Last weekend was a mix of good and bad for many of our teams: some played, some didn’t, some were short of personnel, while some weren’t. And after months of the wet stuff, there was barely a drop of rain.
Our Sydney Hockey Premier League men’s teams – grades 1 to 3 – all had byes, getting a bit of a rest after tough matches against Moorebank the previous week.
It wasn’t as usual in the junior ranks, either, with the boys’ State U18 championships played at Moorebank thinning the expected lineups with Sutho players representing Sydney South. A highlight was Isaac Olsen’s six goals against New England in the relegation match. Important? At one stage Sydney South was down 3-0.
Our headline picture is from the Battle of the Lizards Trophy battle at Sutho on Saturday morning between our U13B Thorny Devils and Blue Tongues. 0-0 – what can you say! Unfortunately, we didn’t get a match report documenting that obviously close battle.
So, on to the reports we have:
Juniors
U11 Sutho Geckos 0 UNSW 4
Sutherland Geckos had their toughest test this weekend, and they came up against a very skilful UNSW team. From the early stages in the first half, it was clear to see that they had a very slick player who was an absolute standout for their team.
Sutherland was on the back foot with an early goal to UNSW We had been caught out at the back starting with only one fullback, but that was quickly changed by the coaches and Sutherland tightened up their defence.
Sutherland was also finding it hard to get out of their own quarter. Harry Gunner tried hard and had some nice 16 yard hits but the weight of possession to UNSW rewarded them with another goal, Sutherland down 0-2 in the first half.
We made some positional changes, bringing Levi Cooper into the backs which worked well with some great clearances and also some good ball distribution to Lara Kooner on the left and Luke Palmer on the right side. Both created some space out wide and went on some good runs.
Michael Chapman tried his best all game to penetrate the opposition’s circle but had no luck, and Sutherland went down 0-3 early in the second half.
Joel Kooner was threatening in their half with some nice stick work and slick runs upfield, but the result was clear cut when UNSW scored again to make it 4-0.
Sutherland desperately tried to mark the Uni star out of the game with Sasha Stekhov giving it a fair go, but he proved too skilful.
Sutherland will welcome back two experienced players next week and they will have to go back to the drawing board. We now know who is the team to beat this year and looking forward to working on some new structures at training.
Best and fairest: Harry Gunner 3pts, Lara Kooner 2, Archie Erickson 1.
Sutho U13A Geckos 6 Moorebank 0
This week’s game was at home and it was nice to play in the sun for a change. It was also great to have all 15 players there for the first time this season.
It was a strong game against Moorebank with lots of great passing and teamwork resulting in a 6-0 win. Lauren was on fire with 3 goals and Ethan, Cameron and Rowan all scored 1 each.
The player of the match was Lauren with 3 points, closely followed by Rowan with 2 points and Ethan with 1 point.
Sutho U13 Thorny Devils 0 Sutho Blue Tongues 0 (No match report from the Thorny Devils or the Blue Tongues. They must have been exhausted.) Thanks to Lisa Kirby for the teams photo.
Sutho U15 Metro 1 Manly 3
With a team hit by injuries, absences and representing at State champs, we did an awesome effort in keeping Manly (the current top team) to a low score of 1-3.
We kept Manly on their toes and started to lead with a great goal by Darcy in the first quarter. Manly evened up in the game in the second quarter and finished with the win.
Archie had a fantastic attempt at goal but unfortunately just missed. Oisin had a great game, constantly on the move & finding spaces.
Some great intercepts by Hamish & Isaiah saved some spectacular goals as well.
Best & Fairest: 3 Oisin Perry 2 Julian Krepp 1 Louis Olsen. Goal: Darcy Matthews 1.
U15 Sutherland Thorny Devils 7 Glebe 0
We all arrived at Kyeemagh field ready for our match against Glebe. We were short on players such as Dom, Hayden and our goalie Sam, so Hannah thankfully stepped in for us to guard the net.
Lachlan H scored our opening goal early and then we failed to score another goal in the first quarter but were able to score more goals later in the game. Our defence and passing were good for the whole game causing the game to lean toward our way, 7 goals to nil.
Thanks to Ethan C for coming and helping us out and scoring a goal too.
Best and fairest: 3 points Eliana 2 Byron 1 Lachlan H.
Goals Lachlan H 2, Lachlan E, Paisley, Byron, Bronte, Ethan.
U15 Sutho Blue Tongues 0 Sharks 4
Saturday morning at home in the sun, what a great way to start the day. We were up against the Sharks, a strong team.
We played a great game. Awesome effort from everyone. Throughout the game we improved, we listened to Darcy’s instructions.
Isabel had some great saves. As the game got on we got better at marking one-on-one. This game definitely didn’t feel like the 0-4 loss it is.
Well done team. We will get them next time.
Best and fairest: Emily Carey. 3 points. No ball went past her. Great game. Matilda Hale. 2 points. So much unrewarded running, you did fantastically. Abby Coxsedge. 1 point. Midfield transfer expert. Keep it going.
Sutho U17 Geckos 2 UNSW 1
Friday the 13th turned out to be a not so unlucky night for the U17 Geckos.
We started off well with Jacob scoring a goal in the first quarter. MaKye and Piper did a great job getting the ball into our semi-circle, with a short corner to end it.
The second quarter showed both teams ‘strengths with a lot of back and forth.
UNSW fought hard to keep the ball, but our defence was just too strong.
The third quarter saw UNSW convert their first short corner into a goal.
However, we fought hard in the 4th quarter and MaKye scored us another goal just before Ellie endured an injury to the leg and unfortunately could not play the rest of the game.
This week’s best and fairest points went to Ellie 3, Piper 2 and Audrey (goalie) 1.
Sutho U17 Thorny Devils 0 St George Dragons 1
The Thorny Devils continued to improve as a team in the game on Friday night versus the undefeated St George Dragons.
The positivity, talk and teamwork on the field were impressive. The effort put in by each player was superb – and with only one sub, everyone did a lot of running.
We certainly had scoring opportunities which was very encouraging. It is great to see everyone improving each week and to see the players come together as a team.
Best and fairest points: 3 Bailey 2 Christian 1 Max.
Sutho U17 Blue Tongues 1 Glebe 0. No match report. Pictures thanks to Tanya Lawrence
Women
Sutho 1 (ML4) 3 Manly 0
What a great night to play hockey and that’s exactly what Sutho came out and did with what could arguably be the best game yet.
It was great to see the likes of Iris and Marina back from injury and illness and playing with close to a full team squad.
Manly was a team that kept the pressure on from the beginning right to the end.
Sutho let the ball do the work with some very slick passing ending in some lovely team goals or forcing the short corners.
Defensively, the back group held strongly, with no defensive short corners against them.
A highlight of the match was Amelia breaking a two-year goal drought. And it came from the first goal of the game!
There were great goals also to Kristen and Ruth making it a 3-0 win in the end. Overall, most would agree it was a very enjoyable team effort for the win.
Best and fairest points: Amelia 3 Yaz 2 Iris 1.
Sutho 2 (ML6) 2 vs ND Strikers 0.
This was a top of the table clash. It was a hard-fought match, but Sutho demonstrated great effort throughout all four quarters.
We secured both goals through short corners in quarter 3 and then in quarter 4 to give us a 2-0 win.
Overall a great team effort and outcome for our ML6 ladies! Can’t wait to see what our team holds for the rest of the season.
Best and Fairest: 3 points: JJ, 2 Sofie, 1: Emily. Goals: 2 Emily.
Sutho 3 (SEHA) 0 Easts 3
This weekend our Sutho team showed a lot of hard work and dedication throughout our time on the field.
Only letting in one goal towards the end of the first quarter we really showed our strength on the field. We played strongly in defence and supported each other through every moment with a smile on our faces.
We also got to see a lot of attacking options with plenty of long runs to our goal only to somehow miss our very close opportunities.
Then, by the 3rd quarter, Sutho just missed their chances of stopping the 3rd goal which was a very lucky one, but we still kept our heads high and played the game to the best of our ability.
The team worked together to play yet another cracker game, which was only to be cut short by a few lighting issues on the field causing the game to finish with still 10 minutes left.
But we still showed our pride by knowing we won the game in spirit and by never having a dull moment.
Sutho 4 – bye
Sutho 5 1 Tartan Tasers 2. No report
Men
Sutho 6th grade 1 UTS 0
The very warm weather was in full force at Sydney Olympic Park as we took to P2 to take on UTS. A couple of strong performances recently, and UTS towards the bottom of the table, we were feeling confident we would get the win. T
hat confidence was tested early when we were running the numbers to figure out if we even had enough for a team. Thankfully, a few blokes from 7th grade made the trek from the main SoP field to help us get to 11.
The first quarter seemed to go on forever as we faced the sun and some rock-solid UTS defence. The chat at quarter time was to play smart, make the ball do the work and be patient.
We created some half-decent chances in Q2 but were also tested a few times, scrambling to shutdown the quick UTS counterattack, including a brilliant save by Rory. Nil-all at halftime.
Our spirits lifted as we took our places for the second half as we enjoyed the shade and scored an early goal, thanks to a well-executed penalty corner: Sean Ryan to Pikey, smashed home by Brookie.
We rode our luck through the rest of the game, missing some critical chances to score another, and scrambling to keep the ball out, including a last-ditch save by Sean on the goal line.
In the end, it was 3 well-deserved points and a game that we showed our character as a team.
The young blokes, including Nick and Lachie, continue to improve which is great to see. A massive shout out to Luke and Scott from 7th grade who doubled up, and to Sean and a few others who helped out 7th grade beforehand – great club spirit.
Next week will be tough as we take on second-placed Ryde at home. Hoping we have more than 11 players!
Get well soon Gus.
B&F – 3 points: Sean Ryan, 2 points: Andrew Hoy, 1 point: Lachlan Hoy. Goal: Mark Brookfield 1.
Sutho 5th grade 5 UTS 3
When was the last time you noticed the details of afternoon hockey at Sylvania?
The yellow sun slices through the roofs of trees and over a clubhouse that stands proudly, full of character. A balcony with the finest view of all Sydney fields, bristling with hopes, comments, laughs, and crutches as the faithful enjoy the prettiest of games.
Aficionados were treated on Saturday afternoon to a fifth-grade contest that had eight goals, plenty of amusing drama, and a Sutherland team who played their most positive hockey yet this season.
The combinations in our backs are strengthening with each flex. Byron played another stout game, looking to press every opportunity, and Kev locked down a rumoured former international.
The halves were consistent in getting the balls forward, with Lachlan demonstrating an awesome ethic tracking back and making strong leads to space.
Our strikers showed incisiveness in earning opportunities and penalty corners. Apologies for the lack of detail in reporting such opportunities; it’s hard to see that far in old age.
But, what defined this game was attitude.
UTS was determined to chat up the refs and earned themselves a card, which on further discussion, was upgraded! Isn’t inflation a killer?
Another alumnus saw no merit to my suggestion that he was taking himself out of the game. I shared my view that when we scored, I get to take the ball out of the net and play hockey and that when they scored, I get to take the ball out of the net and play hockey. This was met with the deafest of ears.
Sutho should be proud of the way the fifth grade is representing the club. Good things are happening in SL2.
Best and fairest: 3pts Luke Mecham, 2pts Aaron Cooper, 1pts Byron Watson. Goals: Luke Mecham 3, Matt Stevens 1, Tim Crismale 1.