Petersfield U12 boys unstoppable at Andover

The long drive and damp weather did nothing to forestall Petersfield U12 Boys’ league run when they visited Andover on Sunday. An early goal from Andover served only to fire up Petersfield, with Welch responding up the right-hand side by threading a perfectly timed ball into the path of Slingsby who wasted no time in slotting Petersfield’s first past the Andover keeper.

Gray presented a wall in central defence and coordinated a spirited back line including Sykes and Rushin, all of whom played out of their skins to clear ball after ball from the Petersfield 22 yard line. Feisty midfielders Price and O Stanbridge successfully forced play into Andover’s half and more inch-perfect passes from Welch assisted Slingsby in his clinical conversion of Petersfield’s second and third goals.

Not satisfied with Petersfield’s narrow 3-2 lead E White criss-crossed out of midfield and spiked the ball up to Hill who ran onwards to reverse strike Petersfield’s fourth goal. After a robust response from Andover, M White weaved into the offensive zone and darted into the D for an impressive individual goal. Hill then drilled home Petersfield’s sixth goal from a Slingsby cross, before Welch received 5 yards out and claimed his place on the scoresheet and Petersfield’s 7th goal.

With a 7-3 score line, the final period saw an emboldened Andover putting Petersfield under severe pressure. Black and McKenzie produced particularly energetic defences, while goalie H Stanbrige threw himself all over to keep Andover out. Even an inspired goal line clearance by E White didn’t deny Andover for long and they eventually clawed two goals back making the final result a 7-5 win to Petersfield. Slingsby celebrated his hatrick while H Stanbridge beamed as he was awarded man of the match.