Match Report: UEA III v Norwich City U16 B

UEA III	6:6	Norwich City U16 B
Rob (3) Ian(2) Harry

Ask anybody in the cobbled streets of Norwich about CNS and they’ll inevitably weave you a tale of the highs, lows, thrills and spills that go hand in hand with the home of Norfolk League korfball. UEA third team rarely plays at “Norwich’s Wembley”, but they got just such a chance to do so this week. The crew rolled in to play in the third match of the day, after the other two UEA squads had finished their games. It had, thus far, proven to be a day strewn with injuries, from twisted ankles to frankly eye-watering dislocated fingers, so it was to be expected that we were all a little worried about entering what could only be described as a korfing ampitheatre of Roman proportions. We were right to feel this way.

About thirty seconds into the match, one of the Under 16s slipped on the far side of the court. Twenty further seconds after that, another one fell. The pattern continued until the wise old owl that is coach Phil decided to change the dimensions of the court, an action that served not to remove the standing water, but to confuse matters further. Alas, all this commotion rather took away from what was a fairly engrossing first half of korfball. UEA took the lead in style with an excellent mid-range effort from the ever-improving Rob Bloomer. Disappointingly, UEA couldn’t hold onto the lead against the nippy under 16s and managed to drop behind by three points to one by the half time buzzer. Coach Jess called the beleaguered troops over and delivered something akin to the famous “we will fight them on the beaches” speech delivered by Winston Churchill in World War II. A couple of substitutions followed and the thirds were pumped up and ready to unleash hell.

If the first half was as exciting as the opening ceremony of the World Cup then the second half was a penalty shootout in the final, such was the tension that built up during the remainder of the match. I’ve pretty much forgotten the order of scorers, but I can reliably inform you that UEA somehow managed to claw their way back to four-all by the time the clock ticked down to ten minutes remaining. Harry Low once again managed to get his name on the score sheet, Rob produced another tremendous shot and Ian scored too. The under 16s showed that they, too, can pull a performance out of the bag when pressed and moved into a 5-4 lead with no more than five minutes remaining. Then, for the first time in third team history, a hat trick was scored by a member of the team. From out of seemingly nowhere, Rob looped another basketball style zinger right into the basket and we had pegged the youngsters back once again. If you thought that Rob’s hat trick was amazing then you’re not quite going to believe the next chapter in this tale. Ian ‘I can’t score a running in shot to save my life’ Durrant, managed to collect the ball, take two large steps and deliver the goods when it really mattered. Some cheered, others cried with the sheer emotion of it all, but the main thing is that UEA had gone 6-5 up with mere minutes left on the clock. It’s worth bearing in mind that whilst all this was going on, a lot more falling over was happening. Tragically the lead wasn’t to remain. The under 16s managed to score towards the end of the game and by the final buzzer, we were locked in a stalemate, which was probably a fair result upon reflection.

Special credit should go to Rob Bloomer, who’s looking like a fine asset to the team, and also to Inge, who had possibly her finest match as a UEA korfer, showing tremendous defensive instinct when it really mattered. Once again we must thank Jess for her coaching prowess in what is a very difficult job. Swaraj doesn’t get any thanks because he had to go to a dinner somewhere or something. Any more of that and we might have to have words…

So, on the 20th January 2008, korfball history was made. In years to come, UEA third team alumni will be walking those cobbled Norwich streets and if anybody approaches them asking about CNS, they would probably be treated to a story that begins ‘It was a slippery, wet day in January…’

Seriously, I don’t know why you guys continue to let me write match reports!

Thanks to Adam Everett for writing the report!