Four teams dominate opening day at u16 SASHOC Nationals
Boland A, Southern Gauteng A, KZN Coastal A, and KZN Inland A, made their presence felt on Tuesday, day one of the u16 SASHOC National Week, being hosted at Hilton College.
Those four sides, who are among the favourites to win the tournament, delivered impressive hockey, scored goals for fun, and sent out a stern warning to their opponents in Pools A and B, respectively.
The defending champions, Boland, got their title defence off to winning start with a resounding 7-3 victory over Western Province B.
Led by coach Shaun McIntyre, Boland looked like a well-oiled machine on Hilton’s Mansergh AstroTurf.
It took them a while to get going, however. They opened the scoring in the 26th minute through dangerman Luke van der Merwe before Province B responded via a Max Fourie PC drag flick three minutes later.
Up 3-1 at halftime, Boland returned in the second stanza and ran away with the match. They netted four goals to Province’s two, and in the final chukka, added two more to complete the drubbing.
Speaking to SuperSport Schools Plus after the match, coach McIntyre said he was pleased.
“We are happy with the start. It’s a good result against a strong Western Province B side,” he reckoned.
“We knew, based on u18 IPTs, that B sides can cause upsets, so we just wanted to start strong and get the win in our first game.
“I’m really happy that our forwards are scoring. I back them going forward, and it’s an area I’m not worried about. Moving forward, we have a game plan, and we will just approach every game as it comes.”
KZN Coastal A, who are also in Pool A, made an incredible start to their campaign, too.
Coach Keegan Hezlett‘s troops put eight past Southern Free State A in their opener and are top of the pool, ahead of Boland on goal difference.
They got off to a blistering start against Free State and led 4-0 at the halfway point.
Early in the third chukka, captain Luc Boyall sealed his hat-trick, and another hattrick from Ryan Herselman, who, like Boyall, is from Northwood, accompanied by a Daniel Rea brace, sealed a high-scoring 8-4 victory.
Coach Hezlett was pleased with the win but said there are areas his team needs to focus on.
“I was very impressed with the boys today,” he said. “We had a disrupted start with the Astro freezing and being delayed for about 45 minutes. They managed to switch on well in the first chukka, and we scored three goals.
“I was upset with the two penalty corner goals we conceded off the second phase. That was disappointing, and the other goals that went in from poor defending.
“We will have a look at the video and work on our defensive angles of approach and taking care of our man in deep zones. We also want to look at our PC defence and rectify it.”
Pool B was all about Southern Gauteng A and KZN Inland A, who both made big statements on day one.
Southerns took on Northern Gauteng A in a provincial derby, and it was the boys in yellow who came out on top, winning 6-2.
Coach Siya Sityana leads the Gauteng boys, and they gave their mentor something to smile about.
“The first box for the tournament is ticked,” Sityana said after the match.
“It was important to get the W on the first day against Northerns, especially in our tough pool.
“We played good phases of hockey, scored lots of goals, and different players scored, which was nice. The vibe is also great in the team.”
Another side that enjoyed good vibes after day one was KZN Inland A.
Coached by Jason Syce, the home team took on their second-stringers, KZN Inland B, in their opener, and ran away with it, winning 6-0.
It was the perfect start for the home side, with Santiago Matross (2), Thibedi Mogoba (2), Greg Hosking, and Anthony Crossley scoring.
“I think we came in wanting to make sure we are intentional about our outcomes,” Syce said afterwards.
“We were disciplined in our shape, and we wanted to take care of the basics. Pass and move. Tournament hockey requires discipline in the shape and execution of outcomes.
“The B team were very good in their short corner defence and absorbed the attack well. The keyword for us was to be ‘intentional’ in every moment of attack and defence.”
KZN Inland A faces Southern Gauteng A in a highly anticipated Pool B match on day two. The Inland coach understands the challenge awaiting his side.
“Southern Gauteng will always be a tough outfit to come up against. With depth and talent, they pose a threat to most teams at IPT.
“Our goal is to ensure we play our brand of hockey – we become effective in our attack and value our discipline in defence.”
In other matches on Tuesday, Eastern Province A defeated Southern Gauteng B 4-1.
Western Province A, after being held to a shock 1-1 draw by KZN Coastal B, mustered a 4-1 victory against Southern Free State in their second match of the day.
Day 1 | Results and scorers
Pool A
KZN Coastal A 8: Luc Boyall (3), Ryan Herselman (3), Daniel Rea (2). Southern Free State A 4: Jean Griessel (2), Kaden Hendersen, Keagan Wessels.
Western Province A 1: Zach Hillman. KZN Coastal B 1: Aya Njenje.
Boland A 7: Luke van der Merwe (4), Christiaan Fouche (2), Caleb Cilliers. Western Province B 3: Troy Loots, Ephram Smith, Max Fourie.
Western Province A 4: Ross Wille, Buhle Kama, Callum Anderson, Loyiso Mletshe. Southern Free State A 1: Kamo Mohlomi.
Pool B
Southern Gauteng A 6: Matthew Jung (2), Blaine Candy, Kade Lottering, Tshimologo Mogale, Rofhi Mathabi. Northern Gauteng A 2: Luke Payne, Kean Cornelissen.
Eastern Province A 4: Dante Elkington (2), Luke Manson, James Chree. Southern Gauteng B 1: Endre Ludick.
KZN Inland A 6: Santiago Matross (2), Thibedi Mogoba (2), Greg Hosking, Anthony Crossley. KZN Inland B 0.
CLICK HERE TO SEE DAY 2 FIXTURES.
