Aztecs start strong
There was plenty of smiling faces and excited chatter at Bellbird Park in Drouin on Saturday morning with junior hockey finally getting underway for season 2020 after a three-month delay.
With many players living on the wrong side of the Bunyip River numbers were expected to be down and as a r
esult there were two forfeits in the under 12s. This didn’t stop those players from organising two highly competitive scratch matches to blow off some of the hockey cobwebs that have been building since the previous season.
In the under 15s first up, it was the Aztecs and the Warriors. There is a lot of talent in both sides and they put on a show. In the end it was the Aztecs that were too strong as they ran out 4 - 0 winners. Goal Scoring was spread evenly between Hayden McNeill, Mikayla Gourley, Lauren Austin and Jordan Oellermann. Bianca Zurrer and Zizi Pozzebon put in a huge effort for the Warriors.
In the other match the Gulls were up against the Drouids. The first half was very competitive but in the second half the Gulls found another gear and ran out convincing winners 8-0. Sisters Ariya and Marisah Mock as well as Merri Spalding scored two goals each. While Josiah Wells and Ruth Tucker helped out with one. Dean Lyle and Nicole Schellekens played well all game for the Aztecs.
The games in the under 18s were much more competitive. Although the final score was 5-1 in Warriors favour it doesn’t truly represent the full story. The intensity was extremely high with a few warnings from the umpires resulting in two green cards against Warrior players Bianca Zurrer and Bailey Studd. Player and co-coach for Warriors, Seth Calway played his socks off and ended up with a hat-trick of goals while Baily Studd and Tessa Martin chipped in with one goal each. Elliot Stephens for Aztecs put in a solid effort all game and scored their only goal.
The game of the round was the extremely hard-fought battle between Gulls and Drouids. It was played at a frantic pace and the winning goal was scored with only a few minutes left on the clock by Sam Graziotin which broke the 2-2 deadlock. Kaitlyn Spragg and Alice Greenall also scored. For the Drouids their two goal scorers were Will Stephens and Henry Grant. Henry Grant had a great allround game as did sisters Ruth and Katie Tucker from the Gulls.
Round 2 begins at Bellbird Park in Drouin at 8am this Saturday.
Results:
Under 12s
Aztecs defeated Warriors (forfeit) Gulls defeated Drouids (forfeit) Under 15s
Aztecs defeated Warriors 4-0 Gulls defeated Drouids 8-0 Under 18s
Warriors defeated Aztecs 5-1 Gulls defeated Drouids 3-2