Greasy fields make play difficult for depleted sides

Press, 15 July 1985, Page 28

Greasy fields make play difficult for depleted sides

Greasy fields with surface water made playing conditions difficult in the New Zealand Permanent Building Society women’s hockey competition on Saturday. A subsidiary competition started on Saturday, with teams being divided into two seeded pools of four. The absence of the New Zealand squad members who were attending a training camp in Wellington meant changes in personnel in some teams and that affected the playing fluency in some cases. The top seeds in the pools, Burnside and Woolston, both recorded easy 5-0 wins against the lowly rated Hornby and RAngiora, respectively. Carlton, which was one of the few teams to adapt to the changed conditions, had a surprisingly decisive 6-1 win against Pegasus, while Harewood scored two second-half goals to draw with Selwyn which had led, 2-0. Points.—

Pool A: Burnside 2, Harewood, Selwyn 1, Rangiora 0. Pool B: Woolston, Carlton 2, Pegasus, Hornby 0. Carlton 6, Pegasus 1 As has frequently happened this season, Carlton was slow to move into action and Pegasus had the better of the first 10 minutes of the game, making good use of the leftflank attack. The Carlton defence struggled to get the ball free and play was confined to one side of the field.

As Carlton adapted to the slower playing conditions, however, it gradually took control of the game with well-directed passes and good running into spaces. Poor footwork by Pegasus often resulted in it being in weak positions. Carlton’s midfield, led by Robyn Hocking, never allowed the Pegasus forwards room to move, and it was not until late in the game, when Carlton relaxed, that Pegasus made any leeway. In the first half, Carlton had a plentiful supply of ball, but indecisive play near the circle edge combined with the Pegasus defenders showing more strength on the ball and in tackles allowed Carlton only two goals. Libby Weston picked up the rebound from a comer shot to score and, on the half-time whistle, Sue Edmundson drove to the circle edge to score with a strong shot. After the break, Carlton began to dominate to a greater extent and Shirley Haig, who was in a goal-hungry mood, made the most of attacking opportunities. Haig netted four goals, one of which came from a penalty stroke. The Pegasus goal-keeper, Trish Paulin, earned credit for making a number of fine glove saves. Pegasus was rewarded for some sustained pressure near full-time with a goal from a penalty stroke taken by Lyn Reisterer. Scorers.— Carlton: S. Haig 4, S. Edmundson, L. Weston. Pegasus: L. Reisterer. Harewood 2, Selwyn 2

A 2-0 half-time lead was not enough for Selwyn to beat Harewood. In an even and fast match, neither team could dominate and scoring opportunities were nullified by good defence.

In the first half, Selwyn made effective use of its right flank, with Cathv-Lee Jones and Trish Harte being to the fore with accurate passing movements. After 10 minutes, Selwyn took the lead when Harte scored from just inside the circle. A pass out wide from a penalty corner resulted in Selwyn’s second goal which was converted by June Pettit. Harewood’s Robyn Thompson and Henrietta Carroll combined well to make considerable ground, but sound defence by Gill Kane and good positioning by the goalie, Tania Johnson, thwarted many attacks. Harewood steamed back after the break and scored two

quick goals to equalise. A square pass to the Selwyn left half was intercepted and Robyn Thompson netted. Maree Flannery’s tireless work was rewarded when she scored the equaliser from a penalty corner.

For most of the game both teams, and especially Selwyn, were guilty of over dribbling and the defences quickly whipped possession from the attackers. The Harewood defenders, Janet Collerton and Thelma Kirk, were prominent in this respect and they distributed the" ball well to their forwards. Scorers.— Harewood: M. Flannery, R. Thompson. Selwyn: T. Harte, J. Pettit. Bumside 5, Rangiora 0

A rearranged Bumside team lacked its usual fluency, but was still too strong for the bottom-placed Rangiora, winning 5-0. Burnside’s under-hit-ting and general inability to cope with the conditions prevented it from stamping its customary authority on the game. The experienced players Leanne McFadden and Kerian Doig were forceful for Bumside, leading many of their attacks, while Jane Earnshaw’s speed and elusive dribbling often had the Rangiora defence turning. Sharon Bell, who was promoted for the day from her Burnside senior reserve side, showed promise and opened the scoring after receiving a welldirected straight pass. Bumside led at half-time, 3-0.

Rangiora had more opportunities to attack than in previous weeks, and at times posed problems for Burnside, in particular through the centre field where Jill Searle was outstanding with her speed and strength on the ball. Without Mary Clinton the tightness of the Burnside centre field was missing. However, her replacement, Tracey Jowers, understandably lagged at times having already just played for her senior reserve team. The services of Robyn Rosevear, the Burnside sweeper, were called upon more than usual and she coped well. Liz Reeves played ably for Rangiora. Scorers:— Bumside: L. McFadden 2, S. Bell, K. Doig, J. Earnshaw. Woolston 5, Hornby 0 Woolston, which has struggled somewhat against the lowly placed Homby team in previous matches, had no problems in its third encounter, winning 5-0. Woolston opened its account in the first minute with a goal from Julie Reid, but for the remainder of the half, Reid was unusually quiet. Sue Duggan and Janet Sperry were industrious players for Woolston on the right flank, and although they frequently worked the ball effectively into the attacking zone a further goal did not come until late in the first half when Reid scored from a penalty comer. Hornby made a number of attacks down the left through the promising left wing, Jackie Nuthall, who made room for herself with good stick skill. Her battle with the experienced Michelle Bednarek was most interesting. Nuthall’s speed was matched by Bednarek’s good positioning and well timed tackles. Hornby’s ill-directed passing, often caused by the failure to scan, frequently proved costly, and possession was overturned allowing Woolston to counter-attack. In the second half, Woolston soon increased its lead when a badly positioned Hornby defence allowed Janet Speriy to make an easy pass to Julie Reid who scored.

Two further goals, from the replacement players LeighAnn Woodgate and Phillipa Youngman, gave Woolston an unassailable lead.

Scorers.— Woolston: J. Reid 3, L. Woodgate, P. Youngman.