Week 24 Sports Report

U12Bs v Belmont Prep School (Drew 1-1)

As the top team at home, the boys had the privilege of gracing the 1st XI pitch on a sunny Wednesday afternoon. The majority of the first half was played in the middle of the park, with Jackson R and Ollie F putting in a great shift to make sure The Beacon kept most of the possession of the ball. The game started to progress and open up as the boys used the wingers, Berik I and Eeshan K, to spread the ball wide and attack down the flanks. This eventually led to a goal from Alex C, who’s initial attempt hit the post but was followed up and his second shot crossed the line. Great goal. At half time the score was 1-0.

The second half was a cagey affair, with both teams applying pressure in the final 3rd. We were able to withstand a barrage of Belmont attack, with some excellent defending by Aiden C, Jahnu M and Ben F. Our goalkeeper, Cameron R, pulled off some brilliant 1-on-1 saves late in the game to keep us in with a shout. But it was a low ball across goal that finally got the better of us and tumbled in over the goal line. The score finished 1-1. Well done boys!!

Reported by Mr Stansfield

U10C2s vs St John’s Northwood (Won 8-0)

On a sunny but muddy Friday afternoon, the C2s put on a dazzling show of football. The game started quickly with an early goal from Jamie B setting the tone for what was to come. The boys controlled possession of the ball nicely, moving the opposition from side to side, with some eloquent passing from the midfield duo of Armaan S and Cameron B.  This led to some excellent through balls being played down both flanks, allowing our wingers, Henry L and Xander K-G to get involved in the game as much as possible. More goals came in both halves, with Zac K, Xander K-G and Armaan S also getting on the score sheet.

The St John’s boys never gave up and the boys came under some late pressure from a determined attack. Although, with some excellent defence from Otis J and interlinking passes from Henry L, the boys not only kept a clean sheet, but two more counter attacking goals were scored by Max Mc. The match ended 8-0. What a performance, well done boys!!

Reported by Mr Stansfield

U8As vs Berkhamsted (Won6-4)

The boys had played Berkhamsted twice prior to this final game of the season, with both games being closely fought end to end matches. This third and final game lived up to those expectations. The opposition started quickly, playing some long ball, route one football that caught our boys off guard leading to two early Berko goals. In true Beacon fashion the boys picked their heads up and continued to apply pressure, which soon paid off, with a brilliant goal from Sebbi W. In the final five minutes of the first half, both teams scored again. The Beacon goal came from Macsen T who picked up a brilliantly crossed ball in from Aaron F. The score was 3-2.

The roles were reversed in the second half and the boys took advantage, scoring two goals, one from Teddy S-S and the other from Sebbi W, to take the lead for the first time. With the defence of Maxim M and Wilf W playing some lovely passing football under pressure, the boys were able to create another two goals to extend the lead going to the last five minutes, with Sebbi W completing his hattrick getting on to the end of a sublime pass from by Austin B. Despite conceding in the last play of the game, the boys came out 6-4 victors. What a game. What a season. 7 wins from 7, well done boys!!

Reported by Mr Stansfield

U10 B1 – Claire’s Court Football Festival

Champions!!

On Friday, the U10 B1 team took part in the Claire’s Court Football Festival. The first match was against Spinfield School and the Beacon boys started the game well. A first touch finish from a corner made it 1-0 and we dominated possession for the majority or the game. Unfortunately, Spinfield scored a late goal and the game finished 1-1.

 Next up was St Bernard’s School. We were more relaxed on the ball after the first match and played some excellent football, ending up 3-1 winners. It was more of the same against St Edmunds and with some clinical finishing, The Beacon won 5-0. 

 The last group game was against Davenies’ A team. We started well and put them under pressure from the off. We nearly made it 1-0 but a brilliant save from the Davenies’ goal keeper kept it 0-0. With seconds remaining in the match, Davenies had possession and managed to score a late goal to make it 1-0. Even though we lost that match, we still went through to the Cup competition as the second placed team in our group. 

 Our quarter final was against St John’s Beaumont A team. It was another tight match, this time on a bigger pitch which meant we had to work even harder against a well drilled St John’s Beaumont team. The boys didn’t stop working and were able to make it 1-0 with a minute remaining sending us through to the semi-finals.

 Our semi-final was against our very own Beacon A team. This was a tense match from the off with both teams playing some brilliant football. The score at the end of the match was 0-0 so it was on to penalties. After a few powerful penalties and a save from James in goal, the B1 team were through to the final.

 In the final, we were up against Claire’s Court A team. This was another tight match but we remained calm and controlled on the ball and kept working hard. The final score was 0-0 and so it fell to penalties yet again. With quite a big crowd all cheering for the home school, we were up against it. The Beacon boys showed bravery and courage to step up and take their penalties in what was a very tense atmosphere. There was a goal, then a save. A save, then a goal. It was incredibly close, that all seven players in the squad, including goal keepers, had to take a penalty. It was down to the last penalty and a brilliant block from James meant that we were the Cup Winners! A brilliant achievement, well done to all boys involved.

Reported by Mr A. Walker

U13B vs Belmont

Wednesday was the final football match for the U13B team. We were away at Belmont and the sun was shining. The Beacon boys played some exciting football and tested the opposition goal keeper from the off. We were unlucky on a number of ocassions with shots on goal but finally it paid off. A  long range attempt from Byron H rolled passed the keeper to make it 1-0 Beacon. Not long after that, some nice play from Belmont down the right hand side of the pitch led to a cross into the box which was finished well, making the score 1-1.

There was more pressure in the second half from The Beacon and we kept knocking on the door. A clearance kick from the Belmont goal keeper fell to Zac H who stuck the ball beautifully, it flew past the keeper and smashed the back of the net to make it 2-1 to The Beacon. Some brilliant defending in the dying minutes kept the score 2-1 to The Beacon to finish off a great football season.

Well done to all involved.

Reported by Mr. A. Walker

U8B1 vs Berkhamsted (A) 

On Thursday, the U8B1 team enjoyed their final fixture of the term over at Berkhamsted on an incredibly rare warm and dry afternoon to end a term blighted by miserable weather and cancellations. We started quickly and goals from Edward B (2), William D, and Peter C put us up 4-0 at the half-time break. Despite the rotation of positions and four different boys having a turn in goal, we remained defensively sound and continued to create a plethora of opportunities through some fantastic football. Edward B’s hard work was rewarded with another 2 goals, and provided an excellent assist in the form of a cut back to the arriving Ronan W who turned it in at the near post. William D scored his second with the help of a deflection and completed his hat-trick with a thunderous strike that dropped in off the underside of the crossbar, with the final score settling at 9-0.

We had previously played Berkhamsted twice earlier in the term, and won by much narrower scorelines, which makes it clear to me how much their football ability and game understanding has improved over the course of the season, despite weather conditions that were less than ideal – a testament to their efforts and application in all the games sessions and matches.

Reported by Mr Sutcliffe

U11B2 vs Berkhamsted (A)

On Wednesday, the U11B2 team had their season finale, which for some would be their last football match for the school. It was against a frustrating Berkhamsted team who seemed to somehow just keep everything out of the net. We played on an incredibly tight pitch considering the game was 9-a-side, and so found it difficult with less space and time on the ball.

The first half had few clear-cut chances, with both Joel J and the opposition keeper making smart saves when required. Our most notable opportunity fell to our in-form centre forward, James G, who has scored 5 in his last 3 outings, who unfortunately dragged it wide from the edge of the box. Goalless at half-time. Berkhamsted took advantage of some miscommunication at the back as a throw-in bounced across the face of goal and was turned in to take the lead. Despite considerable improvement in the second half and lots of opportunities, we failed to find the back of the net. Late on in the game, with lots of bodies forward chasing an equaliser, the Berkhamsted centre forward, after a fortunate deflection, broke through and slotted past the keeper to win the game 2-0.

It’s a shame that our last game finished with a defeat, but the boys have started to play some really nice football and bonded really well as a team. They have been a joy to work with, and that acknowledgement stretches to any boy who represented the B2 team at any point this term. We finished with a record of parity – 3 wins from 6 games, including great performances against Chesham Prep, St. John’s Beaumont, and Moulsford. Onto the small red ball next term….

Reported by Mr Sutcliffe

Under 8 C2 vs Berkhamsted 

The U8 C2 were away at Berkhamsted on Thursday playing their last fixture of the term. Lots of energy was shown from the first whistle and The Beacon put Berkhamsted under pressure early on with a goal from Issac B who slotted it into the bottom corner. A high press from the C2’s meant that the opposition couldn’t get out of their half and it wasn’t long before Oscar H made a long pass to Augustus who made it 2-0. The C2 team have worked hard all term on their passing skills and it showed on Thursday. A lovely 1-2 between Oscar B and George R allowed Aman P to be in space who passed to Farid who made it 3-0.

Some good defending and good goal keeping from Lucas M kept Berkhamsted goalless into the second half and there more goals for The Beacon, Issac B getting another and also Farid adding to his tally made to final score 5-0 to The Beacon.

Well done to all involved.

Reported by Mr A. Walker

U10 D1+3s vs Berkhamsted (Won 6-0)

On a sunny afternoon at Haslam Playing Fields, the combined forces of the D1s and D3s took on Berkhamsted. The game started quickly, with the birthday boy Sahaan D scoring the opening goal getting on to the end of a lovely pass from Evan S. This was soon followed by another two goals by Milan S and Henry W. The latter of the two was scored off the inside of the post from a terrific shot taken outside the box after receiving a pass from Dhruv P. What a goal! The boys went into half time with a 3-0 lead.

Due to injuries and Berko being down players, both Kian C and Christopher D, kindly put themselves forward to play for the opposition. They did themselves proud with a hardworking performance. The defence held strong, with a rotating back three of Samarth M, Louis V and Ben D making a solid wall at the back, that no team could break down. This along with goalkeeper Joshua R producing a magnificent late save, led to the boys keeping a clean sheet. With three more goals scored, one from each of the previous scorers, left the game finishing 6-0. What a game boys! Well done.

Reported by Mr Stansfield