The University of York Hockey club will be looking for a more successful day tomorrow, as they look to kick start their campaign after a difficult start to the year, with both their men’s and women’s 1sts sitting at the foot of their respective BUCS tables.
The Men’s 1sts have suffered a wretched start to the season in BUCS, with only a solitary point to show from their first four outings, which was accumulated by virtue of a draw against rivals fourth placed Northumbria 1sts.
A humbling 12-1 defeat at the hands of table topping Sheffield Hallam 2nds last week must surely have dented their confidence, and they will be looking for a vast improvement in their crucial match tomorrow.
Another away match lies in store, this time to face Durham 4ths, who currently only sit one place and two points above York in the table. Another defeat would leave York in a deep hole as we approach the halfway point of the season, but victory against one of their key rivals, who only narrowly escaped relegation themselves last year, would allay the side’s concerns.
Men’s 1sts captain Phil Blackburn said: “It’s a must win game against an opposition we should beat. Despite our game last Wednesday, I am confident in my team that we can beat Durham 4ths.
“In terms of thoughts of the season so far, its been a tough fixture list for us to begin with, we have had only one home game in the league so far which has put us at a disadvantage, but I am still optimistic that we can survive in this league.”
Meanwhile, the Women’s 1sts have also struggled to date this year, with only one point to show from their opening three contests.
This week they host fellow strugglers Newcastle 2nds at 5pm on the JLD, and Izi Hutchinson’s side will be hoping that experienced performers such as Katie Penrose and Joely Hartley can fire York to victory, whilst first years including Laura Atkinson and Alice Young continue to impress.
Hutchinson told Vision: “The side have had a fantastic season so far considering how many new players we have.
“Despite this lack of experience we have moulded well together and are looking forward to our game against Newcastle 2nds, which should be a close contest.”
Both the Men’s and Women’s 2nds have had encouraging starts to their campaigns, whilst the major success story has been the Men’s 3rds who sit top of Northern 6B with ten points from their opening four games.
Andrew Lister’s side have two BUCS games remaining, and two wins would guarantee them promotion. Tomorrow they face one of their biggest challenges yet as they host second placed Leeds Met 4ths, who sit only one point behind York.