Following success at the In2Hockey County tournaments in March, three of our youth teams travelled to Harleston over the weekend of the 22nd/23rd April to play in the East Region Finals. Early starts and mixed weather forecasts did nothing to dampen the enthusiasm and excitement of players, parents or coaches.

The U10s played first, with both our boys and girls A teams taking part on Saturday. The BU10s did themselves proud – competing well in all their matches, and managing two wins and two losses (one of which was by the narrowest of margins). Their side of the tournament was incredibly tight, and although the boys were only one point behind the winners of the group, they finished fourth on goal difference. The boys gathered themselves to win their play-off match against Bury St Edmunds with a comfortable 3-0 scoreline, securing 7th spot.

Meanwhile on the other pitch, the GU10s were continuing to show the skills and team spirit they’ve built over the season. They secured second place in their group, which took them into a semi-final against the other Herts team, Hertford. No repeat of the drama of penalty flicks at County, but Hertford did just enough to win the match and went on to win the tournament. Our girls then regrouped for their last match against Harleston Magpies, with the Norfolk side just coming out on top, meaning our girls finished in an impressive 4th place.

Sunday morning saw the arrival of the next set of Tangerines, as the GU12s arrived for their matches. After losing their first match to a very strong Cambridge City side (the eventual tournament winners), the girls won their next two matches, and drew the fourth, securing another semi-final against the other Herts team, Bishops Stortford. This did go to penalty flicks, and then to the ultimate drama of sudden death as the scores were still even. Stortford just sneaked ahead, leaving our girls to a 3rd/4th place play off against Dereham. Despite losing a couple of players to injuries, the St Albans girls won 2-0, finishing 3rd overall.

Huge congratulations to all our players and coaches who took part over the weekend – getting to regional finals is no mean feat, and we’re very proud of you! Having three teams representing SAHC at this level is a great achievement, and hopefully everyone enjoyed the experience.

Blue News

30.4.23: Boys' and Girls' U14 county championships in Bedford and Ipswich included strong representation from St Albans HC - in the Hertfordshire Boy's A Team, Ollie, Hugh, Daniel, Toby and Sam; and in the girls' A Team, Alice, Enid, Libby and Mollie. These players had great success, with both Hertfordshire teams winning the county championships. Congratulations to them as well as Alicia, Noor and Adrienne who played in the Hertfordshire B Team and came a very respectable 6th.

Hertfordshire Girls' U15 A Team won their county tournament at Haileybury, and the B Team came 3rd, with Hannah and Maya in the As and Olivia and Jenna in the Bs.

Well done SAHC players!