Our Junior A boys’ hockey team was made up of Year 9 and 10 boys, with Oscar Coxhead (Year 11) playing in goal. Playing in the D Division, the team were often playing teams with players who were as much as three or four years older than some of the St Paul’s boys.

Term 2 matches went well, with five wins, two draws and a loss. The Tihoi changeover necessitated some positional changes and adjustments and after two further losses, the team finished the season with wins in their quarter-final, semi-final and final. The boys are to be commended on the tenacity and spirit shown over the season, but this was most evident in the semi-final against Putaruru where they came from 2-0 down, to win 4-3. This prepared the team well for the final, as once again they came from behind to win 2-1, with both their goals coming in the last five minutes of the game.

A special thank you to Mr Dan Scanlon, who has done the vast majority of coaching at trainings, to Mr Neil Muirhead for his huge commitment in coaching not one, but two hockey sides this season; and to the parents who have supported the team throughout the duration of the season. This combined, with a great attitude and commitment from the players, saw them win the Ngaire Smith Cup, as winners of the Waikato Hockey Secondary Schools D-Grade boys’ division.

The team consisted of the following players:

• Ben Beveridge
• Josh Carswell
• Oscar Coxhead
• Antony Doneghue
• Max Fletcher
• Ben Grant
• Remy Groenendijk
• Kalib Hunt
• Seetharam Jandhyala
• Sam Jefferis
• Neel Lad
• Sam Ladbrook
• Taiki Lynn
• Hamish Malcolm
• Ryan McKie
• George McNeil
• Tae’o Mortimer
• Sam Nicholson
• Tom Pettigrew
• Ned Seath
• Ben Spring
• Ollie Storey