Sasolburg defying the odds at the Synsport Greg Beling Festival
Hoërskool Sasolburg defeated Union High School 3-1 on Saturday to end day two of the Synsport Greg Beling Festival in East London as one of the unbeaten sides.
The annual event began on Thursday and concludes on Sunday.
The school from the Northern Free State began their festival with a nail-biting 2-1 victory over Queenstown Girls’ High on Friday.
On Saturday morning, they took on Kingswood College, from Makhanda, in a match in which they were regarded as the underdogs.
Sasolburg, however, defied the odds and came from behind to claim a 2-1 win.
Union High School, from Graaff-Reinet, stood in the way of coach Jacolene McLaren’s side in their final match of the day.
As had happened in the Kingswood game, Sasolburg conceded an early goal but showed grit and clawed their way back into the game.
They used their chances and scored when it mattered through captain Chana-Dee Gibson before Lize Bischoff added a brace to seal the two-goal victory.
Reacting to her team’s performances so far at the festival, McLaren said she’s pleased with how the team had continued to step up.
“We came into this tournament very excited for the season, and we started well with a win in our first game, and we’ve been stepping up and delivering every game,” she told SuperSport Schools Plus.
“We had played in two tournaments before this one, so the preparation was quite good.”
McLaren’s players have had to dig deep and show their character, which they did in successive come-from-behind wins.
She praised her side for never giving up and staying in the fight. “Against Kingswood, we came from behind after we trailed 0-1, and that took some guts,” McLaren said. “It was tough, but we stepped up to get the two goals. We got the ball into the circle and made sure we got the outcome from our opportunities. The girls did well in that regard.”
The final day of the festival will see Sasolburg taking on Cradock High School at 07:00. McLaren said they want to end on a high, adding that they’re also planning to “keep things simple”.
She explained: “We want to do well, but we won’t make changes. We will just make sure we play our brand of hockey, make sure we maintain the consistency and get our connections right, and work to get better,” she concluded.
Hoërskool Sasolburg’s results at Synsport Greg Beling Festival
Sasolburg 2-1 Queenstown Girls’ High
Sasolburg 1-0 Kingswood College
Sasolburg 3-1 Union High School
