To toast the squads success at the weekend, there will be celebratory drinks at our summer home, Cheam Sports Club, this Wednesday 21st April. 7:30pm onwards. All welcome!

Mine's an IPA btw...

COME ON YOU REDS!

Nomads Korfball Club completed their stunning return to the business end of the top flight of English Korfball by taking 3rd place in the HSKL and with that, a spot in the Europa Sheild next season.

Having lost the semi final and the chance to play for the league title to the eventual league champions, Trojans, Nomads were set to take on their London rivals Mitcham to decide who took the reward for finishing third.

Mitcham were clearly looking to catch the eye with their luminous green shirts but it it was Nomads who really made people stand up and take notice with a combination of inspired team selection from coach Jax and all round top drawer performances from each and every player.

The game started well with Alex Bell hitting the first goal with a shot from the side but Mitcham responded well to take the early lead, fighting back from losing first blood to Nomads by scoring off the back of the post, then with a penalty and again from long to give themselves a 3-1 lead,

Mitcham, however, began to show the indiscipline that would ultimately cost them, conceding two penalties, both were dispatched by Alex Bell with a calmness that made it look as if he'd played a hundred games at the top level, not the handful he actually has.

Certainly, if this weekend announced Nomads return as a club that competes at the top end of British Korfball, it also announced the arrival of Alex Bell as a serious contender for a regular place in the Nomads side.

Emma Cole then showed her own class, adding to Nomads total with a fine long shot to give the reds the lead at 4-3.

Mitcham fought back strongly, levelling the game and then regaining the lead with a medium distance effort.

The cool head of Alex Bell was then called into action again as Joe Olds took the brunt of a solid bodycheck to win a penalty that was then converted for Bell's fourth of the game and Nomads fifth.

With the game balanced at 5-5, Sytze Bijker hit a hammer blow, scoring twice to give Nomads a solid lead.

Mitcham then thought it necessary to bring on club talisman and England Captain Dave Synott to try and wrestle back control of the game. A decision that opened up half a yard more space for the younger and faster Joe Olds but gave Mitcham the control and guile of a seasoned international Korfballer.

Mitcham pulled back a goal with a shot from the side of the korf but Nomads opened up their lead again with a smart free throw move and another goal for Alex Bell.

With very little left on the clock before half time, Mitcham took the slender Nomads lead back to a single goal with a well worked runner.

8-7 up at half time, Nomads were in a position to be pleased with their first half hours work but not in a position to be very comfortable with the lead.

The second half started with a goal that displayed the benefits of quick hands as Ean Irwin switched the ball over to Sytze Bijker after running into traffic and the pace of the pass gave Sytze the split second he needed to shoot without pressure and score.

Mitcham again replied from long distance before Joe Olds found a way to break free of his defender to slot in his first of the game to take the scoreline to 10-8.

The team in luminous green were clearly not comfortable with being on the losing end of a game against Nomads and the frustration shone through as they conceded not one, but two penalties, as their increasingly physical approach to the game was punished.

The first penalty was won by Sam Rowbottom who, as usual, was quietly and efficiently keeping her player busy and out of the game, Bijker, naturally, dispatched both penalties and suddenly Nomads were in possession of lead that was going to be incredibly difficult for Mitcham to overcome.

At 12-8 up, the game was Nomads' to lose but the they rallied together and tightened their grip on the game.

The newly introduced shot clock then had it's first real influence on the game, the twenty-five seconds running out as a Joe Olds shot was in flight and although the ball flew through the korf it was deemed a second too late and Mitcham regained the ball.

Their endeavour was reaping some reward, with plenty of free throws being won, unfortunately for Mitcham, they were just not going in and the opportunity to reapply pressure on Nomads never came from any other source.

Alex Bell then took the score to 13-8, Mitcham pulled back another goal from long but Bijker returned the five goal advantage scoring off the back of the korf, Mitcham returned fire from short distance and from a penalty but it was never going to be enough as Nomads triumphed 14-11

The goals may have mainly came from two of the boys but this was an epic team performance, Ana Osbourne, who has being trying to retire for longer then some of our juniors have been playing Korfball put in another impressive shift and Carole Dillon justified her inclusion in a team selection that out thought and outfought Mitcham.

Sytze Bijker (6) Alex Bell (6) Emma Cole (1) Joe Olds (1) Ana Osbourne, Ean Irwin, Carole Dillon, Sam Rowbottom

This was a victory for every player who pulled on a Nomads shirt in anger this season and last, a pleasing justification for every slog of shooting session and every pre season run, a joy for every Nomads Member that's ever blown a horn, cheered on the team or trekked around the country to support the team and a shining example what it means to be a club and not just a collection of players and something that gives others and ourselves a greater understanding of what being part of Nomads means.

Essentially, we just get together at the weekend to throw a ball into a basket and have a laugh but sometimes, on an afternoon in Norwich after two years hard work it takes on a touch more importance. Which is nice.

We all have something to be proud of and now we all have a European adventure to look forward to!

Further reports from the weekend and maybe some more gushing reviews of the achievements of the last few years to follow.

COME

ON

YOU

REDS!

A newbies perspective on English Korfball's showpiece event... (Admin)

What a brilliant weekend! Full of fun, laughter and of course Korfball. As newcomers to the sport the ‘Smiths’ didn’t know what to expect and we were certainly not disappointed!

Saturday morning was a fascinating insight to the Nomads pre-match preparation regime which appeared to consist mostly of Jacuzzis and sunbathing!

Then it was off to the venue for an afternoon of Korfball matches to warm us up for the main event of the day, which had us on the edge of our seats for the whole of the first half. So much so, that these two keen supporters totally neglected to make any notes and therefore have no clue who scored the first 6 goals or how – sorry guys!

It was tremendous stuff (see match report) and the Nomads support was passionate as always.

We persevered through the ‘bum numbness’ from the hard benches as the squad persevered their way through a tough second half to be defeated by the mighty Trojans, 17-27.

After a relaxing evening chatting, chuckling and chomping at a lovely little pub, it was back to the bar at the hotel where the weariness was beginning to show in some Nomads faces.

Day two and the sun was out again, smiling down on the Reds, full to bursting with cooked breakfast, we set off again for the Sports Park for the second Nomads match of the weekend.

What a wonderful afternoon of Korfball with Nomads winning 14-11 and then a hard fought HSKL final to delight the crowd.

As we sat at the services on the way home, munching our double whoppers the Smiths decided it was a top weekend!

How inspiring, seeing so many people from all over the country enjoying their sport and having so much fun.

Finally we would like to say that we are delighted to have ‘discovered’ Korfball and very proud to have joined the Nomads ‘family’. Thank you all.

Nomads kept all their supporters hanging on the edge of their seats for the first half of this match after drawing first blood with an early goal and then staying neck and neck with Trojans for the first 20 mins to reach a scoreline of 6-8.

I will admit I was so engrossed that I completely neglected to make any notes about the scorers of those early goals – apologies.

In the last 10 minutes of the first half, two goals from Ean, and one each from Joe, Emma and Alex brought the Nomads up to 11 goals against the Trojans’ 14.

Trojans scored the first goal of the second half but Sam came back with a beautiful runner for her first goal of the match.

Two more from Trojans and then Joe got things moving again for Nomads. Trojans responded with 3 in a row to bring the scores to 13-20.

Alex then scored two penalties and with 7 mins to go the score was up to 15-24. Sytze took the score up to 16 but then two penalties from Trojans left a 10 goal gap between the teams.

Sytze scored another with one minute to go and the Trojans responded straight away, to give a final score of 17-27.

Well done Nomads for a hard fought match.

Full details can be found in the Junior section.

Click Here!

With the close season well under way for everybody outside of the Squad that's heading to Norwich this weekend for some more Nomads time, it's a time for reflection and a short rest before the outdoor season gets under way and we all desperately try to cling to our fitness between the beer and the sunbathing.

Unfortunately it isn't possible to consume beer or sunbathe over the internet so choosing the reflection angle instead, I've compiled some season reviews for the Seconds, Thirds, Fourths, Fifths and Sixths.

As always, the coverage was influenced by the games I actually played in or managed to watch (this is an unsubtle hint for more website content from Nomads members...) but hopefully they are enjoyable reads and let you know how everybody else got on.

The Squad have a practice match against Invicta Sharks tonight at Epsom College tonight (Monday 12th April) with an 8:30pm throw off so if you fancy a gossip and a Korfball fix, head down and cheer on the team.

A Play-Off preview should hopefully be on-line at some point this week.

COME ON YOU REDS!