Goals galore mark lopsided first day
THE Black Sticks women’s and men’s hockey teams both chalked up cricket scores on the opening day of the Oceania Cup tournament in Stratford yesterday.
The New Zealand women knocked up a record 31-0 win over Samoa and the men slammed home 37 goals to breeze past their Samoan counterparts. Earlier in the day, the Australia men thrashed Fiji 17-0.
The women’s score eclipsed their previous best, a 26-0 win over Samoa when the Oceania Cup was last held in Stratford.
New Zealand had the record when Kirsten Pearce banged the ball into the goal with 10 minutes to play and added four more in the final period.
Pearce dominated the scoring for New Zealand with six goals, with captain Anita Punt and Charlotte Harrison both bagging five. Elizabeth Thompson scored four and Pippa Hayward three, while Olivia Merry, Petrea Webster and Sophie Cocks all scored twice. New Zealand’s other scorers were Brooke Neal and Elizabeth Gunson.
‘‘It was good for Samoa to get Today’s draw 1.30pm, Australia women v Samoa 3.30pm, Fiji men v Samoa 5.30pm, Black Sticks men v Australia out there and it was cool to play them, but we’ve got bigger things to come,’’ said Punt afterwards referring to the two games against Australia at the weekend.
The Black Sticks men had a field day against Samoa. They led 9-0 after the first quarter, added seven in the second quarter to lead 16-0 at halftime. The third quarter produced 11 goals, with another 10 coming in the final 15 minutes.
Stephen Jenness and Nichlas Wilson both helped themselves to seven goals, with James Coughlan scoring five.
The feature game today will be the men’s clash between the Blacks Sticks and Australia – a dress rehearsal for the winnertakes-all match on Sunday. A win on the weekend for the Black Sticks will guarantee the side a trip to Rio for the 2016 Olympics.