Durban Girls College aiming higher than just third place in this year’s Super 12-tournament
Durban Girls College will kick off their Super 12 campaign with intentions of finishing in a better position than they did last year.
The Durban side took away the bronze medal in last year’s campaign, and after some impressive, dominant, and statement setting performances which have seen them ranked seventh during the season, confidence will not be an issue for the side.
Catch all the action live on SuperSport Schools (www.supersportschools.com).
Since their inclusion in the tournament, which was back in 2014, Girls College have made some strides which cannot be overlooked in the competition.
In 2014, they finished in seventh spot against South Africa’s top schools, just like how it will be this coming week. In 2015, Girls College dropped the bar, finishing in eighth position.
That would be the last time the school took part in the tournament as a six-year absence, two of those years being affected by COVID-19 meant the side could only return to the competition last year.
If form is anything to go by, College will be beaming with confidence considering they recently won the latest grand finals of the Spar Hockey Challenge hosted in St Mary’s DSG in Kloof.
In that tournament, the side were unbeaten playing some attractive hockey which landed them a spot in the final against St Mary’s.
In the final, Chardinay Penniston’s side dominated proceedings, scoring two goals through Ruby Kraus, and Hannah Hargroves.
That win will certainly spring the side in the right direction in terms of the mental fitness, and endurance needed going into a highly competitive super 12 competition.
The player that has been dubbed the “player to look out for” in the side is Tara Pakendorf, who made her first team debut for the side in 2021 and also made the SA Schools team after this year’s SASHOC tournament in Bloemfontein.
However, its important to note that the likes of Salma Bejia, Ruby Kraus, Nandi Mnyandu and skipper Jenna Reardon are also deadly players that pose a threat to the opposition. On top of that, they are among the list of eight players who made their debuts in 2021, meaning that the side is not short of any experienced players.
Fixtures:
On day one, the Durban side will open their account against Garsfontein at 11:40. They will then face Bloemhof at 15:50 in round two before concluding their day with a mouthwatering fixture against Rhenish at 20:00.
On day two, the side will play Eunice at 12:30 and conclude their round robin stage with a fixture against Pearson High at 16:40 before the play-offs begin.
The team:
Durban Girls College: Cara Baker, Salma Bejia, Caprice Bengtson, Ella Carstens, Hannah Hargroves, Ruby Kraus, Emily Macquet, Nandi Mnyandu, Erin Moodleu, Tara Pakendorf, Taegan Price, Jenna Reardon, Georgina Stephenson, Natalie Taylor, Olivia Verster, Chelsey Woolf.
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