Bishops breeze past DF Malan to kick off league season in style
After an impressive run during the pre-season, Bishops Diocesan College kept the pedal to the metal and began their Western Cape league season in style, hammering DF Malan 8-0 at the Woodlands Astroturf in Cape Town on Friday night.
Before the match, Bishops had only played nine competitive matches – three at the Parel Vallei Hockey Festival in March, and six at the Bishops 175 Hockey Festival last month.
In their home event, coach Ryan Julius’s boys were a cut above the rest, beating every opponent they faced, much to the delight of the home supporters.
They scored wins over Michaelhouse (3-1), St Charles College (4-0), St David’s Marist Inanda (2-0), St Andrew’s School (8-0), St Benedict’s College (4-0), and Makhanda’s St Andrew’s College (2-1).
Bishops then went on a much-deserved break, before facing DF Malan on Friday night.
DF entered the clash on the back of a 0-2 defeat to a good Worcester Gimnasium team a week ago, and Bishops was in no mood to make matters any easier for them.
Joshua Mettler, who was in superb form at the 175 Festival, continued his fine goal-scoring run in front of a buzzing crowd at Woodlands.
At the 175 Festival, it was Mettler who scored the winning goal for his team against previously undefeated St Andrew’s College when the match looked like it was heading for a 1-1 draw.
On Friday, he picked up from where he left off, netting a whopping four times against DF Malan.
There was also a double from Andrew Raubenheimer, and Adam Diggle and Albert Steyn also struck, to make it eight.
Reflecting on the contest, coach Julius said he was pleased with how his team had executed the game plan, particularly after being away from the game for over two weeks.
“It was an excellent team display,” he told SuperSport Schools after the match.
“It’s a good thing that we’ve started the league like this.
“I’m proud of the boys. They adapted well to the tactics that we trained this week. They executed the game plan well, and we were dominant on attack and defence,” he added.
Bishops next shift their focus to a meeting with Curro Durbanville, who played to a 2-2 draw with Langa Hockey Club.
Their game against Curro will be followed with an outing against Stellenberg High School before they take on SACS on the first weekend of May in what is likely to be their biggest challenge of the season.
Julius, though, has urged his side to remain focussed and take it one match at a time.
“It’s really important now that we stay nice and grounded,” he stressed.
“We understand that we’ve done well, but the journey has just started, and we need to get back to the drawing board and continue riding this wave for as long as we can.
“We need to stay nice and focused, humble in victory, and understand that through hard work and preparation, we’ll succeed.
“I’ve told the boys to just stay focused on the task that’s ahead of us. But I am proud of how they played and, I must say, the identity and culture we are creating at the school is positive,” he concluded.
