REME Hockey Tour 2023 Gibralter

Scribe: LCpl Jasmine Cope

REME Hockey continues to go from strength to strength and towards the end of the 2022/23 season, had the privilege to visit Gibraltar. Fierce competition is what awaited them with a riveting five days of hard games, training and actionpacked schedule! Both the teams professional attitude and willingness to succeed allowed the Corps Hockey teams to represent sporting talent at the highest level. It was not just about Hockey, the team cohesion days aided in building connections amongst team members, to form a stronger side in preparation for the games. The confidence and technical abilities developed from this tour will translate across the InterCorps championship in the coming months; with the strongest side seen in years for both male and female teams.

The ladies made an incredible feat playing Europa Hockey - a Premier League team for the first game. They utilised new skills taught from the coaching of WO1 King (who has represented in UKAF and Army Hockey) and Cpl Burrows (who represents the Ladies Army team, and this year was selected to represent UKAF). The ladies worked diligently in training, to reach new technical and physical standards. These were evident throughout the game, with clean tackles in defence by Cfn Pring and Cfn Shah causing chaos for the opposing teams attacking side. A collection of beautiful saves during the game from SSgt Powell, denied several aggressive shots from the opposing team. The forward player LCpl Finch had an incredible game pressing along with LCpl Norman to keep pressure on the opposing team. Captain and Goalkeeper SSgt Powell was awarded Lady of the Match for her consistent effort for the team.

The ladies maintained mental resilience going into another tough game against Hawks Hockey Masters National team. Another challenging opposition, but the ladies took this in their stride. LCpl Norman playing upfront earned the team a short corner in the first 10 minutes to put the ladies into a strong position. After LCpl Cope pinged a cross from the left corner to Cpl Burrows that almost resulted in a goal, the atmosphere became electric. Capt Evans, SSgt Gandy, and Cpl Burrows created chaos in the Middlefield for the attacking team, ensuring that they closed the opposition down and tackled with conviction to be rewarded the ball on a multitude of occasions. Cfn Gale was awarded the Lady of the Match, putting in an astounding effort against a formidable opposition. She suffered an injury but played on regardless, showing her courage and dedication to the Corps Ladies Hockey Team. Unfortunately, the ladies lost the match but put in a commendable effort.

The men’s seniors team played their first game against Old Collegians. A tough game against a very experienced side saw the REME team begin to understand what European Hockey was all about. The REME team put on the pressure in the early stages, but they struggled to capitalise, being unable to break down the Old Collegian defence. A number of short corners were won, but the opposition Keeper made some fine saves with efforts from Lt Matt Hutson, WO1 Dave Thomas and Cfn Jack Watson. SSgt Adie Worth and Maj Harry Morse controlled the midfield for the majority of the game by putting in solid tackles against the Collegian playmakers. However, in the final stages a late break away from the Old Collegian attackers led to an unfortunate deflected own goal from Sgt Martin Beaumont. The game finished a disappointing 1-0 loss. Even though the REME team felt they were in control of the game, they had some work to do in the next training session with finishing in the final third.

The next day’s game saw a refreshed REME team play the Gibraltar Titans. Another experienced side faced the REME, and they were determined to learn from the mistakes of the previous evening. Early on, the REME side won two short corners. Having worked on them in the previous training session, the first was dispatched with an excellent 1-2 between Cpl Chris Randall and Capt Kyle Beckett, with Cpl Chris Randall flicking the returning ball into the left-hand side of the net. The second corner saw the first shot by Cpl Chris Randall being saved well by the Keeper, with Lt Matt Hutson poaching to slot into the bottom right of the goal. After the initial success, the REME allowed the Titans out of their half to stretch the pitch. Strong tackles and interceptions were put in by WO1 Si King, Lt Tom Wilson and Cpl Jack Hillier in defence to keep out the opposition. In the second half, the REME added to their lead when WO1 Dave Thomas received a through ball and audaciously chipped

Before submitting an article you are requested to read the guidelines on the inside front the keeper in a 1 on 1. The REME won 3-0 in an impressive performance.

The final game of the tour saw a mixture of both Old Collegians and Titans play the REME team. However, there were younger faces in the opposition side this time which changed the game dynamic, presenting a different challenge to the visiting side. The game was very tight, with both sides having equal chances and making a number of sloppy mistakes. The REME Goalkeeper, Capt Sam Mead made some fine saves to keep the score at 0-0 going into half time. A push in the second half saw Capt Dom Sloan and Sgt Jason Terry causing chaos for the Gibraltar defence, but they could not find an opening. SSgt Adie Worth narrowly missed a cut back with the Goalkeeper beaten. The deadlock was finally broken when Lt Matt Hutson received the ball in the opposition half. Taking the ball to the right of two defenders, a fine strike at the top of the D beat the keeper for pace. The REME soon added to this when Cfn Jack Watson won the ball high through sheer determination, passing across to Adie Worth who could not miss the open goal. The game ended a successful 2-0 victory to finish off the tour.

The REME team also enjoyed a couple of cultural activities whilst on their Gibraltar tour. They participated in a wartime tunnels tour, in which they learnt about the many sieges of the rock and how it was successfully defended many times linking in with modern defensive principles. They also spent an afternoon travelling to the top of the rock, to take in the excellent views of the island and to meet some very inquisitive monkeys, who took a liking to Cpl Hillier and SSgt Powell’s rucksacks.

Overall, the Gibraltar tour was a huge success. Capt Sam Mead did an excellent job in organising the event. The REME Men’s Seniors won 2 out of 3 games, scoring 5 goals with Lt Matt Hutson the top goal scorer for the tour. Even though the ladies suffered two losses, they showed clear improvement as a team with training and match experience. The practice, training, and team building throughout the tour will be essential to success for both teams in the upcoming Inter-Corps Championships.