JV2 Loses 3-0 to Keene, Continue to Grow

   It was good day for a game, as the gray mist gave way to a sunny late morning, and the team kicked off with a slight dew remaining on the  Keene pitch.  Hanover started out well with some real threats in the Keene half, specially as their defense tried to figure out how to deal with the speed of Max Patyk-Finkel.   Mark Ralston-Daniel also made some ventures into the box with some shots on frame.  He also created some havoc for the Keene midfield everytime it was in his vicinity,

 The players had individual moments of good play, but perhaps the team was feeling the effects of an early morning or the long ride down to Keene.  For unlike Wednesday, the team seemed to be assuming that a teammate would win the ball or pass to the them, rather than take initiative to win it or make a quick pass.  Keene sensed this opportunity and got into the game  and finally broke through the hard working defense on a couple of occasions and got the ball past Matt Alibozek in goal.

    In the second half  Hanover came out determined to pressure, and it really started to pay off.  The ball was immediately in the Keene half, and chances were being created in the form of shots, corner kicks and eventually free kicks.   Matt Fenner  threw himself into the game with the aim to simply win the central midfield.  This hustle put him in a position to get in scoring range and put the ball toward frame yet a little high.  The rest of the team woke up and stepped up as well.  As the thermometer broke 80 degrees, they kept running.  This work  created possession for Hanover, as well as free kicks.  The first kick was a missed opportunity we realized when the goalie bobbled the ball a little.  On the second we adjusted and as Mark Ralston-Daniel placed an arcing cross over the defense, Caleb Calloway made the run and managed to get his head on it for his first attempt on goal.  The ball just went wide though.  Hanover would have one more free kick to threaten the team as well got one over the backline, but the keeper was there to meet it just in time.  It was a considerably better half.  

 

    The second half was not perfect though, and Keene managed to get another counter and convert a shot on goal.  The upside to this game was the team started to see the benefit of crisp, accurate passes to fellow teammates or space and consequently the cost of casual play or indecisiveness.  The team knows now it can play well when everyone puts forth a good effort.  This was a long week with some ups and downs. Though this game may feel like a step back, it did provide us with a real opportunities to learn from it.