Eastern Province top of the Pool A pops at SASHOC National Week
Eastern Province A extended their winning streak to three games in a row with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over the defending champions, Southern Gauteng A, in a Pool A contest at the u18 SASHOC National Week, played at Maritzburg College, on Tuesday.
The win strengthened Eastern Province A’s position at the top of Pool A.
“Today was a fight. Southern Gauteng brought the heat, and the girls had to dig deep to come away with a win. They performed as a team,” Geowynne Gamiet, the Eastern Province A coach, told Supersport Schools Plus.
Eastern Province’s captain, Abigail Holderness, is one of the few players who was part of their 2024 team. She’s been a standout, leading from the front, while letting her experience and hockey IQ do the talking for her on the Astro this year.
The DSG Makhanda learner has also been on the scoresheet in all three games of Eastern Province’s game, and has six goals to her name, the most by a player so far in the tournament.
In the first chukka of their showdown with Southerns, Holderness scored the opener, a penalty stroke, just before the end of the quarter. Kerrin Gillies doubled their lead with a penalty corner four minutes into the second chukka.
Amber Fairon cut Eastern Province A’s lead in half with a goal from a penalty corner in the 34th minute.
Trailing by a goal, Natasha le Roux‘s side exerted pressure onto Eastern Province and, as Gamiet put it, his charges had to dig deep.
Eastern Province didn’t sit back and wait for Southerns to attack them. They responded with forays of their own into the opposition half and they were rewarded when Kate Brennan restored their two-goal cushion with a field goal in the 53rd minute.
Southern Gauteng A refused to give up the fight and fought to the literal final second, as evidenced by their second goal, a well-worked move, which was finished by Keovaan Jansen just before the final whistle.
Boland A recovered from their 1-2 loss to Eastern Province A on Monday with a 3-0 win over Southern Gauteng B. Coach Chris Gerber’s side produced a clinical performance against coach Garth Neilson’s charges.
“The girls played with the with the right intensity throughout. They kept the ball nicely and controlled the game for long periods,” Gerber shared.
Leah du Plessis is one of the leading goal-scorers at the inter-provincial tournament with four goals in three outings and she put Boland ahead with a penalty corner conversion in the 12th minute.
“Leah works extremely hard on and off the ball. She also has a way of getting herself into great positions,” Gerber said.
Joné de Winnaar doubled the Boland lead with a strike in the 20th minute. Like the first one, De Winnaar’s goal also came from a penalty corner. Elré Oosthuizen scored her second goal of the tournament and Boland’s third in the 26th minute.
The Western Cape side’s success was as much the result of the forwards doing a great job up front as it was because of their sound defensive work. Gerber’s charges were solid at the back and fought hard in one-on-one situations.
“They stayed in the challenge for as long as possible,” Gerber explained. “They also manipulated space well and did a great job connecting with the midfielders and forwards.”
Boland has an opportunity to pick up a third win when they face Northern Gauteng B at 07:30 on Wednesday morning.
The two Southern Gauteng sides will square off in a derby away from home at 08:55, while Eastern Province A has a potentially tricky assignment against Southern Free State A at 10:20.
Results
Southern Free State A: 5 – Nthati Monyai, Georgia Kambanis, Xylia Choene, Bianca Rees-Gibbs, Quincley Norris. Northern Gauteng B: 0.
Eastern Province A: 3 – Abigail Holderness, Kerrin Gillies, Kate Brennan. Southern Gauteng A: 2 – Amber Fairon, Keovaan Jansen.
Boland A: 3 – Leah du Plessis, Joné de Winnaar, Elré Oosthuizen. Southern Gauteng B: 0
