Fast-paced hockey action during 5s at Penryn
Schools from Mbombela and Lydenburg recently put their hockey skills to the test in this shortened version of the game.
The Belgotex Mpumalanga 5s Boys Hockey Tournament took place at Penryn College on August 19 and 20.
The Lowveld’s top hockey teams from Hoërskool Bergvlam, Curro Nelspruit, Hoërskool Rob Ferreira, Hoërskool Lydenburg, Lowveld High, Hoërskool Nelspruit (NHS), and of course the hosts, Penryn, stepped onto the Astroturf in a display of skill and resilience in this exciting format of the game.
Hockey 5s is a shorter and faster variant of traditional field hockey. Instead of teams consisting out of 11 players each, the shortened format is played with five players a side: four in field and the goalie. The size of the field also differs. In 5s, the field is quite literally divided in half.
These hockey matches are usually much faster and quick-paced than normal, with each team trying to make the most of their 10 minutes on-field.
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The U15 and U18 boys from the participating schools gave their best in all their fixtures, but, as in all sports, there can only be one winner.
Penryn’s U15s dominated their division, securing four wins out of their five games played. They ended their tournament top of the log with 13 points to their name. Similarly, Curro’s U15s also won four out of five. Subsequently, the sides were squared as far as the log points were concerned. Penryn’s goal difference, however, separated the two, handing the hosts the honour of being the 5s champions.
Curro occupied second position, with Lydenburg in third.
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In the U18 division, Curro were even-steven once again, only this time with the side from NHS. Curro, however, scored the most goals against their opponents in their round robin fixtures and edged NHS out by goal difference.
NHS had to be satisfied with a second place, with Penryn rounding off the top three.
Penryn hosts the Belgotex Mpumalanga 5s Girls Hockey Tournament this coming weekend, on September 1 and 2.
Curro Nelspruit were victorious in the U15 division last year, with Penryn’s U18 girls crowned to be the best.
Will these teams defend their titles or will new champions be crowned?
