A TENACIOUS group of Sunraysia hockey players almost stole the entire show at last week’s Victorian Junior Country Championships.
The Sunraysia Hockey Association under 14 boys delivered one of their best ever performances at the tournament to claim a silver medal in Melbourne.
Sunraysia went undefeated through all five pool games – four wins and a draw – before going down to the strong Hockey Central Victoria side in their grand final.
They were one of six sides from Sunraysia who tackled the tournament.
Team coach Jeff McAliece said he couldn’t have been prouder of the performances, which included wins of 9-0 over North Central White, 6-0 over Hockey South West and 5-2 over West Gippsland.
“On and off the field they conducted themselves well and were fantastic representatives,” McAliece said.
“They played disciplined hockey and stuck to their guns.
“Obviously there’s one other result we would have loved but those Hockey Victoria medals are hard to win and I think it was great for hockey to have a team like that go so well.
“In my years of being involved in hockey I don’t remember a team of that level making it that far.”
Across the games Mitchell Stenner scored six goals and Hamish Regan five, each scoring a hat-trick, while Ryan Woods and Callum Beckwith each scored three times.
McAleiece said the performances were a stark contrast to those of the past two events.
“I think two years ago we scored one goal and last year we came sixth so the improvement has really been showing from the boys,” he said.
“In the squad, too, we have six of the guys who will be under 16 level next year but the others will still be under 14s so it’s not like we were loaded up on top-age players.
“The whole set-up with Sunraysia Hockey Association is fantastic.”
Meanwhile, Sunraysia’s under 18 girls managed one win in their six pool games, with Leah Kerr scoring the decisive goal in their 1-0 victory over East Gippsland.
The under 18 boys’ best result was a 2-1 win over North Central with Rory Ellis on the scoreboard, while Tyson Harris and Cooper Topp scored in a strong performance in a 3-2 loss to Geelong.
The under 16 girls went down in four of their five matches but secured a 0-0 draw against East Gippsland.
They finished their campaign with a seventh-place play-off win 2-0 over North Central, with Sarah Kroehn scoring.
The under 14 boys’ green development squad weren’t able to win any of their six matches but gained great experience, securing points in game six with a 1-1 draw against North Central via a Liam Gardiner goal.
The under 14 girls’ squad secured two draws in their six games, the best being a 1-1 result against East Gippsland with Ivy Underwood scoring the goal.
