Champs, 4 years running
The Old Oaks Knysna Hockey Club Ladies team has managed to win the Eden Hockey League for the fourth year in a row after sweeping York High School aside in the final on Saturday 24 August.Prior to the start of the 2019 Eden Hockey League season, Old Oaks Ladies were coming off the back of three successive seasons where they stood as the queens of the Eden District.
They kicked their season off in the best way possible at the Oakhill Sports Campus on 13 April earlier this year, as they managed to demolish Wanderers Ladies 7-2, a clear sign of intent that they once again meant business this season.
The ensuing season would be nothing short of spectacular from Old Oaks Ladies, as they managed to reach the playoffs having won 11 of their 12 games, drawing only one game – a 0-0 draw with York High Ladies on 9 June. Old Oaks would face York in the final once again, after beating Crusaders Ladies 2-0 the week before, with York coming off the back of a 5-1 victory over Nelson Mandela University (NMU) George Ladies.
The final on Saturday, at about 15:00, saw a pretty uneventful first chukka (quarter) get the game going as both sides were slightly slow out the blocks. Nerves seemed to have settled by the time the second chukka got under way as both sides seemed to play a more fluid game, but Old Oaks was able to get the better of York, scoring two goals in the second chukka to take a 2-0 halftime lead.
The third chukka would be more of the same for Old Oaks Ladies, as they scored two more goals to double their lead and bury the game – and league – heading into the final chukka. The final chukka saw a muchimproved performance from York, as they played a better brand of hockey that saw them score a goal that would prove to be no more than consolation.
Old Oaks would end the game 4-1 victors, their 13th win in a season of 76 goals, amazingly conceding only three from the start of the season to the final whistle against
York.