Drake, the hat-trick hero for Selborne, while Grey and Outeniqua win
Reid Drake scored a hat-trick of goals to help Selborne College secure a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Queen’s College, in Komani, on Friday night.
The Eastern Cape derby was played on Queen’s College’s 167th Reunion Weekend, and the occasion saw the Chris Harker AstroTurf filled to the rafters.
Both sides headed into the clash on the back of mixed results at the King Edward VII Easter Hockey Festival, in Johannesburg, last week.
Selborne’s last outing ended in a 3-4 loss against Glenwood High School, while Queen’s suffered a hefty 0-5 defeat at the hands of the high-flying Jeppe High School for Boys.
The teams were evenly matched in the early going on Friday night as both sides struggled to find their rhythm.
The hosts, though, opened the scoring late in the first quarter after a PC drag flick by their dangerman Brett Hoffman.
Selborne wasn’t about to back down, though, and they came out firing after the break. After generating persistent pressure, they were awarded a penalty corner. Drake, who has been superb from the top of the D this season, converted to make it 1-1.
A few minutes later, he had two goals to his name, and before halftime, Drake had completed his hat-trick, with each of his goals coming from penalty corner drag flicks.
The game looked done and dusted, but Queen’s pulled one back through Aiden van Jaarsveld in the second half.
They made a late push for an equaliser, but Selborne remained resolute and secured a much-needed win away from home.
Grey High School, meanwhile, continued their impressive start to the season with a 5-1 victory over Dale College, in Gqeberha.
Earlier, in a mid-week game, Grey had handed Pearson High a 4-0 defeat, so they were brimming with confidence and had their tails up.
It was business as usual for coach Andrew Beynon’s side when the usual suspects – Dante Elkington, Athi Voigt, James Chree, Logan Goddard-Ford, and skipper Luke Tait – found the back of the net.
While there was joy for Grey at home, Pearson High suffered a second big blow, going down 1-4 to Hoërskool Outeniqua.
Cambridge High School welcomed Graeme College to East London and grabbed a 2-0 win, thanks to goals from Lihle Hempe and Anganathi Nyongo.
Next week, Selborne, Grey, and Pearson will be in action in the upcoming Hibbert Shield. Hosted by Grey, it runs from Wednesday, 30 April, to Friday, 2 May, and features many of the country’s leading teams.
Catch the Hibbert Shield LIVE on SuperSport Schools
