Union’s 1st team ends 6th in Top 8 challenge
On Friday, 2 August, and Saturday, 3 August, Union’s 1st team hockey girls travelled to Port Elizabeth and Gahamstown, respectively, to complete their round of Top 8 matches.
The girls took to the turf against Alexander Road High School on Friday, after a solid two performances against Framesby and Pearson in previous weeks.
The girls set the pace from the beginning by scoring a quick two goals within the first five minutes. This was a great start and a strong message sent to the opposition that the Union girls had arrived to compete. Goals were scored by Jenna McNaughton and Henzé Jaftha in the first half.
After a re-set at half time, it was Micela Loock’s turn to put two more goals in the Alex box to put the girls 4 – 0 up. A lapse in concentration during the last quarter resulted in Alex putting two goals past Union’s defenders with the final result being 4 – 2 in Union’s favour.
The team then travelled to Grahamstown for the ultimate challenge – DSG on their home turf.
The girls knew they were in for a tough match, but none of them could have anticipated the intense battle they were about to enter into. With an absolute star performance from Sakhe Booi, the team faced countless attacks from the strong DSG forwards. Stirling teamwork and an immense effort from the entire team resulted in the half time score being kept to 0 – 0.
During the second half, the girls were presented with scoring opportunities created by Henzé Jaftha which were unfortunately kept out of the box by the DSG goalkeeper. This game definitely proved to be an equally-matched rivalry and although the end result reflected a 0-all draw, it was an absolute win for the school and the team.
The weekend’s scores resulted in the girls finishing 6th overall in the top 8 challenge in the Eastern Cape, a result they can be very proud of.
DSG went on to play in the final against Woodridge on the Sunday, to which they lost 2 – 0 to finish second.
“This proves that, with confidence, a desire to compete and win as well as a positive attitude, great results can be achieved,” said coach Alvin August. “Let’s carry this momentum through to the season’s final challenge this weekend when we take on Volkskool – nothing short of a victory is anticipated.”
The other matches against DSG saw the third team lose 0 – 5 against DSG’s u/15C team, the u/16B team lose 0 – 5 against their u/14As, the u/16A team draw 0-all against their u/16Bs and the 2nd team lose 1 – 9 against their u/16As