Seasiders fail to steal an early March

Felixstowe Mens 1st 2 - 2 March Town

East Mens Division 1

With an experimental but encouraging pre-season behind them, it was time for Felixstowe Men's 1st XI to start their journey towards the Division 1 title. March Town were up first to experience the Felixstowe juggernaut, who were looking to make a statement to the other teams in the league with a good result.

After sticking with the new attacking formation, tried and tested in pre-season with Alex Woodhouse at right midfield, Phil Leney up front with Jack Entwistle, and Paul Farthing as a support striker, Felixstowe started sluggishly, March Town pinning the hosts back in their own half for the first 5 minutes.
However, as the half wore on, Felixstowe started to get into their stride, with some tidy hockey pleasing the newly installed coach, Duncan Rudge.
 

After exposing the flanks well, Woodhouse found time and space to fling aerials down the line, finding the strikers in behind the clueless, static March defence.
Felixstowe were adopting a new defensive press for this season, which led to March unable to get out of their half, which Felixstowe looked to exploit.
 

Tireless running from debutante Tom Offord and Entwistle ensured March had no time on the ball, key to Felixstowe going in front. Leney found an opposition foot in the 'D', creating a short corner, which Woodhouse dragged to Entwistle, who deflected in on the far post with consummate simplicity - the routine that worked so well last season.
Felixstowe's second quickly followed. Moving the ball down the left, some neat inter play found the ball passed into Entwistle on the top of the 'D', whose one touch pass found Farthing in the 'D', timing his run perfectly from deep to be 1-on-1 with the keeper. The pin up boy of Felixstowe hockey found himself cynically fouled on the penalty spot just as he was about to fire his shot high into the roof of the net. The result was a penalty flick, which Woodhouse, naturally, dispatched with clinical ease.
2 - 0 Felixstowe at the break.

March Town came out strongly at the start of the second half. They began to force Felixstowe back, who started to find it difficult to get out of their half in the heat of the midday sun. David Goode cleared one of the goal line after a string of good saves from Fothergill. Matt Walker and Andy Kelcher's solid tackling ensured March were kept out, but there was no doubt that the pressure was growing.

Felixstowe's defence was eventually breached as March Town's pressure told. The visitors were awarded a short corner, which was put away after some bibble-babble in the 'D', the shot squirming under Fothergill into the goal.
Felixstowe still created down the other end, with chances that could have put the game to bed.
The hosts may have been ahead for 69 minutes, but unfortunately, hockey is a played over 70 minutes, and with March's last attack - despair.
 

With the ball in March's possession down Felixstowe's left, the press was applied, leaving the Seasider's right uncongested and open. Tired legs and a gap in the defensive press meant one diagonal ball to the right opened up Felixstowe, from which the ball was swept into the 'D', with the waiting striker able to tuck away his shot.
There was barely time to restart before the final whistle.
The cliché of a game of two halves was evident, as Felixstowe failed to dominate and play the intricate hockey that had the fans on their feet in the first half.

However, plenty of positives can be taken from this performance, which will be taken to Waltham Forest next week, as the Felixstowe juggernaut roles down the A12, looking to go up a gear or two.