Setting the Scene
Sonning secured their place in the NOW: Pensions National Trophy second round by securing an unlikely victory over an excellent Folkestone XI, after some heroics between the sticks from stand-in keeper Rob Merriman (and some suspicious goings on which are often now referred to as re-take-gate) saw them win a penalty shootout in front of a packed crowd at Sonning Lane.

Their reward for this was decided the following Monday in the EH offices, as they drew the absolute corker of a fixture: Guernsey, away.

Now, some background here. There are 2 men's hockey leagues on the isle of Guernsey, with 8 clubs turning out 15 squads every weekend. The games are keenly contested, and to an excellent standard. The Guernsey side, is selected from the best of these teams, so is essentially a national side (albeit from an island of 60,000 people). This side are essentially put together with the purpose of winning the national trophy, along with some inter-island games in which they are currently utterly dominant.

In the last 4 years, Guernsey have made the final of the national trophy no fewer than 3 times, and to top that off, they are presently also the defending champions, having disposed of current South Prem 2 high-flyers Banbury 1st XI in the final in the spring of 2014. They themselves had swept Basingstoke HC aside in the prior round.

Sadly for Guernsey, the away trip to the island is enough to put some clubs off, so it is relatively rare for them to get visitors. However, the very same day of the draw, Sonning began making their arrangements. What mad-man wouldn't want this fixture, after all!? So, from beginning to end in the process, the management of Guernsey were hugely graceful in arranging travel, hotels, on-island transport and generally making Sonning feel welcome.

The Trip
Sonning's trip began at around 5:30AM, where a trip to Southampton airport was the first leg. Surprisingly, all 17 members of the travelling party made it to the 8AM flight on time, and were off to the island without delay. A few heavy heads struggled from a Friday night of 'pre-game carb loading', but for the most part the squad was ready and primed. Upon arrival to the island, the team were met by a convoy of their opponents, who acted as taxi drivers to deliver them to a really friendly hotel, also run by a Guernsey player where they were told they had 2.5hrs to kill until their team coach would deliver them to the newly built 'Footes Lane Arena'! Of course, the team could not just wait idly, so took a little tour of St Peter Port and did what else but cram down a 'full-English' as fuel for the impending day's activities.

Before long the coach arrived, and the team boarded, with the feeling of nervousness palpable in the air (along with the sound of dry heaving from some individuals whose Friday night antics had caught up with them after forcing down one too many black puddings for brunch!). They were delivered to the pitch with 90 minutes to go before the game, so set about a gentle knockabout to music for half an hour, to clear the nerves and get a feel for the unique next-gen pitch which took some getting used to.

Before long, game time arrived, and the sides performed their normal 10 minute routines to get primed. Sonning's was unique for a few reasons. It was certainly the first time that most of these players had warmed up with ITV cameramen amongst them, and with the watching crowd of 500+ and growing the adrenaline was pumping. So much so that with about 5 minutes to go, Ian Gallagher lashed a ball so hard he punctured Ali Allans glove... It is possible that in the ensuing chaos, ITV may have filmed Jack Mason skewing a shot horribly wide with no keeper in goal. The footage has yet to be recovered...

Game Time
Sonning Squad:
GK: Alasdair Allan
Defence: Matt Sloper, Paul Brown, Ian Finlayson, Sam Terry, Dan Anderson
Midfield: Stephen Ridley, Chris Hinton, James Lockhart, David Painter, Ollie Waddington
Forward: Jack Mason, Ian Gallagher, Jimmy Manser, Noel Plant
Coach: Eddie Butler

In all truth, despite the build-up, the game itself was at times a bit of a mismatch, with the gulf in class quite evident. Sonning conceded after just 40 seconds, which set the tone rather poorly, and within 5 minutes the game was at 2-0. Both goals were turnovers in the Sonning half that turned Sonning possession into a Guernsey goal in 5 seconds or less. In the remainder of the half, Sonning stemmed the tide to a degree, and were able to get into the game more, however their front line were feeding on scraps, and they found themselves down 5-0 at half time, despite their defensive unit making some admirable last ditch blocks, and keeper Ali Allan making several outrageous saves to keep out some brilliant short corner routines.

At half time, it was evident that the game was probably out of reach. However, what Sonning agreed to do was spend the next 35 minutes fighting hard for every 50-50 ball, and to do their shirts proud as best they could. There was a crowd of well in excess of 500 who came for a game, so a game was what they'd get. The half started with a Gallagher aerial that Lockhart picked up on the edge of the Guernsey circle, catching Guernsey off guard and beating the defender to the ball. He held possession and Sonning were able to construct a period of pressure that up until now had eluded them.

Suddenly there was a game on, and Sonning scored after a 10 minute period of pressure, as Jimmy Manser received a lifted ball on the baseline to the left of the goal and was able to pick the ball out of the air and beat the keeper at his near post despite a tough angle. They scored again just minutes later, as Ian Gallagher struck home sweetly from a slick penalty corner routine. 5-2 was looking like a much more respectable scoreline, and Sonning's confidence grew.

What happened next was something you don't see every-day. A Guernsey forward (Sam Dawes - LAD) received a 45 yard aerial thrown by their left-back out on the wing. He caught it, one-handed over his left shoulder, and immediately turned and beat his man with one touch. Keeper Ali Allan rushed out to close the angle, but despite being 6'3" in his pads, and less than 3 yards between them the forward was able to lob the ball over him and into an open net. The goal was of such quality that Sonning players could only applaud, quite literally, in a show of sportsmanship that went noticed and was greatly appreciated by the watching crowd.

This ultimately killed the game off with 20 minutes to go, and Guernsey were able to score three more to leave the final score at 9-2. The crowd gave Sonning a round of applause for their part in what was eventually an exciting game, and the evening of revelry could begin. Excellent match teas, sharing of post-game traditions, and an inter-team beer pong tournament ensued, before Guernsey showed their guests what the island's nightlife has to offer (quite a lot, actually, if you're interested). Some photos have been shared... Some, have not...

On behalf of Sonning HC, we would like to thank the people of Guernsey for their hospitality, congratulate their side on an excellent display, the likes of which will surely see them put together an excellent campaign once again this year, and acknowledge the sportsmanship and good nature of their crowd, organisation, and players. Hopefully a return draw will be on the cards in the near future!! (Feel free to bring your B-Team though! :-p)

Goalscorers: Ian Gallagher, Jimmy Manser
MOTT (Man of the Tour: Sam Terry, for the slowest pint chug in history... But being the only man brave enough to take on the island's reigning champ... in public... it was actually embarrassing though... but we love you xx)
DOTT (N/A: Excellent form all around boys)