Hanover High Boys Soccer 2021

There was nothing typical about the Varsity home opening on Tuesday night, beginning with Exeter's 6:30 arrival for a 6:15 scheduled kickoff due to bus issues.  Such is life in a pandemic.  After the Blue Hawks had a suitable warmup, Hanover struck quickly, taking a 1-0 lead less that two minutes after kickoff.  Eric Ringer launched a long throw into the penalty area, and after a missed defensive header, the ball fell to Murphy Hunt, who jammed it home for his third goal of the young season. Exeter was undaunted, and refused to concede anything else to Hanover, creating a game that was largely played at midfield, limiting either side from creating good chances.  Although their looks at goal were limited, Exeter took full advantage of their one good scoring chance, tying the game in the 30th minute when Sean Cheng played speedy Owen Richard into space on the right side, and he went in alone on Hanover goalie Ty Nolon, lining a shot through him to knot the score. Hanov...

  The Hanover JV awaited with great anticipation as it went through warm-ups. Once it was about half an hour until game time, we got the news that Exeter would be delayed for some time. Hanover did its best to stay warm as their typical routine was not timed for the delay. Exeter would arrive shortly after 6:30 pm and were very sporting about the whole situation. They came off the bus ready to lace up without a real warm up to speak of and agreed to play two 25 minute halves.  The game kicked and was played with great pace through the middle third of the field. Joseph Umwizeye would show his skill by linking the back and front lines efficiently from the kick. Early in the first half Ian Press played some tantalizing through balls to Sam Calderwood that were barely off his feet, preventing him from being in alone. Exeter would not be without its chances, but Hanover was equal to the task. The starting back line of Cam Forbush, Ethan Munson, Sam Loescher, and Jackson Watt did a...

 The Freshman team opened the season in fine style, winning a 2-0 victory at Manchester Memorial.  What a good way to celebrate the first day of school!  Gavin Munson scored a pair of goals and the Hanover defense was airtight, led by The Two Sams (Ames and McDonnell).  The Two Henrys (Cotter and Steffen) shared the shutout win goal, with the former doing the heavy lifting with several good saves in the early going. Hanover took a 1-0 lead 10 minutes into the match when Munson hit a left footed shot from the left side, beating the Memorial keeper to the near post.  Memorial held a significant territorial advantage, but the Hanover defense absorbed the pressure and kept their shape, and the score remained the same until two minutes were left in the first half, thanks to several good plays by Cotter, who was quick off his line several times.  Just before the half, Munson took advantage of some careless play by the Crusader keeper, sneaking up on him and steal...

 Yesterday we published a schedule (properly formatted, finally)  for the week ahead, and today we offer an in-depth narrative explanation of everything players and parents need to know to navigate the week ahead. We cannot stress enough the importance of having every player and parent read the blog each morning.  This afternoon two Varsity players were late to practice because they got the time wrong.  It was clearly published in the blog available this morning.  No excuse.  Weeks ago we scheduled a meeting for parents and players on Monday.  Since then, a freshman road game was scheduled, and the Varsity practice time was switched to 7:00.  So, no meeting tomorrow.  We are tentatively scheduling the meeting for Wednesday at 6:00 p.m. in the bleachers at Merriman Branch Field. The weather looks decent, and it's after the sub-varsity training sessions, and before the Varsity one at 7:00.  We will make it worth your while to camp out in t...

Sunday, August 29    4:00 p.m. Varsity Training - HHS Turf   Monday, August 30        3:00 p.m. Freshmen depart for Memorial Game at 5:00   3:35 p.m. Practice Bus leaves for Dresden  4:00 p.m. JV1 and JV2 Training at Dresden   5:45 p.m. Practice Bus Returns to HHS   7:00 p.m. Varsity Training at HHS Turf   Tuesday, August 31    3:00 p.m. JV2 Departs for Sunapee Game at 4:30   3:45 p.m. Practice Bus leaves for Dresden   4:00 p.m. Freshman Training at Dresden   5:45 p.m. Practice Bus Returns to HHS   6:15 p.m. JV1 vs. Exeter- HHS Grass   6:15 p.m. Varsity vs. Exeter - HHS Turf   Wednesday, September 1    2:45 p.m. Practice Busses leave for Dresden   3:00 p.m. JV1, JV2, Freshman Training at Dresden   4:45 p.m. Practice Bus Returns to HHS 6:00 p.m.   Parent/Player Meeting for All - HHS Turf B...

Hanover opened the 2021 season in impressive fashion, scoring early and often to beat longstanding rival Concord 5-1. They jumped out to a 3-0 lead after 18 minutes on a goal from Oscar Miller and a brace from Murphy Hunt, and played tight defense for 79 minutes, winning at Memorial Field for the first time ever in franchise history. Hanover had an inkling from summer play and inside scouting reports that they would be the better team, but they took the challenge seriously and left nothing to chance. They dominated the first 10 minutes, and broke through six minutes after the opening whistle. Becket McCurdy, who was a force at midfield throughout the match, slotted the ball to Oscar, who held off a defender and deposited a close range left footer past Tide keeper Max Leahy for a 1-0 lead. Hanover was keeping things tight on defense, with an all-senior back line that caught Concord offsides several times, indicating their ability to step together. The strength of Palmer Okai and Ja...

It took the JV1 a half to settle down and take care of business, but Hanover was resilient in rallying twice and scoring the only goal of the second half to defeat Concord in their season opener. The host Crimson Tide jumped out to a 1-0 lead when a careless back pass created an opening for a bad angle shot by Concord's talented and flamboyant striker. Ten minutes later, Ian Press and Sam Calderwood combined to create a game-tying goal. Calderwood played Press into space, and Ian returned the favor as the speedy Calderwood sped for his return pass, hitting a hard shot and then finishing the rebound from the Tide keeper's save. After Hanover keeper Christian Blix kept things tied with a good save, Concord went ahead when Hanover once again failed to protect the ball in the back. A square pass was picked off by the Tide's sole scoring threat, who put his team in front 2-1 and then let the world know that he was the man. Careful, Flamboyant Concord Striker - Karma's a ...

Friday is the day that many of us have been waiting for since, well, November. We have the chance to play some matches and keep score! The Varsity and JV 1 will travel to Concord's Memorial Field (70 South Fruit Street, Concord, NH 03301) for 4:00 matches against a respevcted rival. The Crimson Tide are one of only two Division One teams to win more than one title in the last decade. And yes, Hanover is the other. Hanover came from behind to beat Concord 2-1 in last year' playoff opener. We're sure they remember. The bus will leave HHS at 1:30. Masks are mandatory. No eating or drinking on the bus. In the meantime, the Freshman and JV2 teams will train at Dresden from 4:00 - 5:30. Both teams have been congealing this week, and should be ready to hit the road on Monday (Freshmen at Memorial) and Tuesday (JV2 at Sunapee). We have seen just about every freshman this week at training. We're still waiting for a few of the JV2 crew to check in either Friday or Mond...

Dog-day August heat notwithstanding, Wednesday was a very productive day for the program. Taking advantage of the opportunities which fell our way, we made significant progress in forming our four teams. Our morning session gave Freshman Coaches Jason Hirschhorn and Ned Harris the chance to meet with many of their candidates, and thanks to a well-organized scrimmage against a JV2 pool with JV1 friends, they were ready for a hastily-scheduled scrimmage with the Girls' varsity. More on that afternoon encounter in a moment. We had named the JV1 team the night before, and it might have been easy for those not named to give less than their all, or even show up. But so many of them not just showed, but were excellent. I could not be prouder of these young men, many of whom I have seen all summer, and just about all of who have worked hard on their game, and improved so much. Collectively, in one morning, they established the fact that the JV2 team will have a strong roster, and a gr...

This is the JV1 team. The team will train Wednesday morning 10-12 along with all other sub-varsity players, and then play Riverndell at Dresden at 4:00. Very hard choices to make: Sayan Bhattacharya Christian Blix Aidan Bradley Sam Calderwood Cam Forbush Augie Krawitt Sam Loescher Ethan Munson Freddie Mierke Veer Patel Ian Press Nick Reiss Joseph Rudd Wyatt Seelig Ian Smith Soren Stettenheim Davey Tolliday Joseph Umwizeye Jackson Watts Henry Werner Liam Wordin

Beginning now, we will publish the schedule for all practices and games for the program. Usually we will do this on Sunday evening. This week's schedule carries through to the start of school next week, and the first games for all four of our teams. Our Varsity team has been established, with the possibility of one tweak, and the JV1 team will be finalized on Tuesday night. The JV2 and Freshman team will be finalized and published on Thursday night, in time for their first practices on Friday. All non-varsity players will train on the next three mornings at the Dresden fields from 10:00 - Noon. Players must have shin guards and soccer socks, and bring water and sunscreen. Freshmen are askes to wear red or orange shirts, sophomores green shirts, and juniors/seniors whhite shirts. Players unable to attend should contact Coach Grabill. The Varsity will train at Dresden from 5:00 - 7:00 After the morning session Tuesday, we will name a JV1 pool team to scrimmage the Woodsville ...

The Varsity felt pretty smug avoiding Henri, boarding the schoolbus in Hanover and heading North up Rt. 89 to Roxbury, a little village tucked in between Randolph and Northfield. We passed through a few rain showers, but once we arrived at the Windridge Tennis and Sports Camp, the skies were almost sunny. We got to camp, moved into our cabins, and made it down to the recently-mowed soccer field in time for a 4:00 scrimmage with Paine Mountain, the local high school for Northfield and Williamstown. After playing the best two Division Two teams in NH in Lebanon and Oyster River, the was less of a challenge, and we made the collective mistake of playing down to their level. We took a 3-0 lead, with goals by Jack Gardner and Oscar, and an own goal directly from an Eric Ringer corner kick. They pulled a goal back before halftime on a well-taken shot, but the mood at halftime wasn't great. We promised to make adjustents, and them promptly allowed a soft goal to make the score 3-2. ...

Hanover sent two teams on the road this Saturday, and both had good results. The JV1 pool participated in the Manchester West Jamboree, and defeated two Varsity teams. After defeating defending Division 3 Champiom Trinity 2-1, Hanover then beat the host West varsity 3-1. The Hanover Varsity visited Oyster River in Durham, dominating play and settling for a 2-2 draw. Both teams put in the work, and had satisfactory results. The JV1 pool got off to a fast start against Trinity, taking a 1-0 lead on a goal by Sam Calderwood in the sixth minute. Ian Press got things started with a quick restart to Veer Patel, open on the left flank. Veer took one touch and then sent a low cross across the face of the goal where it connected with Calderwood, making a nice run into the box. Trinity equalized four minutes later when their center half dribbled across the top of the penalty area and connected with a low hard shot to the corner. The scoring wasn't finished in the fast-paced 20-minut...

There are times when we need to lead the daily Blog post with the weather forecast, and we are indeed keepoing close eye on Hurrican Henri as it takes aim on New England. But we are happy to see it veering to the West, and are hoping for a minimal impact. More on that shortly, because we still expect an impact on the soccer program. First, we want to review the plans for the weekend ahead. On Saturday morning, we're sending two buslods of players down south for several scrimmages. The squad of JV1 candidates (not the final version) will head to Manchester West High School. (9 Notre Dame Avenue, Manchester, NH 03102) to play Trinity's Varsity at Noon, and West's Varsity at 1:50. Each game will be two 20-minute halves. Players are asked to be at HHS at 9:30, with white shorts and socks. We will provide white tops. Players must be masked at all times on the bus. They should bring water for the gane and afterwards, and snacks for between game nourishment and a post ga...

 We are pleased to announce the 2021 HHS Varsity team. A lot of players have been working hard all year to make this team, and there were a number of very qualified candidates who were not named to the Varsity.  It helps some that there are spots on all four of our teams for anyone who wants to play, but nevertheless we salute those who weren't named this year and accepted that judgment with good grace.  The 25 players named to the team owe it to them to work hard to show that they deserved to be the ones. We are reserving the right to name one more player to this group on Tuesday, after reviewing a few more players.   Over the next few days, we will be providing a lot of information to help all players and parents be ready for the start of the season, which is one week away.  A week from Friday, the Varsity and JV1 will open their seasons on the road at Concord.  The next Monday, the first day of school, the Freshman will walk out of school and onto the bu...

 Welcome to the 2021 Hanover Boys Soccer  Blog.  As has been the case for nearly a decade, this daily blog is the best way to find accurate, timely information about every aspect of the boys soccer program at Hanover High School.  Posts are written late every night, and are designed to be read first thing in the morning.  We had the idea before "Daybreak"!  (We are perhaps reaching a smaller, more focused audience).  We will provide roster and schedule information, updates about practices and games, and other useful information that will be valuable for all stakeholders, including players, parents, alumni, coaches, news outlets and community members who follow Hanover Soccer.  We will continue to send email updates when we want to reach everyone with breaking news, but will soon discontinue the daily reports.  We ask every player and parent to check the blog every morning.  It's possible to bookmark us, and make the blog a morning habit ...