Northerns and WP ‘B’ shake up Pool B at SASHOC National Week
“Northerns are up, and they’re smelling the coffee” – Those were the words of a hockey enthusiast on Tuesday, day two of the u18 SASHOC National Week, which is being hosted at Maritzburg College, in Pietermaritzburg, and St Anne’s DSG, in Hilton.
That spectator, among others, woke up early for an early 07:30 push-back and was rewarded with an impressive 3-1 win for the Northern Gauteng u18A boys over last year’s runner-up, Boland u18A.
It was a crucial match for both sides as they sought to build on their victories on day one and get a solid grip on top spot in Pool B.
On Monday, Northerns were made to sweat for their 3-2 win over KZN Coastal A, while Boland ran riot against Western Province B, thumping them 5-0.
It was a different story, though, on day two. Coach Steven Paulo‘s charges, who were 0-2 down to KZN Coastal at halftime on Monday, came out guns blazing from the first whistle.
Instead of being conservative and waiting for Boland to fire, they took the game to their opponents and struck twice in the first half through co-captain Luken Brunette.
Brunette converted a short corner in the 17th minute before putting a penalty stroke past Jeandre Cilliers on the stroke of halftime.
In the third chukka, the Hoërskool Garsfontein skipper buried another penalty corner to take the game away from Boland.
With only five minutes left to play, Boland, at last, got onto the scoreboard through Seth Paterson, who slotted a penalty corner. It was, though, a disappointing result for the Western Cape outfit.
Speaking to SuperSport Schools Plus after the match, coach Paulo said he’s pleased with how his boys have conducted themselves, but they’re not resting on their laurels.
“We are extremely proud of the character the boys are showing,” he said.
“One of the reasons we are here is to make our province proud. Many people aren’t here, but they would’ve loved to be here to support our boys, so we remind ourselves of them.
“I think, so far, with the effort the boys have put in, it is amazing, and I think we are making them proud.”
Northerns’ 3-2 win over KZN Coastal A took plenty of character. Not only did they trail 0-2 at the break, but their goalkeeper Owen McMennamin also saved a penalty stroke, which, if scored, would have left them three goals down.
The second half, however, belonged to Northerns, and a penalty corner, earned just before the final hooter, delivered a fairytale finish when Brunette converted to secure a stirring come-from-behind victory.
Paulo believes the momentum his side built up in the second half of Monday’s win carried into the Boland fixture.
“After the Coastal game, Luken said he was so proud of the boys, and I shared the same sentiments.
“In that game, we just kept grinding until the last minutes. We managed to keep all our players on the field, and KZN Coastal got a couple of cards, which played to our advantage. The boys were relentless, but that was fantastic for us.”
Northerns have three big matches remaining in Pool B against Southern Gauteng B, Western Province B, and Southern Free State A.
Paulo said they’re not getting carried away and thinking too far ahead.
“Before we arrived here, we calculated every single permutation in the group, but we are not speaking about anything until the pool games are done,” he explained.
“If anything pops up besides our next opponent, we shut it down quickly. Although we’ve done well in two games, we haven’t achieved anything yet, and the boys are aware of that.”
Other Pool B matches
After suffering a hefty loss against Boland, Western Province B rebounded with a comprehensive 5-0 win over Southern Gauteng B.
Daniel Graser scored a brace, while Cameron Cordeiro, Charlie Naylor, and Ryan Groenewald also got their names on the scoresheet.
Southern Free State A played out a thrilling 3-3 draw with KZN Coastal A.
Nkhahle Sematlane found the back of the net twice for the Free Staters, while Waldo Koning scored a scorcher for the Bloemfontein side.
For the Coastal side, Keegan de Jager converted two penalty corners, while Bonga Maphanga showed great skills to score a solo goal.
The last matches of the day resulted in Boland A beating Southern Gauteng B 1-0 and Western Province B stunning KZN Coastal A 2-1 to leave the group wide open.
Day 3 | Scores and scorers
Pool A
Southern Gauteng A 2: Aiden Blatch, Juan Martin. KZN Inland A 0.
Western Province A 8: Jo le Roux (2), Litha Kraai (2), Ethan Daniels, Zachary Gibbon, Mohlodi Maseko, Aidan Hughes. Eastern Province A 1: Athi Voigt.
Boland B 2: Ryan van der Merwe, Noah Hendricks. KZN Coastal B 1: Murray Wicks
Pool B
Northern Gauteng A 3: Luken Brunette (3). Boland A 1: Seth Paterson.
Western Province B 5: Daniel Graser (2), Cameron Cordeiro, Charlie Naylor, Ryan Groenewald. Southern Gauteng B 0.
Southern Free State A 3: Nkhahle Sematlane (2), Waldo Koning. KZN Coastal A 3: Keegan de Jager (2), Bonga Maphanga.
Boland A 1: Christo Swanepoel. Southern Gauteng B 0.
Western Province B 2: Jacques van Dyk, Ryan Groenewald. KZN Coastal A 1: Keegan de Jager.
CLICK HERE FOR DAY 1 RESULTS.
DAY 3 FIXTURES
Pool A @ Maritzburg College
07:30 – KZN Inland A vs Boland B
08:55 – Western Province A vs Southern Gauteng A
10:20 – KZN Coastal B vs Eastern Province A
16:00 – Southern Gauteng A vs Boland B
17:25 – Western Province A vs KZN Coastal B
Pool B @ St Anne’s DSG
11:45 – Southern Free State vs Western Province B
13:10 – Northern Gauteng A vs Southern Gauteng B
14:35 – Boland A vs KZN Coastal A
