After five months of training outdoors we’re finally ready to get back to our more typical indoor training schedule.

Outdoor training has been brilliant (apart from the odd shower) over summer and has given us the opportunity for the club to get back together, train and play matches in a safe environment.

We also ran another successful year of the Bristol Astro-Korf league with players from all of the Bristol clubs getting together to play some friendly matches as we move back towards a competitive season.

Following on from the relaxation of COVID restrictions in April we have now restarted full club, outdoor training in North Bristol!

The first few sessions have focused on match-play and have been a huge amount of fun however I think most members are just happy about being able to see each other again, if only for a brief few hours a week.

These sessions are likely to continue through a summer before we hopefully resume indoor training in the autumn.

The club is keen to recruit new members over summer and we will shortly be adding a second, weekly training slot in which we will look to run more beginner focused sessions.

If you’d like to come and try Korfball then drop us a message either by email at thunderkorf@gmail.com or on FaceBook.

We managed to get one awesome outdoor session in before lockdown kicked back in.

When we’re allowed back out we’ll be back to training ASAP. If you’re new to Korfball and are interested in joining us drop us an email at thunderkorf@gmail.com or send us a message on facebook.

Two weeks ago the England Korfball Association finalised their return to play plans for the sport which means we can get back to training and match play, albeit with a few changes.

Starting on November the 4th The club will be back training outdoors in a group of up to 30 people with new rules designed to ensure we can play safely and minimise our risk of transmitting COVID 19. Full details on the new guidelines can be found here.

If you’re interested in taking up the sport and would like to come and join us for training why not drop us an email at thunderkorf@gmail.com or check out our Facebook page and drop us a message on there.

Over January Bristol Thunder will host introductory sessions every Wednesday at Saint Mary Radcliffe and Temple School.

These sessions will be aimed at beginners, introducing the skills need to play and giving a basic overview of the the game.

All sessions will be free to newcomers so there really is no excuse not to come and give it a go!

For more info check out the event pages on our Facebook page!

Match Reports from this weekend’s games:

Firsts

The Firsts had a tough match ahead on Saturday. We knew a win was within our grasp, we just had to pull it out the bag! Much like the rest of our matches so far this season – we started out super strong. Goal for goal. Until half way through, perhaps 8-8 (ish). Then Nomads got a cheeky goal or two and we let it get to our heads, and with deflated spirits we let them run ahead with this momentum and we finished the first half 18-11. With the team talk we desperately needed from Donald at half time, we went back out there to prove a point. We knuckled down and managed to finish the game 29-23, meaning we won the second half by 1! It’s slightly annoying, as it shows we could have done it if we had the right psychology in the first half! But a positive note, is that we definitely know we can beat them next time! We have to carry our performance from the start, and from the second half of that game into the next one! And forget those pesky 15 mins that lost us the game!! Have a great Christmas

Seconds

Another week another tough game for the seconds. This week we came out on top after a tight game ending 12-13!!! We were behind for most of the game but showed determination and resilience to drag out a win! A low scoring game characterised by strong defence from both sides. I’m going to be honest I don’t remember any of the second half but I’ve heard it was a great team effort and thank all of the seconds for getting us through! MVP Sophie. To be fourth in the table at Christmas is a huge achievement and something we will look to build on in the new year!!!

Thirds

Another very close game for Thunder 3 this weekend as we were edged by one goal by a very experienced Gloucester Lions. After being reduced to 9-3 just before half time we did what we always do, found some rhythm started playing our own game and gradually reeled Lions back in. After leveling the scores at 14 all with 5 minutes to play Lions tightened their defence and stopped us finding that last goal.

Despite the loss we all agreed the played some of our best Korfball of the season with 8 different scorers and 8 different assisters its clear that the first half of the season has seen us develop into a strong team capable of taking on any team in the league no matter what their position is in the table.

Two draws and two 1 goal losses in the first half of the season sets us up for hopefully some very strong results in the second half. Bring on 2020!

MVPs Stephen and Sammy

Match reports:

The 1sts from Rebecca Fitch:

A much anticipated match for the firsts today. A novel experience where we were going into a national league match as favourites to win!! Playing newly promoted Highbury, Thunder knew we had some work to do. Highbury came out strong and very physical. Fighting for everything. Ten minutes in it was a tight 3-3. But Thunder persisted and we wore them down and soon turned this into 10-3!! We finished the first half 13-7. Going into the second half we knew we needed to capitalise on the lead we already had to ensure we got those golden 2 points!!! Even with continuous subs, and changes down each end, Thunder managed to keep pulling ahead and creating awesome opportunities and sinking the right shots! Great work and tremendous effort got us a final score and a WIN of 28-15. Boo-ya! Nomads next week 💪🏻

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The 2nds from Alex Webb:

Heartbreak for the seconds this weekend as despite leading for most of the match we lost 15-13 to farnborough. We pushed them hard and had them rattled throughout with them just pulling away at the end. Last year farnborough finished third in the league so this was a great effort from everyone. Massive shout outs to Sammy and Michael for stepping up and playing twice this weekend and 7 goal Chris Rainforth!

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The 3rds from Michael Greenland:

Thunder 3 16 – Bristol Uni 1 10

Thunder 3 took on the always energetic Uni 1 on Saturday and we got our second win of the season.

Yet to win a game so far we knew Uni would would defend hard and use their speed against us in attack and after Uni took the first two goals we started matching them shot for shot during the first half.

We made life a little difficult for ourselves with a bit of passing and shooting which we probably know was below our usual standard but in the second half we turned it on and a combined 9 goals from Samuel Luke and Stephen Wood saw us push ahead to a comfortable win.

Big thanks to Paven, Eleanor and Sammy for making up for our shortage of girls this weekend. One more match before Christmas against league leaders Gloucester Lions.

MVPs Rohanna & Michael

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The 4ths from Alex Hawkins:

A tense match for the 4s Vs Bristol Uni 2 as a slim lead held throughout the match buckled in the final seconds to an equaliser just before the final whistle. An inspirational defensive display from the whole team kept Uni struggling to catch up to Thunder, who played some impressive korf, including some excellent Thunder debuts. Final score 8-8!

Match reports for this weekend!

The 1sts from Rebecca Fitch:
At the weekend the Firsts travelled across the country to face the mighty Knights. We didn’t have fantastic records against them from last year, being NL newbies and whatnot – so we wanted to show off how far we’ve come. We started off super strong!! Until about 15 minutes in we were going goal for goal, there was nothing in it! We had an incredibly competitive start to the match, but with some solid shooting from the Knights team, they managed to pull ahead at half time finishing 18-13. We aimed to go into the second half and try to regain a tighter scoreline. We carried on fighting but Knights were on form. The final score didn’t reflect the game and we have come on leaps and bounds since last year! Cracking performance, we all gave them a great run, and finished 33-18. Thanks to Heidi and Ben Smith for making the journey halfway across the country to represent Bristol Thunder with us!! It’s always appreciated, and let’s bring on Bec this Saturday 💙

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The 2nds from Alex Webb:
The seconds welcomed Exeter to bgs last weekend. Over the past couple of years Exeter have been our nemesis but we were determined not to let them get the better of us again. We started strongly and they were rattled, forcing them to take a timeout. They were still in touching distance at half time but then we unleashed Adam Mason and they couldn’t cope, 4 goals in about as many minutes and they were finished. An amazing performance by everyone on the pitch. Special mentions to MVP Ben Smith, coach Jake Cooper and shotclocker Clare Derrett!

This week’s match reports!

The 1sts from Rebecca:
On Saturday the Firsts had their 3rd National League game of the season against Kingfisher! Last season we had one draw and one loss against this team so we knew it was a game with a win within reach! The game started splendidly, and within the first 10 minutes we stormed ahead and took a quick 6 goal lead. Kingfisher started to lose their heads, and we used our momentum to finish the first half 19-8. Woop!! We knew that the game wasn’t won yet. We had to come back into the second half with the exact same intensity! At the start of the second half, Kingfisher scored 2 quick goals which had us a bit worried. But we kept our heads, and with wicked support from thunder and fellow SW Korfball clubs on the sideline, we were able to secure our first win of the season! 28-19 to us 🙌🏻💙 booooooom. Thank you so much for all the support on Saturday, it honestly helps so much 💙

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The 3rds from Michael:
Thunder 3 16 – Taunton 1 16

On Saturday Thunder 3 took on league leaders Taunton 1 and put on one of their most resilient and tenacious performances of the season.

The expected longshots and physicality came at us but we were able to quickly adapt and use our skills in defending to frustrate the opposition and keep the scores level at half time.

The 2nd half saw Taunton stretch out a four goal lead but by playing tactically to our strengths and their weaknesses we were able to reel them back in. Where their boys excelled their girls struggled allowing Sophie, Beth, Anna and Anthea to put in sensational performances pulling our deficit back to a tie within the dying minutes.

The team are extremely pleased with themselves taking a point off of such a strong and experienced side, a point which has helped us climb another place in the table!

MVPs Stephen and Anthea.

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The 4ths from Alex:
Thunder 4 11 – 14 Bristol City 2

A solid performance for the 4s this weekend unfortunately ended with a loss to a clinical Bristol City 2.

We took an early lead and looked to be cruising but the opposition slowly chipped away at a really solid defence until it was all square for a large portion of the match. It came down to the last minutes all square and City just managed to squeeze ahead before a heroically close comeback was cut short by the final whistle.

Overall lots of positives in our first match with 8 players (and a sub!) including an impressive debut – well done all!!