Wellington teams will clash early in Rankin Cup
FAMILIAR foes will be meeting on an unfamiliar battlefield at the national Rankin Cup tournament in Auckland.
There are eight pools at the tournament, which will be played under a new format this year, but the top four schools in the Wellington premier one hockey competition – Hutt International, Wellington College, Scots College and Wairarapa College – are spread over only two pools.
Wellington College and Scots College are the top seeds in one pool and Wairarapa and HIBS top the seedings in another.
St Pat’s Silverstream will be the other Wellington team at the tournament, which begins on August 31, and have drawn a pool headed by Palmerston North Boys’ and Burnside High.
The two top qualifiers from each pool will make up the top 16 and play for the Rankin Cup, with each subsequent game a knockout match. The bottom 16 will playoff for the India Shield.
Previously, the entries for the Rankin and India were determined by the results from the previous year. That meant that some of the better teams could be playing in the second division [India], a situation that the new format should avoid.
Wairarapa made the Rankin final last year, losing a shootout to Hamilton Boys’, while Wellington finished fourth, for the second successive year.
Scots won the 2014 India Shield, with HIBS third, and Silverstream earned entry into the extended Rankin draw by winning the third-tier Mayhill Cup.
The Wellington premier one competition has been unusually tight this year and just four points separate the top four, with one round remaining in round robin play. The competition will be split into a top four/bottom four next week, with the points carrying through.
HIBS lead the competition by a point from Wellington College and are unbeaten in the premier round, with five wins and a draw from the six games.
HIBS, who play Rathkeale on Friday, beat Scots 4-0 on July 31 and notched an important 2-1 win over Wairarapa College last weekend.
‘‘We are starting to hit our straps now,’’ HIBS coach Sam Rama said. ‘‘We have got a good group of senior boys and a couple of juniors who have taken a step up.
‘‘The last two results [against Scots and Wairarapa College] have boosted their self-confidence. They have been putting the goals away and starting to believe that they are good enough to do it.’’
HIBS are led by striker Troy Johnson who has averaged two goals a game this year and scored 17 goals from six games in the premiership round, including a double against Scots and both goals against Wairarapa.
‘‘He’s got that cricketer’s hand to eye co-ordination, along with speed and attitude,’’ Rama said. ‘‘He’s a very good athlete and he’s also been getting good support.’’
Peter Manning, Bradley Collins and year 11 defender Jaiden Chhika were members of the Wellington under-18 side and Chhika’s form at the back has allowed his experienced team-mate Deevan Rama to be moved into midfield. ‘‘Deevan adds more power to the midfield.’’
The HIBS squad also has three year 10 players, with striker Anish Rama joined by Nathan Watt and Graeme Murrell.
‘‘The competition is very even this year and a lot will depend on who can take their chances on the day,’’ Sam Rama said.
Wellington College have had four wins and two draws from their six matches and have earnt valuable bonus points with big wins against Silverstream (10-0) and Rongotai (9-0) in their last two matches. Another big margin is likely this week, against Paraparaumu.
‘‘We don’t have an elite level player or a game-breaking striker this year but that has meant we have had to play more as a unit,’’ coach Manoj Parbhu said.
Skipper Logen Stent, who is in his fourth year in the first XI, had been impressive in midfield, while goalkeeper Sam Dearsley and defender Josh Symonds had also been standout players in recent games.
Scots, who beat Rathkeale 3-0 last weekend, are in third place in premier one but have an important game, against Wairarapa, on Friday.
There has been good news and bad news for Scots on the injury front. Experienced defender Lothar Krumpen is out for the rest of the season, with a dislocated knee, but Lachie Paton returned last week, after a lengthy layoff with a hand injury.