Hot Action On The Hockey Fields Last Weekend

It was hot out on the hockey fields on Sunday, but not hot enough to stop the juniors getting out there and giving it their all.

Secretary Edwina Planten said the junior teams gave the crowd plenty to cheer about.

“With lots of drink breaks, these two teams put on an exciting game with players breaking through the tight defence and scoring goals,” Planten said.

“Congratulations to Mason, Lilly and Nandini who went above and beyond and took away the title of Player of the Week.”

“Well done to all players on a tremendous effort. Thank you to the volunteers who coach, umpire and help make this run.”

Round three of the twilight competition was hot, hot, hot - and it wasn’t just the weather.

As the temperature rises, the competition gets fiercer.

Planten said all teams took the field and gave their all, giving spectators some fantastic hockey to watch.

“All games were incredibly close this week, with some teams coming from behind to take the win,” Planten said.

The Tactical Tappers defeated Goal Rush 4:2 in a fast-paced game, with both teams moving the ball quickly down the field.

Planten said Goal Rush started off strong, scoring the first two goals, giving them a 2-nil lead.

“Their strong defence kept them in the lead, however, as the game went on the Tactical Tappers stepped up the momentum, showing us why they are on top of the leaderboard,” Planten said.

“The Tactical Tappers fought their way back scoring some magnificent goals, including a solo effort from Edwin Kwan defeating five defenders to get the ball safely in the goal. The Tactical Tappers managed to come back and win the game 4:2.”

Hannington Sibanda, Joshua Sibanda, Jude Sibanda and Edwin Kwan scored for the Tactical Tappers, while Janice Dunk and Catherine Gordon scored for Goal Rush.

Grass Gliders faced The Dribblers, defeating them 4:3. Panten said this game was goal-for-goal from the very beginning.

“Both teams had to work hard to get past the other’s defence, and the heat wasn’t making it easy for them,” she said.

“At the end of the first quarter, the score was even at 1:1. The rest of the game followed suit, with both teams displaying great skills to outmanoeuvre their opponent, only to be stopped by the next. There were some tremendous passes into the goals resulting in quick trapping and conversions for both teams. In the end, the Grass Gliders had the advantage at the end of the fourth quarter and took the win.”

Tahlia Gruber, Cooper Saines, Hayley Saines and Chris Hosken scored for the Grass Gliders, and Brendan Sheppard, Jock Bowman and James Cronin scored for The Dribblers. DTS and Blade Runners went head to head, ending in a 3-all draw.

Planten said DTS took the field short this week, but were lucky to recruit some extra players to help them out.

“On the contrary, the Blade Runners had a full team and the guidance from their experienced players helped their juniors place themselves in the perfect positions to receive the ball and dribble it down the field, making them a hard team to beat,” Planten said.

“The juniors in this team were a constant threat to the goal, with two of them (Matilda and Aiden) scoring for the Blade Runners.

DTS also had some very impressive juniors moving the ball for them on the field, with talented brothers Jude and Joshua scoring for them. They also stayed strong in defence and with both teams having to work hard all game, the result was a 3-all draw.”

Greg Burns, Joshua Sibanda and Jude Sibanda scored for DTS, while Matilda Woodward, Greg Bannister and Aiden Gunderson scored for Blade Runners.

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• Hockey