Power Press 5 - Powerhouse St Kilda Hockey Club

 POWER PRESS
6th May 2015
Round 4 – Issue 5
THIS WEEKEND
APK
Away
Saturday
Saturday
12.30pm Women PD v Footscray
12.30pm Women VL1R v Monash
2pm Women PA v Footscray
2.00pm Women VL1 v Monash
12.30pm Men MA v MCC
Sunday
2.00pm Men PB v GB
11am Men MB v Maccabi
12.30pm Men MA v MUHC
Sunday
12.05pm Men PLR v Essendon
1.30pm Men PL v Essendon
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WOMEN
Vic League 1
Lost 2 – 1 v Mornington
We started the game strongly and positively following a win and a draw in Rd 1 and Rd 2.
With Lydia away and Kate and Anna injured, we welcomed Sharon Occhipinti who stepped
up to fill the gap and proving she was up to the task.
As the game progressed it started getting very warm which made it hard to keep up the
work rate, but we dug deep and getting rewarded with plenty of corners. At half time we
were only 1-0 down but didn't lose hope as it was very even with play going both ways.
We started the 2nd half a bit slow but picked it up with great teamwork and being patient
and linking up around the back then running the ball up the right hand side with Doody
touching the ball to Gemma in the circle who scored her first goal of the season late in the
game, (hopefully one of many), all we needed was one more goal to level the score for
another draw.
We had multiple opportunities to score off short corners in both halves, in the dying
seconds of the match Tilly managed to get a PC which would even the score to a 2-2 draw,
but unfortunately it was not to be.
Something to work on at training this week Penalty Corners!
We are a newly constructed cohesive
team squad and continuing to grow.
We are getting excited for next week’s
game and bringing away the 3 points
vs Monash.
Go House!
By Annabel Thomson
Vic League Reserves
Won 7 – 2 v Mornington
Written by Nicki Addy
As the sun beamed down creating a lovely Autumnal Melbourne afternoon; WVLR brought
their game faces to the third match of the season.
Initiated with a succinct and solid warm up, led by Briony Clare, followed by a good pep talk
from Mr Wilson himself, WVLR were primed and pumped for whatever was about to be
thrown their way.
From the whistle, the entire team pressed hard and limited Mornington’s attacking chances
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thanks to some great talking and direction from the back (Cho – GK, Rachel and Naomi –
Defence). It wasn’t too long before WVLR took the lead.
A sneaky ball from Mornington’s defensive half, straight down the line to a high playing
forward converted a goal for the opposition. WVLR reacted quickly and knocked home a
couple more goals to secure the lead.
A strong score line advantage leant itself to some very positive WVLR play. From
distributing the ball round the back, strong leading from the forwards and some dominating
play through the middle, spaces were created and more goals were scored. The final score
ended 7-2 to WVLR. Those who made the score sheet were Rachel Inman (1), Mary
Munson (1), Naomi Smith (1), Mae Welch (2) and Lucy Fogarty (2).
A special thanks goes to all
the PHSK sideline supporters
and, of course, to Bella for
making a sterling performance
despite illness in the lead up
to the game (not self-inflicted I
might add). A fantastic team
effort and a well-deserved
win... Bring on Monash this
weekend!
Pennant A
Lost 2 – 0 v Mentone
Written by Melissa Bouffler
On a Sunny Sunday 10 of us travelled out to sunny Keysborough for some hockey in the
country side, it was a short 40 minute drive for most or a 4 hour tram ride for the 11th player
coming from Park St in Fitzroy. Everyone, especially Miwa was delighted to see the return
of Vicki and Dasha (yes this says return you’re not going anywhere now ladies) to the
squad, everyone that knows Vicki knows that she is tough but the bionic woman was super
hero tough owning the field on her first game back! In true Pen A form we scrapped
together our 10 players and took to the field knowing we had a tough match ahead of us in
the hot sun with no reserves.
The game was more action than the Pacquio v Gayweather fight with what felt like a player
down every 3 minutes, there were footballs, knee high balls, head high balls and finally a
nose high ball to one of the poor players from Mentone. Vicki was planning to send her a
get well soon card.
We didn’t deserve the loss and with the combined power of Sasha, Laura, Nicki & Vickster
holding the centre like a dream we only had 1 penalty corner against us.
Badass Laura Evans was rightfully green carded after tackling right after the whistle was
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blown against her, to be honest even if you didn’t know the rules of hockey you probably
would have carded her, she claims to have not heard the whistle but the team claims she
owes us all a tequila shot.
Cho saved a ripper one on one, amongst other shots from Mentone’s youthful forward line.
Kristy in her debut for the Club dominated the sideline and went on several runs defeating
multiple players and had several shots on goal that she was unlucky not to convert.
Special mention to Mae our 11th player for making the journey out via 5 trams with fluro
paint from head to toe, getting in cars with strange men, losing her phones (yes both of
them) and probably quiet the sore head only to arrive and be put in a position she had
never played before!
In summary it was an awesome game played well by all, again we were lucky enough to
have the continued support of Cam William who’s guidance is much needed and I know I
speak for the whole team when we thank him very much for his attendance each week! Pen
A are slowly but surely getting use to each other’s style and are developing into a strong
team, with some key players still missing from the team look out Mentone - next time we
see you you’re going down!
Pennant D
Result?
Metro A
Only 9 of us turned up at sunny Footscray but we played like 10 people - and if we had one
other we would have won. Despite being vastly outnumbered (they had an interchange) we
were very competitive and had a number of opportunities to score including 2 corners.
We lost 1-nil, in the last 2 minutes of the game. It would have been much worse but for the
amazing, and I mean amazing goal keeping on the part of Di. I don't recall how many times
3 attackers got into our defensive circle to be faced by only 1, yes 1 PHSK person in the
form of the goal keeper.
And time and time that goal keeper came out repelling each and every attack. Who was
best ... clearly Di but everyone played well on Sunday especially the defenders: Jeannette
Collier and Annie Beattie, seemingly impossibly were there time and time again in
defence,
Sarah also played a back -- she is so fit and fast at times you would be excused thinking
that she was a forward. Well played Metro A ... hopefully more players next week.
By Merinda Northrop
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MEN
Premier League
Won 3 – 1 v Camberwell
Round 3 was highlighted in the calendar well before the start of the season as an
opportunity to avenge the loss that we took in last years semi-final to Camberwell HC. In
what was a memorable day for the PL mens team, as we achieved the win at our home
ground defeating camberwell 3-1 in what was clearly our best game for the year to date.
Jake Sherren in a long awaited return from injury scored a highlight real goal early on with
what was his second touch for the game. Harry
Page contributed twice on the scoreboard with a first
half short corner goal and a late sealer thanks to a
goal assist from Brett Dempster.
We have set ourselves the challenge of ensuring
that the level we played at on Saturday is
maintained and improved upon for the rest of the
season. Sunday's game against Essendon gives us
our first opportunity to achieve it.
By Will Gilmour
Premier League Reserves
Lost 7 – 0 v Camberwell
Pennant B
Lost 10 – 1 v Camberwell
Metro A
Draw 1 – 1 v MUHC]] Historians will discuss the past weekend of sport for many years to
come. Chelsea recorded another Premier League title against Crystal Palace and stamped
their dominance on English Football with another clinical display. The following day, across
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the pond, in a country famous for inventing obesity and terrorism, Floyd Mayweather Jr
defeated Manny Pacquiao in the $400m super-fight which will go down as the richest ever.
Both these events however, pale into significance as Powerhouse travelled to Melbourne
Uni as 2 of the 3 teams with 100% records in Metro A went toe to toe in what many experts
predicted would be round 3.
For several of the Powerhouse squad, this was their first encounter with a university, and
some were so awed by the experience that they have vowed to learn to read and write, as
the first step on a journey to returning one day on a more academic level. Not everyone
was as impressed though, including me. What sort of university closes their student union,
eliminating the chance of it's visiting patrons enjoying an after-match pint?
As Melbourne Uni were one of the teams in the league we have not played in recent
seasons we didn't really know what to expect. The only info we had was that they won their
two opening games. We would get no assistance from our coach Jesse McCartney on this
either, as he maintained his 100% record of attending none of our games. We also had no
guidance from our inspiring captain who works tirelessly to organise us, sometimes up to 3
emails in a week. Brendan was unfortunately on the injury list for the week, and we got
word that his ailment was so awful he couldn't even make it to the game to provide
guidance and share his tactical wisdom. This however, along with his commitment to the
cause and his trustworthiness, has now been thrown into question, due to Mark Zuckerberg
informing us later that day, that he was fit and able enough to venture out and purchase a
new motorcycle. What should the fine be? Answers on a postcard.
With the no-show of Brendan, the responsibility of captain for the day was given to myself.
(I can only presume some sort of alphabetical selection policy was in effect) My first duty as
captain was an unusual one. With us warming up near the entrance to the pitch, we were
approached by one of the umpires who inquired whether our opposition could play with the
17 players they had amassed instead of the regulation 16 that the rule book states? With
utter disgust at the request, I managed to calmly remind him that the rule was 16. After his
objections and the third time I stated the rule, I had to add "end of story!" I really wanted to
suggest a bodily orifice he could file that request in. What did he expect? Did he honestly
think I was going to allow our depleted squad to go to battle against a young fit university
side with an extra pair of legs, which would have came in useful on a day where the heat of
the sun made us question whether this was actually a winter sport? Perhaps this was the
reason why we didn't get a single call from him all afternoon? Never seen an umpire play
disadvantage so much during a game.
Brendan was joined on the ever expanding injury list this week, by both of last weeks
absentees Lyndon Mengler and Tim Pyke. Also on the list this week was Nick Haigh who's
encounter with the Footscray lumberjack last week, resulted in a fractured knee. Also
absent this week was Damien Hashemi, who has obviously forgotten he had just moved
into a new house, and opted to sleep in a temporary canvas hut for the weekend in the
back of beyond. (Whoop-whoop for all you Australian readers.) We were also looking like
we may be another man short when word came through on the grapevine (iPhone 6 to be
more precise) that our centre half had just arrived at Melbourne High School instead of
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Melbourne Uni in a move which will bring ridicule for at least the rest of this season. This
made me have to reshuffle the starting lineup, which undid all of the 3 minutes of
preparation I had put in en route.
As the game got underway Powerhouse dominated possession with no real end product
visible. This can mainly be put down to the poor quality of the pitch which was about as
rough as a badger's backside and saw many of us having such a bad 1st touch, our second
was a tackle. As we became more used to the surface, our play became more positive, and
we started gaining some possessions in the opposition circle. After about 20 minutes Owen
Parry found himself in space down the right hand side. (This was purely by accident as he
was trying to substitute himself). He then intelligently drove to the baseline and cut the ball
back to yours truly in acres of space at the top of the circle. With the keeper committed to
closing Owen down, I majestically finished with a superb first time shot, low into the bottom
corner of the net. (No bias here).
Half time came and went with Powerhouse maintaining their 1-0 advantage. You could be
forgiven for believing that Jose Mourinho had performed Melbourne Uni's half time team
talk, with them effectively "parking the bus" leaving 9 men in their own 25. Powerhouse
again dominated possession, but had nothing to show for it, as the opposition fortress
proved hard to break down. Then, out of nowhere, Melbourne played a long ball upfield.
The ball was mis-trapped by one of their forwards which somehow sent the ball towards the
other. Forward number 2 also mis controlled and somehow managed to accidentally direct
the ball passed our keeper and into the goal, for an extremely undeserved equaliser.
The game continued in similar fashion, with us dominating the play and chances went a
begging. Tim Ford came close to sneaking one in at the back post. Jeremy Duggan
squandered a chance by shooting from the "Dan Coulson zone" when the rest of the team
were queueing up for a tap in. (Dan Coulson zone = so close to the baseline that the angle
is nearly impossible to score from.) Then Tony Archer somehow managed to hit the junction
of the crossbar and post with a shot, only to see the ball ricochet out over the base line on
the opposite side of the goal. Something that clearly seemed to defy physics.
The game finished a disappointing 1-1 which saw Melbourne Uni rejoice in celebration, and
Powerhouse looking deflated, in what felt like a defeat. Alas our 100% record has gone, but
we still remain unbeaten. I have confidence this will continue next week as we travel to
MCC. With no pun intended, this has the potential to be a cricket score as Footscray put 11
past them this week. Regular subscribers will remember that we beat Footscray 7-2 last
week. I could really do with a note taker for this fixture, as I hope to have difficulty keeping
up with the amount and scorers of the goals. Surely one of our injured members, has the
ability to hold a pen, unless you are all to busy buying motorbikes?
Special mention has to go to Nick Cerche, who after a two year sabbatical, was a welcome
member of our squad on his return to hockey. Hopefully we can hold onto him for the next
few weeks. I'm sure it will only be a matter of time before he returns to the more elite
squads within the club. This will be dependant on him getting slimmer, fitter, stronger, faster
and generally better at hockey. Only kidding bud, welcome to the squad! Stay tuned for
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next weeks instalment.Alex 'The' Bruce
Metro B
Lost 6 – 3 v Old Melb.
JUNIORS
U12 Shield (Coach Paul Jensz)
Lost 5-1
1-1 midway through second half was a great start to the season. Players ran into space
when in attack, and covered opposition when they had the ball. Backs cleared ball wide or
hit to half backs coming towards them. Good passing both forwards and backwards.
Corners gave a few chances.
U12 CENTRAL (Coach Gabby Stewart)
Lost 1-0
With only 10 players, the team started well against a strong opposition. Players applied
their skills well, with most effectively protecting their feet and keeping their five meters on
free hits to hold TEMs off for the first half. Sadly an unfortunate goal was conceeded in the
final minutes
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NEWS
Congratulations U21 Men
Well done to Harry Page and Lochie Stock for being selected!
Thank you!
Will, Zoe and Rafa selected for the Junior Championships. An early start at 7am on
Sunday!
Alex Hopkins and Jezza for helping Pauline empty the bins.
Ball kids!
GTI VOUCHER WINNERS
PL Joel Hamilton round 3,George Hurley round 2
PLR Darcy Morrow – round 3,Andrew Garry – round 2
WVL1Rd 2 Jill StanfordRd 3 Rachel Doody
GET down there –it is a great menu. Jessie and I enjoyed curries. The menu is hamburgers
or curries.
133 Commercial Rd near the Prahran market
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