Portsmouth Tchoukball Club

Southern Tchoukball League Division 1 2009 - 2010

London (42) Vs. Portsmouth Rhinos (63)

 
The London team was fashioned by Jenny Clow, who had sourced a number of players living in the London area - including Gemma Gordon who hadn't played since JEF 2001, and Sarah Philips who was taking part in her first league game. From the pace and determination displayed by this squad it was hard to believe that they hadn't trained together as a team .
 
Rhino's did take a small lead at the start from practiced set pieces by Jason Harris and Lyall Cairns, but London's energy saw them fight back through Sukhdip Singh linking up with Jack Buck to bring the lead back down to a couple of points. The quality of passing was fantastic to watch and the change of possession only came from solid defending of both teams.

After the group talks both teams were quick to find their positions on the court and the London team threw the ball into the game to start the 2nd Third. With cry's of encouragement within the London squad, they slammed in a fast and hard point as an indication of their intentions. They continued with a good passing game which resulted in quick switching across the D-areas by Gareth Thomas and Tobe Street to move the Rhinos defence. The Rhinos responded well and altered their tactics with long passes to try and stagger London's strong defence for their shooters to take advantage. This change of play saw the Rhinos gradually pick up the points to add to their lead, but they could not afford to let their concentration slip against the piling pressure from the London Team.
The Rhinos had found their form which served them well in previous tournaments, with Kevin Fowler and Alroy Bennet feeding the shooters with accurate passes around the court. London's pace was still strong even at this stage, and the Rhino's were using their substitute to their advantage. As a result the tempo of the game appeared to step up a gear. Unfortunately, this came with a price as both teams had casualties on two separate occasions. The first saw Chris Sherwood taking a knock to head after collecting a ball that had been brought back into play by a great defensive dive from Dan Sherwood. Shortly after that the game stopped again when Victor Liew turned his ankle chasing another second line ball. Thankfully, after a small time out both players did return to continue the game.