THE South of Scotland U18 indoor hockey team travelled to Hutcheson's Grammar School, Glasgow on Saturday to take part in the Inter District Tournament.
The South team consisted of schoolgirls from Kelso High School and The Berwickshire High School and put in a commendable performance.
South was scheduled to play North first but due to severe weather they were unable to travel to Glasgow. Thei
r first match was therefore against South West.
It was in the opening seconds that an error from the South defence proved costly as their opponents opened the scoring and they continued to put South under pressure and were awarded a penalty corner but it was from a quick break soon after this that they got their second goal.
South certainly took their time to settle into this match but this failed to deter them from pushing forward at every opportunity. It was Kirsty Hill who broke up the left with a nice sole run drawing the goal keeper off her line before hammering home the first goal for South.
On the restart whistle they were straight back into attack and were awarded two penalty corners in quick succession – Kirsty Hill's shot was saved but Siobhan Murphy made no mistake as she netter goal number two. Further fantastic shots from Michelle Stewart and a Kirsty Hill went close.
South West seemed to get their third goal out of nothing but they were in front again but not for long as seconds later Kirsty Hill got her second goal of the match to equal the score at 3-3.
In the closing minutes South West scored a fourth goal but getting her hat-trick and equaliser was Kirsty Hill as she flicked the ball into the top corner just on the final whistle. Final score 4-4.
South took on East in their second tie. The match started well for
South as they went straight into their opponent's circle but the table soon turned and East scored from a penalty corner situation.
Seconds later it was Kelly Aitchison who saved a shot on the goal line but a swift follow up from East got them goal number two quickly followed by a third and fourth.
A through ball from Kelly Aitchison to Kirsty Hill up front resulted in a penalty corner and from a Siobhan Murphy shot Kirsty Hill followed up to score for South.
Despite further strong efforts from Kirsty Hill, Anna Ramsay and Michelle Stewart South were unable to score.
More pressure came from East as they scored another two goals in the final few minutes. South replied with a run up from defence by Kelly Aitchison and she set up Henrietta Cooper who netted a superb goal. An exciting skilful match to watch – final score 6-2 to East.
The third match was against Midlands who opened the scoring after two minutes of play but South equalised from a penalty corner with Holly Millar finding the target with her powerful flick.
Jenna Simpson and Anne Ramsay were strong in defence and feeding the ball nicely to Kirsty Hill who took the ball to the back line before delivering a pass to Holly Millar who put South in front with a cracking goal.
Midlands equalised but South went on the attack again and were awarded two penalty corners but they were unable to capitalise.
End to end play continued but Midlands proved too strong and scored a further three goals despite some fantastic saves from goalkeeper Natasha Hewson for South. Final score 5-2 to Midlands.
The final match of the tournament for South was against West and right from the start West were strong in attack and were soon awarded a penalty corner. Quick reflex actions from South goalkeeper Gilliam Forsyth, saved a spectacular high flick but the rebound was quickly slipped into the goal.
West continued to flick high balls and hit several powerful shots at the South goal and were soon able to increase the score by three goals in the first half of the match.
It was not all one sided as South had some great attempts at goal from Kirsty Hill, Anna Ramsay, Siobhan Murphy and Holly Millar.
Just on the final whistle West scored their final goal of the match leaving the score 5-0.
Despite their final placing South displayed some excellent hockey during the tournament and the scorelines certainly did not reflect their performance. Coaches Mary Weir and Kathleen Haldane were full of praise for the squad who showed such determination and a high standard of skill during the day. Tournaments at this level are a great learning curve for these young players.
Captain Michelle Stewart presented Mrs Weir and Mrs Haldane with gifts to thank them for the pre-tournament sessions and their coaching throughout the event.
The South team was: Gillian Forsyth, Natasha Hewson, Kirsty Hill, Henrietta Cooper, Jenna Simpson and Anna Ramsay (all Kelso High School), Captain Michelle Stewart, Holly Millar, Kelly Aitchison, Claire Ramsden and Siobhan Murphy (all Berwickshire High School). Coaches – Mrs Mary Weir and Mrs Kathleen Haldane. Umpire representing the South was Emma Pate.
