Well done to the Red Arrows

The junior squad have received much praise this season, they have performed amazingly in all competitions, from the league to the U11 Championships, the school championships and for those selected the London Area Team.

It has been great to see this transformation, I recall last season hearing James ask, "when are we going to win a game" to now being upset when we loose one (only three in the league). The turnabout has been due to the team ethos that has been built as well has having a very consistent squad to choose from.

This season we welcomed Ally and Katy to the setup and they have been fantastic, we have also welcomed: Miles, Laura, Alicia, Caroline  and Iona. I am currently talking to Langley Park Boys School about developing a team in partnership with Langley Girls so watch this space

This year we have run Korfball lesson's at Marian Vian Primary School and will be running an after school club from May to July for Y4 kids, we obviously hope to take those youngsters to the National Youth Day in July and recruit tem to form an U9 team next year.

The North Downs “Red Arrows” reach the final of the English Korfball National U11 Championships

This weekend the “Red Arrows” travelled to Kent to take part in the English Korfball Association’s National U11 Championships.

We were without our latest recruit Ally but travelled with a full strength squad. There were seven teams competing, four from Kent and two from London. Having done our homework we had earmarked two crucial games, the first against local London rivals Scorpions and the other against the defending champions and Kent Champions, Tornadoes.

Game one against Scorpions was a nervy affair and although we had plenty of scoring opportunities the ball just wouldn’t go in, Scorpions on the other hand were clinical in their finishing and won 3-0.

Game 2 saw us take on Invicta the team third in the Kent U11 league, we were now determined to make amends for the loss to scorpions. The team looked confident and got stuck in, good passing, great defending and few well rehearsed moves saw us finish worthy winners.

Game 3 saw us matched against Bearstead the fourth placed team in the Kent league. With some amazing passing and pressure defending saw us come away with the result.

Game 4 was the big one against the Kent champions and current title holders Tornadoes. We had earmarked this as a crucial game and were determined to give it our all. I had watched this team in their opening games and worked out a plan to target their strongest players and it worked we dominated the game and our defence did the trick. This team scored on average 7 goals per game in the Kent league and we limited them to 2 goals and scored five great goals to take the points, this was the first upset of the day.

Game 5 was the last pool match and up stepped Kingfisher the 5th place team in the Kent league, this game was a really tense affair with both attacks missing good chances. Finally the deadlock was broken and it was 1-1. With my nerves jangling we got a crucial goal and held out for a 2-1 win. With Tornadoes and Scorpions drawing 2-2 it meant we finished 2nd in the pool stage, this paired us with Tornadoes in the semi final so we had to beat the defending champions again to get to the final.

Game 6 the semi final against Tornadoes was a tough game with the defending champions out for revenge but the Red Arrows have courage to match their skill and caused the second major upset of the day by winning 2-1 and booking a place in the final.

The final was a very tense affair and by now fatigue was getting the better of the Red Arrows and they conceded a couple of early goals to hand the momentum to Scorpions and despite their best efforts they couldn’t breakdown the Scorpions defence and lost 6-0. Throughout the day our team grew in stature and have proven themselves to be a great team who will go on from here full of pride and belief. To cap the days events James was named the competitions Most Valuable Player, as chosen by the team coaches.

The "Red Arrows" - The future of North Downs!

The juniors celebrated the successes of this season with a trip to Laser Quest.  See the gallery for more photos.

The North Downs "Red Arrows" win again!

The Red Arrows travelled to Sutton on the 2nd December to take on Nomads and Croydon.

The team had a new look to it with our two newest recruits Katie and Ally lining up for their first experience of competitive Korfball. We have been very lucky to be able to field consistent sections recently so it was a case of slotting in our new recruits.

First up were a strong looking Nomads team they immediately announced their intentions by scoring in the first attack. Despite this the Red arrows didn’t panic and played their way back into the game and defended in characteristic strong and determined fashion. Nathan and Mark combined well and tried out a new move learned on Thursday and scored, its great when a plan comes together!! The whole team played extremely well and eventually finished worthy 3-1 winners. Given that both Ally and Katie have had 3 and 2 weeks training respectively their debuts were fantastic and I think they will be a real asset to the team, as do their team members who voted Katie player of the match.

Next up were local rivals Croydon, bolstered by the inclusion of two girls from scorpions, this was a very tight affair but we kept our noses in front throughout. Things changed with half the game to go when “super captain” Rosie injured her finger and came off, this meant playing with a section of three against playing Croydon’s strongest section but again up stepped Katie who denied her player any scoring chances. With ten minutes to go Rosie returned to the fray and scored in the next attack, again we finished worthy 2-1 winners. Ally narrowly missed out on the player of the match award being pipped by Rosie. Well done team!1

Red Arrows Start 07/08 Season in Style

The ND Red Arrows began the 07/08 season with two wins over local rivals Croydon at Trinity.

London Wildcats pulled out of the fixture so it was left the two local teams to vie for the points, game one was designated a friendly and was a chance for both teams to warm up.

The game started with Croydon in attack but the Red Arrows defence held firm and our attack soon took the initiative with goals from Mark, James and Luke we took the game 5 – 1. A good performance all round.

Game two was the league game and this time the Red arrows started in attack and immediately got some scores on the board, the team looked well organised with some great passing which is now becoming a feature of their play. Goals from Mark, James Nathan and Rosie saw the Red Arrows finishing worthy 9 - 0 winners, our youngsters have set the bar very high and are looking forward to the next game on the 4th November.

National Youth Day

The Red Arrows perform brilliantly at the National Youth Day (NYD)

For the second year running North Downs KC was represented at the NYD by the Red Arrows, our junior section.
This year we had one team competing in the U11 category, the line up was:

The competition was structured into three pools in the morning with the results shaping the pools for the afternoon.

Our morning pool contained five teams including Scorpions and Tornadoes 11. Despite being beaten by Scorpions on the opening game the Red Arrows showed how far they have come as a team, winning all four of their remaining games in the morning. Every player impressed and some of the passing and reading of the game was phenomenal from such a young team.

The afternoon saw the Red Arrows narrowly missing out on going into the top pool on goal difference only and as a result played in pool two, again a five team pool. The Red Arrows again showed just how good they are and won three of their four pool matches, tiredness playing a major part in the one loss.

So the final tally was: played 8, won 6, lost 2. The team finished a very respectable joint 6th out of 15 teams.

What was particularly good from the clubs perspective was the enthusiasm of not only the kids but the parents who really got into the spirit of the occasion and really encouraged the kids, big thanks to you all!

Although everyone impressed on the day Alyx Rowland deserves a special mention as only an occasional player she grew in confidence with every game and was by the afternoon a commanding presence, often bossing some of the boys around!! No mean feat, well done Alyx. 

New Kit

The smart new kit for the juniors has arrived, as modelled here by some of the team.

Summer Training

Junior Korfball training available in Beckenham North Downs Korfball club would like to invite young people to come along and try Korfball on Monday evenings from 6.00pm to 7.15pm at Oak Lodge Primary School, Chamberlain Crescent, BR4 0LJ. (West Wickham)

We currently have a number of children playing in the under 11 range and are keen to add to this group but also offer opportunities for children from 8 upwards to try this great sport.

If you are interested please contact Bill Berry Junior Coach on 07825180472 or email chairman@northdownskorfball.co.uk

First two sessions free.  Cost thereafter is £10 annual joining fee and £2.50 per session

Another school to offering Korfball to their kids!

North Downs well represented in London U11s

Juniors end the season on high point.

For those who saw the performances yesterday I'm sure you will agree with me that the team played the best Korfball that they have ever played and despite losing to Mitcham 4-1, a scoreline that flattered, everyone left the pitch very proud of the performance. The second game against Nomads was the game of the season for the Red Arrows and finished 3-3, the skill and commitment on show was truly amazing for such a young team, the passing was superb and the defence was awesome. A big thanks to Emily L who came at short notice as we were a girl down and despite being unwell played fantastically, Thanks Emily! There is a real buzz about the club at the moment its a shame the indoor season is coming to an end but we intend to be busy over the summer so watch this space.

Red Arrows face Wildcats and Scorpions The Red Arrows took on Wildcats and Scorpions on Sunday.  Both are strong teams, but the Red Arrows gave an impressive performance,  particularly in defence against Wildcats, though they were beaten 3 - 0.  Scorpions as always proved to be a well organised organised team. However, the final score does not reflect the balance of play.  North Downs held off the Scorpions' attack for a large portion of the match, but were beaten by a surge from the visitors during the last part of the game, the final score being 6 - 0. See photos in the gallery.