Farriers Dalefield left it until the last play to secure a much-needed 5-0 bonus point victory over Karori at the Trust House Wairarapa Hockey Complex at Clareville.
The defending Wellington premier champions went into the match on the back of two defeats, including a 5–0 loss to Harbour City, but Saturday’s effort was a big step up.
A Felicity Reidy goal after two minutes and a second to Reese Robertson gave the home side a 2–0 lead after the first quarter.
After Ella Kirkup and Alana Low found the net in the second period a fifth bonus point goal looked a formality; however, Karori came out with more purpose in the second half and denied Dalefield on several occasions.
It wasn’t until the final few seconds that the home side were awarded a penalty corner, which Fiola O’Boyle converted to complete their first win of the season and their first on the new blue turf.
A satisfied captain, Michael O’Connor, reckoned the turnaround of form came through tightening their defence after a shoddy effort the previous weekend.
“We had a few key things, communication and ball retention, and we controlled the game a lot more. We only had two subs, and they weren’t defenders, so it was a big game for the defence,” O’Connor said.
“Just the whole feel of the game was a lot better because we had more control. Some of them were playing out of position, and they weren’t too comfortable, but you can’t fault them – they all did really well.”
Dalefield will have little time to reflect on the victory, with a catchup game against newcomers Upper Hutt at Maidstone Park tomorrow night.
Indians
Dalefield
Debutant Caleb Roberts was the toast of Farriers Dalefield, scoring a hat-trick in their surprise win over Indians in the Wellington Premier Men’s Championship at the National Hockey Stadium on Saturday.
The Rathkeale student was one of six under-18 players who lined up in a Dalefield team missing several first-choice players, but he made his presence felt with two goals in the first half, the first a defection off a cross, and the second a neat turn and push into the goal.
Roberts completed his hat-trick in the fourth quarter, getting the better of a goalmouth scramble before Craig Pankhurst put the icing on the cake of an excellent performance from the understrength side.
“With the number of guys we had out, we weren’t sure what to expect, but a number of young guys stepped up to the plate,” player-coach Benedict van Woerkom said.
“We had a basic structure, we had an idea of how they might press us, and we got guys in the right zones and outplayed them.
“It was a very proud day to wear the Dalefield jersey – we really had no right to go out there and win that game, and we beat them 4–0.”
