JV1 Ties Again and Then Breaks Out With a 6-0 Win

With the end of September, the JV1 Bears found themselves crossing the threshold of midseason having a homestand of three straight games. Coming into the week the team had only one goal in the past three games, Hanover looked to develop more of an identity in the attacking third. Knowing how important this home stand was to boost the team's spirit, coach Willie implored players to keep efforts high in the pregame speech before they hosted Merrimack on Monday.

The JV Bears would square off with the Tomahawks of Merrimack on Monday the 26th under partly cloudy skies. The game would see an early chance for the Tomahawks in the fifth minute; a well taken corner would find the head of one of the 'Hawks players and headed for the upper 90, but freshman goalie Jackson Souther was equal to the task and gave a punch with his left hand to push it out for another corner. On the ensuing corner, it was cleared quickly and sent Alex Orsino on a long breakout run and forced the 'Hawks back into making a tackle off the touchline for a corner for Hanover. Hanover would see one of the better opportunities of the half in the seventh minute with Henry Werner's corner that went long and found Aidan Bradley who pinged back the other way where Freddie Meirke headed it central where Orsino narrowly missed while being pressed. The Bears continued to apply pressure in the middle and attacking third but the 'Hawks defense really looked to sit in and deny chances. With having more emphasis on the wing backs getting into play it really helped keep possession higher up, but did lead to the 'Hawks best chance of the half; they countered attacked down a flank out of the middle third making it all the way into the 18, but Souther was able to come off his line to make the biggest save of the game. The backs swarmed to deny any second chances to keep it nil-nil into half. The second half found the Bears with even more control of the possession, but much like their previous opponents, Alvirne, they sat in and denied most of Hanover's chances. One highlight that was one of the better chances was when Liam Foston flicked the ball over the numerous Merrimack players standing on the 18, that found Noi Larusson, but he volleyed it over the bar. Trying everything they could, Hanover wasn't able to muster up a goal despite dominating the possession in the second half. The third straight tie, and second 0-0 draw, was frustrating, but it wouldn't change the players' drive to keep persevering through the season.

Throughout the week, the team focused on looking to shoot more often, and practicing shooting. Several field players jumped on the opportunity to play in net to give us the chance to get better in the final third with several candidates being our ("break glass only if needed") back up. With drills like three line, 3v2 to 6v4, the Bears looked to polish their build up and finishing, and it appeared to pay off vs the Grizzlies of Goffstown. 

The JV1 Bears would play precursor to the Varsity Friday Night Lights match which provided some extra fanfare for the JV game kicking at 5pm. The match seemed like it might have a similar feel to the last two, with Hanover holding much of the possession but their opponents just swarming to deny chances and quality build up. It was the good fortune of having Wyatt Seelig back in net that helped create the first goal. Wyatt would blast a punt that fell right behind the Grizzly back line, where Henry Werner playing the 9 position took possession and dribbled almost to the penalty dot. The Grizzlies keeper would make a good save to his right, but Lionel Ndong was first to the rebound and make the game 1-0 in the 21st minute. This first goal seemed to help the whole team relax and play with much more confidence. Only three minutes later, Werner took a cheeky chance from above the 18 where he chipped a ball that reached an apex of about four yards above the cross bar but ducked about a foot under as it crossed the goal line giving the Bears the 2-0 lead in the 25th. The score would hold to half, and feeling like they unlocked a higher level of play, the team would outperform its first half efforts in the second. Just three minutes into the second, Freddie Meirke would bomb a throw into 18 where Aidan Bradley was able finish a side footed flick over the keeper to make the lead 3-0 in the 43rd minute. Even as the Grizzlies looked to press the backs of Hanover, they would make quality play after play. Taehan Kim made one such play where he was able to play a second level line breaking pass that found the gap that was occupied by Werner; Henry took a touch before striking it hard to the opposite side netting for a no doubter to earn his brace and extend the lead to 4-0 in the 53rd. Continuing the theme of quality build up, Aidan would take a well driven ground cross that found Noi Larusson right above the six yard box. Using his excellent physicality, Noi shielded the possession and played back to Andrew Rudd who blasted a shot first time that deflected off an opposing back and in to inflate the lead to 5-0 in the 59th. The scoring would conclude with another blast of a punt by Wyatt that found Alex Orsino at the edge of the attacking third. Alex would make two backs miss tackles and finish while a third tried to deny the shot; this finished the scoring to make the final 6-0 result.

The JV1 Bears seemed to have had a roller coaster of a season so far with a few results they wished they had back and some games where they have exploded for goals. They finish their homestand playing their penultimate home game vs Exeter this coming Tuesday  before venturing to Londonderry on Friday to kick off the long weekend.