Western Province A pulls away in Pool B at SASHOC National Week
Western Province A turned up the heat, scoring nine unanswered goals across two games to march to the top of Pool B at the u18 SASHOC National Week on Tuesday.
Coach Natalie Esteves‘ charges posted wins over Border A and Northern Gauteng A at St Anne’s DSG, in Hilton, on Tuesday, which shot them to the top of Pool B, with three wins from three matches.
“The girls are playing together nicely, connecting their passes well,” Esteves said after their second match of the day, a tough fixture against Northerns.
Before that assignment, Province routed Border 7-0. Thimna Waka and Khanya Moore led the way, scoring twice each, while Chelsey McGregor, Emma Hibbert, and Sarah Ashbolt also scored.
Hibbert, who was on the scoresheet in Province’s first match, opened the scoring with a penalty corner conversion in the fourth minute. Then, Waka and Moore added further goals in the 15th and 17th minutes to put Province into a comfortable lead early in the second chukka.
McGregor and Ashbolt struck in the 41st and 42nd minutes to swell Western Province’s lead to 5-0 before Moore and Waka put the match to bed with strikes in the 47th and 60th minutes.
In the afternoon, Western Province carried that good form into their contest against a well-drilled Northern Gauteng A.
“The scoresheet doesn’t show how tough it was. Northerns didn’t make things easy for us,” Esteves told Supersport Schools Plus.
The sides tested each other’s defences in a goalless first half. Early in the second stanza, Moore broke the deadlock with a penalty corner conversion in the 36th minute. Camryn Corner, then, doubled the Western Province advantage with a field goal four minutes later.
The back-to-back wins leave Province as one of two unbeaten sides in the girls’ competition, the other being Eastern Province A, in Pool A. Esteves is not, however, letting her team’s fruitful run lull the side into a false sense of security.
“Tournament hockey is funny. There is no room to feel comfortable. Tomorrow, we go up against our B side, which has some good players, so we will need to produce a good performance,” she said.
KZN Coastal A and Northerns are in second and third place after the second day’s play. Both have two wins from three outings. Coastal began the day with a 0-1 loss to their neighbours, KZN Inland A, in the morning, but they bounced back with a 5-0 battering of Border A.
Jenna-Leigh Freese led the scoring with a brace, and then Nicola Forbes, Zezethu Kunene, and Jamie da Silva added a goal each.
Northerns, on the other hand, won on Tuesday morning, beating Western Province B 2-1, courtesy of goals from Amogelang Motlatle and Thato Dimpe, while Ilke van der Merwe scored for the Capetonians.
In the afternoon, Sinoxolo Mbekeni’s team was unable to repeat a winning showing against Western Province A.
Province will have a chance to solidify their position at the top of Pool B when they lock horns with Province B in a derby encounter at 11:45 on Wednesday morning.
Northerns will be put to the test when they go up against KZN Coastal A at 13:10. That tie could go a long way in determining who finishes second in the group.
The hosts, KZN Inland A take on Border at 14:35.
Results
Northern Gauteng A: 2 – Amogelang Motlatle, Thato Dimpe. Western Province B: 1 – Ilke van der Merwe.
Western Province A: 7 – Thimna Waka (2), Khanya Moore (2), Chelsey McGregor, Emma Hibbert, Sarah Ashbolt. Border A: 0.
KZN Inland A: 1 – Siphokazi Mpontshane. KZN Coastal A: 0
Western Province A: 2 – Khanya Moore, Camryn Corner. Northern Gauteng A: 0.
KZN Coastal A: 5 – Jenna-Leigh Freese, Nicola Forbes, Zezethu Kunene, Jamie da Silva. Border A: 0.
