Hat-trick for Western Province

The triumphant Western Province team after beating Southern Gauteng 3-0 to win the final of the SPAR Women’s Inter-Provincial Hockey Tournament, played at the Queensmead Stadium in Durban on Saturday 24 May, 2008. Picture: Reg Caldecott

The talented
Western Province side lived up to their reputation as the country’s top
provincial side when they defeated their close rivals Southern Gauteng 3-0 in
the final of the SPAR Women’s Inter-Provincial Tournament at Queensmead Hockey
Stadium yesterday.

Province,
bidding for a third consective title, took the field in their red reserve
shirts with a total of 735 international caps among their squad of 16 players
and with this encounter making it the 12^th year in a row that
Province and Southerns have met in the IPT final.

It was a
fitting ending to the tournament for WP captain, Kate Hector, who led by
example throughout the tournament.

Southerns’
goalkeeper, Leandri Janse van Vuuren, was given a torrid time between the
sticks and was frequently called upon to divert the ball on its path into the
goals from shots from all angles.

Province
came close to getting on the scoreboard as early as the sixth minute after a
brilliant dribble along the Northerns’ goalline by Kathleen Taylor which got
her team the first penalty corner of the game.

Taylor had the best chance of a score six
minutes from half-time when she beautifully controlled a hard hit defence-splitting
pass by Hector only to cut her diagonal shot from the right across the face of
the goals.

It was Taylor again, a minute
later, who shot wide with only the goalkeeper to beat.

Another
chance went begging immediately after the restart when province left winger,
Alice de Waal latched onto a loose ball in the Southerns’ circle but failed to
control the ball with Van Vuuren at her mercy.

Southerns
were living dangerously as Province continued to pile on the pressure without
anything to show for it, their top goalscorer, Henna du Buisson, having a quiet
time of it.

The deadlock
was finally broken in the 55^th minute when, with the Province
strikers swarming around the Southerns’ goals, Jenna Cunliffe connected with
the loose ball and sent a rising shot into the roof of the rigging.

Du Buisson
suddenly burst onto the scene five minutes later and scored with an equally
stunning shot from the left which completely deceived the goalkeeper, taking
her goal tally to 11 for the tournament.

Hector put
the icing on the cake at a penalty corner immediately afterwards with an
unstoppable shot from the back of the circle.

The Player
of the Match was Southerns’ captain, Marsha Marescia, and the Player of the
Tournament SA U21 goalkeeper, Hanli Hattingh.

In the match
for third place, the fancied SA U21 side left it late against North West, Candice Manuel scoring the only
goal of the game six minutes from full-time when she deflected a pass into the
circle fromk Jayde Mayne past NW goalkeeper, Lizmarie van Eeden.

KZN Raiders
and Northerns were also involved in a close tussle with Raiders eventually
clinching fifth place overall with a 2-1 victory.

Raiders got
off to a great start when midfielder Jen Wilson connected with a through ball
from Wanri Venter to score from close range after only four minutes.

Northerns
equalised in the 21^st minute when Kim Hubach made the most of a
penalty corner to level the score at 1-1.

Raiders
again got off their marks when Marcelle Keet flashed the ball past Northerns
goalkeeper Inke van Wyk at a penalty corner two minutes into the second half.