Tring men get back to winning ways as Oxford are taught a lesson

After a difficult few weeks, the Tring Hockey Club men's first team shook off the January blues on Saturday with an accomplished 3-0 win over Oxford 3s.
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The passing and movement was of a significantly higher standard than in recent games, and if Tring’s composure in front of goal had been any better the result would have been even more emphatic.

Tring remain in the hunt, but cannot allow any more slip-ups if they are to gain promotion for a third successive year.

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The men’s second string played high flying West Hampstead 7s and recorded a 2-2 draw.

Tring were looking to continue their good start to the year, however both teams started slowly with scrappy play and passes going astray.

West Hampstead took the lead through a well-struck short corner, but Tring soon equalised, with Adam Nutkins crashing the ball home from his reverse stick.

Tring improved in the second half, taking the game to West Hampstead as crosses and shots peppered the goal without beating the keeper.

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With only five minutes to go, West Hampstead inevitably scored with a sucker-punch, as a soft shot somehow evaded the Tring keeper.

But Tring kept going and got their reward when Dillon Hall slalomed his way through the opposition defence and scored from short-range.

Tring’s third team battled well against a Staines side who are unbeaten this season and who currently sit top of the league, but succumbed to a 5-0 defeat.

The final score did not reflect the balance of play, with Staines capitalising on some lucky breaks while Tring were unable to convert the chances they created.

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Given that several of the Staines players were playing in a team five leagues above this level last season, Tring did well to maintain their competitive spirit throughout the game, encouraged by good performances throughout the team.

Special mention should go to Alex Walker, Max Swift, Tom Grainger and Harry Evans.

Elsewhere, the ladies’ first team fought very hard in a 1-0 defeat against the league leaders this weekend. The score was not a true reflection of a game where Tring had a lot of the possession but just couldn’t capitalise on their good play with goal.

The ladies’ 2s had another loss this week, as they fell to a 3-0 defeat against Blue Hart 2s.