SA u17 girls in bronze medal showdown
After the group stages of the Dato Mirnawan Cup in Malaysia, the South African u17 girls will battle it out for the bronze medal on the final day of competition, Saturday, 9 November.
This follows a 1-3 defeat against Australia in the semifinals, on Thursday, in Kuala Lumpur.
Heading into that final-four clash, coach Omari Pienaar-Geyer’s side had recorded a 4-0 victory over Malaysia Tigress but then went down 2-4 against Japan.
Their opening win against the hosts was sparked by some exceptional and enterprising hockey. Lenique Vogel and Lucy Holderness both found the back of the net, while Amber Fairon struck twice to seal the win for the visitors.
The meeting with Japan proved to be a far tougher challenge for the SA girls. They took an early lead through a goal from Alanda Rademeyer, but Japan hit back strongly to seal the win and cancel out a further South African strike by Asanele Zuma.
By then, though, the South African side had already sealed a spot in the semifinals after finishing second behind Japan in their group, with three points from their two matches.
In the semifinals, they came up against a strong Australian side that dominated Group X, scoring two wins while picking up seven points.
The Aussies were quickly out of the blocks and struck twice in the first chukka.
Coach Pienaar-Geyer’s advice during the short interval appeared to do the trick as South Africa pulled one back in the second chukka through vice-captain, Caprice Bengston.
Heading into the final chukka, the outcome hung in the balance, with Australia still 2-1 ahead.
They avoided an upset by scoring from a well-executed short corner to extend their lead to two goals, which they maintained to the end of the contest.
The girls from Down Under will take on Japan in the final while South Africa will meet South Korea in the third/fourth playoff match.
It’s the second year in a row in which South Africa will play for the bronze medal. Last year, they missed out against India.
Saturday’s action at the Bukit Jalil National Hockey Stadium starts at 02:00 (SAST).
Click HERE to watch the action, including the SA u17 boys’ against Canada in the 5th/6th playoff match.
