Drama and thrills at the Nomads Hockey Festival
A total of 42 goals were scored on Sunday, the second day of action at the Nomads Hockey Festival being hosted by Jeppe High School for Boys in Johannesburg.
After an entertaining start to the festival on Saturday, the 10 teams in attendance upped the ante and delivered some fine performances on the Boden AstroTurf on day two.
It was filled with drama, including lightning warnings, which halted play twice and forced the organisers to move fixtures, which resulted in a late finish.
The hosts, Jeppe, were not phased by the delay after their first game of the day against Grey College.
In that clash, coach Siya Sityana‘s boys went toe-to-toe with the Bloem side and played out a 2-2 draw, courtesy of two strikes by skipper Ethan Kapanda.
Their last game of the day pitted them against Maritzburg College. Coach Mark Sanders’ side had defeated Wynberg Boys’ High four hours earlier, so they were confident heading into the clash.
They showed character and fight but were eventually beaten 2-1 by a strong Jeppe outfit.
Hilton College and Grey College were involved in some thrillers.
Coach Damian Kimfley’s Hilton boys were tested by Pretoria Boys High and just managed to secure a 2-2 draw after scoring from a penalty corner late in the fourth chukka. They did, however, come back with a vengeance later in the day to hand King Edward VII (KES) a 4-2 defeat.
In that clash, Hilton fell two goals behind, but they showed class, composure, and maturity to get the job done.
As for Grey, coach Dalan Phillips will be gutted his side was unable to get over the line twice on Sunday. After their draw against Jeppe, they were held to another stalemate by coach Sharmin Naidoo’s KES side.
It was, arguably, one of the most entertaining matches of the weekend, with KES showing a never-say-die attitude after falling behind twice to grab the draw. They scored through their captain, Fynn Campbell and Matthew Bromley, whereas Andrew Koupis netted twice for Grey from the penalty spot.
St John’s College impressed with a win and one draw. St Benedict’s College won against Selborne College, but, later in the day, they fell 2-3 to Pretoria Boys High.
The final day’s action kicks off with a clash between KES and Wynberg Boys’ High. Jeppe and Hilton College will close off the festival at 12:30.
RESULTS
Jeppe 2-2 Grey College
St John’s College 3-1 Wynberg Boys’ High
Selborne College 1-3 St Benedict’s College
Hilton College 2-2 Pretoria Boys High
Grey College 2-2 KES
Maritzburg College 2-1 Wynberg Boys’ High
St John’s College 3-3 Selborne College
St Benedict’s 2-3 Pretoria Boys High
Hilton College 3-2 KES
Jeppe 2-1 Maritzburg College
FIXTURES
Monday, 31 March
07:30 – King Edward VII vs Wynberg Boys’ High
08:45 – St Benedict’s vs Grey College
10:00 – Selborne College vs Pretoria Boys
11:15 – St John’s College vs Maritzburg College
12:30 – Jeppe vs Hilton College
