table, St Albans. Bedford scored in the first minutes and held the lead until St Albans equalised in the 60th minute, for a 1-all stalemate. It’s another away fixture this Saturday, when they head to Colchester.
With several Bedford players unavailable for the Ladies 3rd’s battle against Shefford & Sandy, they suffered a disappointing 1-0 loss after bottom of the table Shefford & Sandy scored on the 20-minute mark, giving the away team their first win of the season.
The Ladies’ 4th XI beat Stevenage 3-1, keeping Bedford 4 points ahead of Luton at the top of the table.
A goal to Bedford, 15 minutes into the Ladies 5th XI match, gave Bedford the victory and the points as their Harpenden opposition failed to score.
Bedford face a double header this coming weekend, travelling to Berkhamsted & Hemel on Saturday & Blueharts on Sunday.
There was a 2-0 win for the Ladies’ 6th’s away at Stevenage, with goals from Ella Litchfield and Amber Howard.
The squad have matches on both Saturday and Sunday next weekend – both home fixtures – facing Rickmansworth on Saturday and Blueharts on Sunday.
Bedford’s Ladies’ 7th Development squad – with many young players – fought hard throughout their match, but found the power of their more experienced Chiltern opposition challenging.
Chiltern took the lead in the first half, which they held for much of the match, before Bedford finally equalised in the closing stages of the game after a string of penalty corners, with the game ending 1-1.
Youth and Masters also in action
With Saturday matches concluded, there was more home and away action on Sunday (19 January).
The home crowd were treated to a fantastic display of talent in the England Hockey Under 18 Boys Plate competition as Bedford took on Southgate in what was a very even, fast-paced match, of end-to-end action.
Great defence by both teams prevented the many presses on goal from finding the net and left the game scoreless at the final whistle. Being a knock-out competition, a penalty shoot-out ensued with Bedford securing the 3-1 victory.
At the other end of the age range, the Women’s Masters Over 45’s continued their run in the England Hockey Tier 1 Championships, away to St Albans.
Whilst the first half ended 1-1, St Albans upped their game through the second, taking the win 4-1.
Bedford will now progress to the Tier 2 competition, where they will meet Broxbourne in the next round.
Words by Jean Fitch
