It’s Gauteng vs Western Cape in SASHOC National Week semis
The SASHOC National Week, currently underway in Pietermaritzburg, has delivered some pulsating action, cracking goals, and upsets, and, on Thursday, four teams booked their places in the semifinals of the tournament.
The defending champions, Western Province (WP) A, will face Northern Gauteng A at 15:05 on Friday for a place in the final, while the tournament’s surprise package, Western Province B, has a date with Southern Gauteng A at 13:40 on Pape’s AstroTurf, at Maritzburg College.
The action will be LIVE on SuperSport Schools and DStv Channel 216.
Paired in Pool A, WP and Southern Gauteng A cruised into the last four after dominating their opponents during the group stages.
After a shaky start where they defeated Boland B 3-0 on Monday, Province upped the ante and ran riot against Southerns (5-1), Eastern Province A (8-1), KZN Coastal B (10-2), and KZN Inland A (5-1).
By the end of the pool stages, coach Jody Erasmus‘s young guns had scored a whopping 31 goals while conceding only five.
They were clinical in almost every facet of their game, took their opportunities well, and punished their opponents with relative ease at times.
There were also moments of individual brilliance from Litha Kraai, while the rest of the team chipped in with strong performances, match in and match out.
They finished atop Pool A with the maximum haul of 15 points, and coach Erasmus was pleased with his side’s effort after their final pool match win against KZN Inland A on Thursday.
“We treated this match against Inland as a nice test and took it as if it were a quarterfinal,” he explained.
“We respect the talent Inland has. Two years ago, these players faced each other in the u16 final, so we know they have talented players.
“For us, it’s about getting better each game and improving, and I think we did well. It was a physical battle, and it had a couple of interesting decisions, but it’s another step in the process because our goal was to get 15 points in the group stages.
“With that said, we know that these points won’t count tomorrow because the knockout hockey starts, and we’re excited for that.”
Progressing into the last four with Province from Pool A is Southern Gauteng A, a team that’s finding its mojo after a slow start.
Coach Kyle Reddy‘s side opened their campaign with a nervy 1-0 win over Eastern Province A on Monday.
However, besides the 1-5 loss to Western Province A, they’ve dismantled every other team they’ve faced, and on Thursday, they put five past KZN Coastal B.
The boys from Johannesburg also scored eight against Boland B on day three, and coach Reddy feels his side has improved.
“Apart from the results, we have been focusing on our performances and getting better with every game,” he told SuperSport Schools Plus.
“We are connecting a little bit better and polishing what needs to be polished. We played well in the 8-1 win against Boland B, but I think we got a bit lucky with their keeper being injured.
“We set out to make the semi-finals, and that’s a job done, and now the real tournament starts.”
Coach Reddy’s side faces an unpredictable Western Province B side for a place in the final, while Western Province A takes on Northern Gauteng A.
Province B and Northerns impressed in Pool B and did just enough to avoid a dramatic final day.
The boys from the Western Cape defeated Northerns 1-0 on day four, and that meant they finished in top spot with 12 points after four wins and one defeat.
Northerns, meanwhile, failed to beat Southern Free State A by three or more goals in their second game of the day, which they needed to do to finish in first place. Still, they booked a semi-final showdown with Western Province A by winning 3-2.
How did the four semi-finalists fare at the 2024 SASHOC National Week?
Western Province A – Last year, Western Province A won the SASHOC National Week. They went unbeaten in the group stages and defeated Boland A 3-2 in the final.
Southern Gauteng A – It was a tricky tournament for Southerns in 2024. They reached the semi-finals but went down to Boland A. In the bronze medal match, they suffered a 0-1 loss against KZN Coastal A and, as a result, finished in fourth place.
Northern Gauteng A – Northerns entered the 2024 event as one of the underdogs. They had a promising campaign and, on the opening day, caused shockwaves by beating KZN Inland A. They followed that with a 1-1 draw against Eastern Province A. After that, though, their campaign went downhill, and they ended in a disappointing 10th place.
Western Province B – It’s funny how much matters can change in a year. This time last year, Province B were fighting for their lives after a horrendous showing in the group stages. They were at the bottom of their pool and played in the relegation match against Border A. They dug deep to edge out the Eastern Cape outfit 5-4 to retain their place in the A-section. A year later, they are in the semifinals of the SASHOC National Week after winning their pool. Crazy!
Day 4 | Results and scorers
Pool A
Southern Gauteng A 5: Zeyad Davids, Jared Beilings, Aidan Blatch, Ezray Stadt, Ethan Kapanda. KZN Coastal B 1: Krian Jugoo.
Eastern Province A 2: Athi Voigt, Luke Tait. Boland B 0.
Western Province A 5: Litha Kraai (3), Mohlodi Maseko, Zachary Gibbon. KZN Inland A 1: Gordon Deutscher.
Pool B
Boland A 1: Christo Swanepoel. Southern Free State A 1: Matthias Visser.
Western Province B 1: Cameron Cordeiro. Northern Gauteng A 0.
KZN Coastal A 0. Southern Gauteng B 0.
Northern Gauteng A 3: Luken Brunette, Duardt Tollig, Tyler Trower. Southern Free State A 2: Neilyandro van Schalkwyk, Cobus van Wyk.
DAY 5 FIXTURES:
08:00 – KZN Coastal B vs Southern Free State A (9th/12th playoff)
09:25 – KZN Inland A vs Southern Gauteng B (9th/12th playoff)
10:50 – Eastern Province A vs Boland A (5th/8th playoff) @ St Anne’s DSG
13:40 – Southern Gauteng A vs Western Province B (Semi-final 1)
13:40 – Boland B vs KZN Coastal A (5th/8th playoff) @ St Anne’s DSG
15:05 – Western Province A vs Northern Gauteng A (Semi-final 2)
