St Mary’s DSG, Kloof, determined to leave footprints on the hockey landscape
St Mary’s DSG, Kloof, arrived home from last weekend’s Balling Festival in good spirits.
In an ideal world, they would have preferred to have won all of their matches in Bethlehem, but three out of four is not a bad return, particularly since two of those victories were over perennial powerhouses Eunice and Oranje.
However, despite their successful outing, coach Nolwazi Nkabinde‘s side is not resting on its laurels. They have bigger dreams. One of their aspirations is to write their own history and leave footprints on the schools’ hockey landscape.
“The Balling Festival was tough and an eye-opener. We learned a lot as a team and have a lot to reflect on, so we become better as the St Mary’s first team moving forward to the next tournaments to come,” Nkabinde told SuperSport Schools Plus.
Nkabinde, who has coached the national u18 team, has taken over the first team coaching duties from Carla Ann Mackay, who was in charge the past two seasons, while Nkabinde looked after the u16s. They’ve worked hand-in-hand over the past few years and read from the same book when it comes to excellence on the Astro.
“St Mary’s has a proud and rich storied history of excellence in hockey. It means a lot to us that a company like Belgotex notices that and chooses to walk this journey with us,” Caryn Springate, the St Mary’s Head of Hockey, shared.
Nicola Forbes will captain St Mary’s this season. The midfielder had an outstanding year with the school and with the KwaZulu Natal Coastal u18 provincial team last year.
“She is one of the most hardworking and unselfish players in the game. She plays her heart out for the team. She is a true reflection of our culture as a school,” Springate commented.
Forbes isn’t just held in high regard by the coaching staff, her teammates respect and try to emulate her. That’s important given how young the team is. St Mary’s has retained only five players from their very successful 2024 team. Most of the players in the squad are now in Grade 10.
“Our side is eager to grow in the first team space and produce positive results,” Nkabinde said.
She was pleased with how her charges pulled together as a unit at the Balling Festival. It is a template they intend to maintain through the season. They’re a team built on tenacity and sisterhood.
“It is important that we enjoy and learn while on this journey. We will learn through both victories and losses,” Nkabinde said.
The coach and her charges have set themselves a goal: to qualify for the Fairtree Super 12 Tournament. Despite their relative youth, it is not an overly ambitious goal. They have both the talent and drive to succeed. In the meantime, they have the Spar Regional Tournament to focus on this weekend.
