11Nov01: Nomads v Croydon & Nomads 2 v Croydon 2 On Sunday Epsom College played host to two teams hoping to qualify for European competition this year. Nomads elected to start with Helen Eardley, with Ana Osbourne on the bench. Croydon reverted to the line-up of their first game against Cambridge after an enforced change for the match against Bec. Epsom is notably smaller than many other National League halls, and Nomads have rightly tailored a style of play to suit that. Their aggressive 'in your face' defence unsettled Croydon who struggled to put together fluid attacking movements. Nomads looked impressive throughout the first half, and were able to take an 11-4 lead into half time. The second half started off in much the same way as the first finished. But after about ten minutes, Croydon started to sink a few of their shots, and all of a sudden there was a game on. In fact Croydon were able to claw their way back to 15-11 behind with about ten minutes remaining. Paul Jeanes was brought on to replace Andy Withers, who had been struggling after receiving a knock early on in the game. This immediately paid dividends as Janine Collier slotted two veering off shots past Ana Osbourne, a second half replacement for Helen Eardley. With the score at 15-13, the previously relaxed Nomads bench became nervous and agitated, particularly when Croydon had a succession of chances to narrow the gap further. But with four minutes to go, Nomads were able to score the goal they desperately needed, and the match finished 17-14 in their favour. Croydon will be left to rue another slow start to a game. More interestingly, the boy-girl divide may give coach Steve Jones some headaches. Croydon's female line-up, without Saida Hanine and Katerina van der Buntova, has been maligned by some pundits, but on Sunday scored eight goals from open play. By contrast, the male half scored just two from open play, despite having the lion's share of the attacking opportunities. Captain Dave Butters, accustomed to doing most of the attacking in his division, had an excellent game in defence, and assisting at the post, against Steve Green, in front of the watching England coach Ronald van der Bunt (a welcome spectator after his recent illness). If Croydon can get all eight players playing - and scoring - at their full potential, they certainly have a team that can challenge Nomads in the return fixture at Royal Russell. Last year Nomads threw away victory against Croydon at the start of the season, and had to settle for a draw which may have cost them the league. Five minutes before the end, coach Reg Etwaroo must have been fearing the worst as his team, which had looked so assured for most of the match, threatened to allow Croydon an unlikely victory. If Nomads are to challenge Invicta this year, they cannot afford to slacken off for any period of the game. But Nomads do have the priceless ability to get the most out of their players, particularly the 'second tier', non-international, group such as Gillian Card and Richard Burroughs, and it is this which enables them to compete so effectively each year. In the reserve league, a much-changed Croydon team took on Nomads 2 who were still smarting from a home loss in the corresponding fixture last year. Croydon seemed hampered by another 4 changes to their line-up with only Julia Hook a 2nd team regular for the girls. Indeed, Jennie Allen came back from injury to make her first appearance since the end of last season. She started well converting 2 goals from 2 attempts and with Paul Jeanes supporting on the scoring front, this lead to a level 6-all scoreline after 10 minutes. Nomads greater strength in depth then started to pay off as they stretched away to a 5 goal lead at half time. Half time saw the introduction of youngster Amanda Furlano to join her brother, Joseph, in attack and a revival in Croydon's fortunes. Paul Jeanes led the way with 5 goals in the match, well supported with 4 goals from Emma Butters. The final score was 21-16 to Nomads. Match Report by Andy Final Score: Nomads 1 17 vs 14 Croydon 1There were no Croydon scorers in this game.Submitted by on 23 Oct 0511Nov01: Nomads v Croydon & Nomads 2 v Croydon 2 On Sunday Epsom College played host to two teams hoping to qualify for European competition this year. Nomads elected to start with Helen Eardley, with Ana Osbourne on the bench. Croydon reverted to the line-up of their first game against Cambridge after an enforced change for the match against Bec. Epsom is notably smaller than many other National League halls, and Nomads have rightly tailored a style of play to suit that. Their aggressive 'in your face' defence unsettled Croydon who struggled to put together fluid attacking movements. Nomads looked impressive throughout the first half, and were able to take an 11-4 lead into half time. The second half started off in much the same way as the first finished. But after about ten minutes, Croydon started to sink a few of their shots, and all of a sudden there was a game on. In fact Croydon were able to claw their way back to 15-11 behind with about ten minutes remaining. Paul Jeanes was brought on to replace Andy Withers, who had been struggling after receiving a knock early on in the game. This immediately paid dividends as Janine Collier slotted two veering off shots past Ana Osbourne, a second half replacement for Helen Eardley. With the score at 15-13, the previously relaxed Nomads bench became nervous and agitated, particularly when Croydon had a succession of chances to narrow the gap further. But with four minutes to go, Nomads were able to score the goal they desperately needed, and the match finished 17-14 in their favour. Croydon will be left to rue another slow start to a game. More interestingly, the boy-girl divide may give coach Steve Jones some headaches. Croydon's female line-up, without Saida Hanine and Katerina van der Buntova, has been maligned by some pundits, but on Sunday scored eight goals from open play. By contrast, the male half scored just two from open play, despite having the lion's share of the attacking opportunities. Captain Dave Butters, accustomed to doing most of the attacking in his division, had an excellent game in defence, and assisting at the post, against Steve Green, in front of the watching England coach Ronald van der Bunt (a welcome spectator after his recent illness). If Croydon can get all eight players playing - and scoring - at their full potential, they certainly have a team that can challenge Nomads in the return fixture at Royal Russell. Last year Nomads threw away victory against Croydon at the start of the season, and had to settle for a draw which may have cost them the league. Five minutes before the end, coach Reg Etwaroo must have been fearing the worst as his team, which had looked so assured for most of the match, threatened to allow Croydon an unlikely victory. If Nomads are to challenge Invicta this year, they cannot afford to slacken off for any period of the game. But Nomads do have the priceless ability to get the most out of their players, particularly the 'second tier', non-international, group such as Gillian Card and Richard Burroughs, and it is this which enables them to compete so effectively each year. In the reserve league, a much-changed Croydon team took on Nomads 2 who were still smarting from a home loss in the corresponding fixture last year. Croydon seemed hampered by another 4 changes to their line-up with only Julia Hook a 2nd team regular for the girls. Indeed, Jennie Allen came back from injury to make her first appearance since the end of last season. She started well converting 2 goals from 2 attempts and with Paul Jeanes supporting on the scoring front, this lead to a level 6-all scoreline after 10 minutes. Nomads greater strength in depth then started to pay off as they stretched away to a 5 goal lead at half time. Half time saw the introduction of youngster Amanda Furlano to join her brother, Joseph, in attack and a revival in Croydon's fortunes. Paul Jeanes led the way with 5 goals in the match, well supported with 4 goals from Emma Butters. The final score was 21-16 to Nomads. Match Report by Andy Final Score: Nomads 2 21 vs 16 Croydon 2There were no Croydon scorers in this game.Submitted by on 23 Oct 05
11Nov01: Nomads v Croydon & Nomads 2 v Croydon 2 On Sunday Epsom College played host to two teams hoping to qualify for European competition this year. Nomads elected to start with Helen Eardley, with Ana Osbourne on the bench. Croydon reverted to the line-up of their first game against Cambridge after an enforced change for the match against Bec. Epsom is notably smaller than many other National League halls, and Nomads have rightly tailored a style of play to suit that. Their aggressive 'in your face' defence unsettled Croydon who struggled to put together fluid attacking movements. Nomads looked impressive throughout the first half, and were able to take an 11-4 lead into half time. The second half started off in much the same way as the first finished. But after about ten minutes, Croydon started to sink a few of their shots, and all of a sudden there was a game on. In fact Croydon were able to claw their way back to 15-11 behind with about ten minutes remaining. Paul Jeanes was brought on to replace Andy Withers, who had been struggling after receiving a knock early on in the game. This immediately paid dividends as Janine Collier slotted two veering off shots past Ana Osbourne, a second half replacement for Helen Eardley. With the score at 15-13, the previously relaxed Nomads bench became nervous and agitated, particularly when Croydon had a succession of chances to narrow the gap further. But with four minutes to go, Nomads were able to score the goal they desperately needed, and the match finished 17-14 in their favour. Croydon will be left to rue another slow start to a game. More interestingly, the boy-girl divide may give coach Steve Jones some headaches. Croydon's female line-up, without Saida Hanine and Katerina van der Buntova, has been maligned by some pundits, but on Sunday scored eight goals from open play. By contrast, the male half scored just two from open play, despite having the lion's share of the attacking opportunities. Captain Dave Butters, accustomed to doing most of the attacking in his division, had an excellent game in defence, and assisting at the post, against Steve Green, in front of the watching England coach Ronald van der Bunt (a welcome spectator after his recent illness). If Croydon can get all eight players playing - and scoring - at their full potential, they certainly have a team that can challenge Nomads in the return fixture at Royal Russell. Last year Nomads threw away victory against Croydon at the start of the season, and had to settle for a draw which may have cost them the league. Five minutes before the end, coach Reg Etwaroo must have been fearing the worst as his team, which had looked so assured for most of the match, threatened to allow Croydon an unlikely victory. If Nomads are to challenge Invicta this year, they cannot afford to slacken off for any period of the game. But Nomads do have the priceless ability to get the most out of their players, particularly the 'second tier', non-international, group such as Gillian Card and Richard Burroughs, and it is this which enables them to compete so effectively each year. In the reserve league, a much-changed Croydon team took on Nomads 2 who were still smarting from a home loss in the corresponding fixture last year. Croydon seemed hampered by another 4 changes to their line-up with only Julia Hook a 2nd team regular for the girls. Indeed, Jennie Allen came back from injury to make her first appearance since the end of last season. She started well converting 2 goals from 2 attempts and with Paul Jeanes supporting on the scoring front, this lead to a level 6-all scoreline after 10 minutes. Nomads greater strength in depth then started to pay off as they stretched away to a 5 goal lead at half time. Half time saw the introduction of youngster Amanda Furlano to join her brother, Joseph, in attack and a revival in Croydon's fortunes. Paul Jeanes led the way with 5 goals in the match, well supported with 4 goals from Emma Butters. The final score was 21-16 to Nomads. Match Report by Andy Final Score: Nomads 2 21 vs 16 Croydon 2There were no Croydon scorers in this game.Submitted by on 23 Oct 05
