Hanover Plays Well On the Road

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-minute half. Liam Wordin lofted a ball into space for Henry Werner, who took his customary multiple touches and worked his way into the box, where he was unceremoniously tripped. Ian Press stepped up to take the resulting penalty kick, giving Hanover a 2-1 lead. Henry Cotter kept a clean sheet in the second half, adied by the strong cener back play from Paul Ashton and Sam Ames. Trinity had several good shots, but they were off target, and Hanover emerged with a quality win. The second match pitted Hanover against the hosts from West, althoiugh the game was moved from the scorching hot turf at the high school to the Manchester Memorial JV field, a tiny public park pitch. West took a 1-0 lead when a high bouncing ball eluded the defense gave the opposing striker a good look at goal. In an effort to recover, goalkeeper Henry Cotter bowled him over and conceded a penalty, which West converted to open the scoring. Undaunted, Hanover struck back. Freshman midfielder Joseph Umwizeye threaded a through ball to Calderwood, who helpd off a defender and poked the ball past the unrushing goalkeeper before filling the empty net, tying the score at 1-1. Hanover broke the deadlock at tthe start of the second half, when Freddie Mierke played a ball into space on the leftt side for Gavin Munson, who beat the keeper with a near side shot. Hanover continued to press, and Henry Werner and Veer Patel forced the West center back to cough the ball up. Werner stole the sphere and converted a shot that gave Hanover the final 3-1 advantage. Next up for the JV1 pool (still not the final side) is a Tueasday match with the Woodsville Varsity on the Merriman-Branch turf at 6:00. The Hanover Varsity got off to a bright start at Oyster River, a boisterous bunch that cheered mightily when Oscar was dumpewd in front of their bench. The cheering and hooting contninued into the second minute following another clumsy foul. The cheering ceased when Eric Ringer hit the ensuing free kick into the upper far corner for a 1-0 lead. A perfect deterrent. Hanover continued to dominate the play, and Oscar nearly doubled the score when he broke into the OR box but was only able to hit side netting with a bad angle shot. Midway through the half, Ringer string again, pouncing on a rebound when the keeper couldn't hold an Oscar cross, and making the score 2-0. Oscar was back on the attack at the 26 minute mark, forcing a good save by the keeper on a free kick that was tipped over the bar. Hanover was in firm control, but on a rare Oyster River foray into the Hanover box, a striker five yards offsides was judged by the out of position official to have been fouled in the box. The grateful Bobcats converted the gift penalty, pulling back a critical goal at a crititcal time. Hanover continued to hold an edge in the second half, thanks to the superb midfield play of Ryder Hayes, Becket McCurdy, and Zach Tracy. After several good attempts, Oyster River cleared their zone with a long high ball that was misplayed well out of the Hanover box, and suddenly the Bobcats were wide open for the game-typing goal. Frustrating. Hanover channeled their inner goldfish and forgot the frustration, calmly creating several good scoring chances by Oscar, who saw two near misses and a good save by OR goalie Kyle Butts. Ty Nolon made a couple of dope plays and dangerous crosses to keep things in hand, and Hanover continued to probe. Oscar's last good chance was his best, a turnaround shot thay barely skidded past the post. All too soon, literally, the game was ended in the 78th minute when the chatty arbiter on the near side claimed that he needed to get home to check a quiche in the oven. Frustrating. All things considered, however, the match was a positive next step for Hanover, who dominated a good team and saw a number of players get their first varsity experience. The Varsity will attempt to evade the worst of Hurricane Henri, cleverly heading North and West to the Windridge camp on Sunday. Time will tell if the plan works. In the meantime, we wil try and make a timely decision abiout the status of our Monday sessions. It looks like Monday's forecast is for day-long soakiong rains. We love playing in the rain. Honest. But we don't like the idea of running an important day of tryouts and tearing up the Pasture in the process. So, stay tuned. Tuesday could be the day!