Eunice, Menlopark and Waterkloof going for St Anne’s Cup gold
Fourth, fifth, and sixth. Those were the positions in which Eunice High, Hoërskool Menlopark, and Hoërskool Waterkloof finished in the inaugural edition of the St Anne’s Cup last year. A lot has happened since then. A lot has changed, including the teams.
The trio returns with bigger hopes and the experience and skills to improve on their 2024 showings.
Eunice will arrive at St Anne’s with a confident bounce in their legs following a positive outing against their Free State rivals, Oranje on Tuesday afternoon. Storm Harris scored for coach Nika Coertzen‘s sids as they played to a 1-1 draw with their Bloemfontein rivals.
“It’s always a privilege to take the field against any opponent, especially with the margins so tight between teams. Facing a strong Oranje side ahead of the weekend is ideal preparation, helping us adapt to high-intensity games, learn from our mistakes, and improve for what’s ahead,” Coertzen told SuperSport Schools Plus ahead of the tournament.
Eunice is in Pool C, up against St John’s DSG and Noordheuwel. They open their challenge on Friday afternoon at 14:15 against Noordheuwel, one of four newcomers to the event.
Menlopark, meanwhile, has the wind beneath their wings following a dominant showing against Hoërskool Eldoraigne on Monday night.
Monique Gerber powered them to an 8-1 win over Eldos with a hattrick. Karla van Rooyen contributed two goals to the effort, while Zoë Badenhorst, Anja Steidler, Ininke Human, and Chanette Jansen van Vuuren chipped in with a goal each.
Coach Brad Brook’s side has spent the season fine-tuning their cohesion and the comprehensive win is a sign that it has grown by leaps and bounds.
“We are very excited about St Anne’s Cup,” he declared. “Like any tournament, the plan is to win the title. But we will be happy with a podium finish because it will be an improvement on our performance from last year.”
Menlopark faces Worcester Gimnasium and the hosts, St Anne’s, in Pool A. They’ll first see action at 13:00 on Friday afternoon when they go toe-to-toe with Worcester Gim.
Coach Omari Pienaar-Geyer’s Waterkloof team also heads into the showpiece off the back of a victory, and it was a good one. They beat Affies 1-0 in their last assignment on 12 May. They were scheduled to play Menlopark after that, but the match was cancelled because a number of their players were unwell.
“We had a few good training sessions and could work on one or two things,” Pienaar-Geyer said of Waterkloof’s preparations.
They’ll have a game against Zwartkop before they hop on the bus to St Anne’s. Pienaar-Geyer is confident her side has what it takes to make a run at the Cup. They will, however, tackle the task one game at a time.
“The first step is for us to surpass last year’s finish and improve on the sixth place. We also want to showcase a quality brand of hockey and be more consistent in games.
“We want to be consistently doing the right things. We are looking forward to a great weekend of hockey at a well-organised tournament,” Pienaar-Geyer explained.
Waterkloof’s Pool B opener will be at 13:00 on Friday afternoon against The Wykeham Collegiate (TWC). Their group also includes the defending champion, St Mary’s DSG, Kloof.
