Report: 1st XI Hockey team in the final of the Supercity Competition
The 1st XI Hockey team played Westlake Boys’ High School at Lloyd Elsmore Park on Wednesday 23 August in the final of the 2023 Supercity Competition.
After losing to Westlake in the final last year, the team was determined and extremely focused to reverse the result and put in a winning performance.
The match started with Westlake dominating possession and territory in the first quarter with the Grammar defence being tested. At the end of the first quarter, both teams were unable to break the deadlock with Grammar coming close to catching Westlake off-guard through various phases of broken play and some good counter attacking hockey.
The second quarter saw Grammar settle into the game and create a few good phases of play that tested the Westlake defence on numerous occasions. Westlake continued to play very attacking hockey at a very high tempo which continued to test the Grammar defensive structure. At the half time break the score remained 0-0 which saw both teams’ tactics and game plan tested in all areas of the field.
The third quarter saw Westlake rewarded with three penalty corners, meaning goalie L. C. Klouwens and the defensive penalty corner were tested. However, they remained calm and defended with great heart, skill and determination. The final quarter saw the momentum of the game shift from a possession and territory state and allowed Grammar the opportunity to attack on numerous occasions.
A well-executed penalty corner by Form 6 student H. C. Stewart saw Grammar open the scoring, which was followed by a field goal by Form 7 student H. C. Aspinall. Westlake removed their goal keeper with six minutes to go so they had 11 field players with an extra player to use from an attacking perspective, however the Grammar wall could not be broken.
A 2-0 victory against the reigning New Zealand Champions saw Auckland Grammar School win the Supercity competition to go with the Auckland title for 2023. The Supercity title was last won by Auckland Grammar School in 2017 and the team is extremely proud to bring the trophy back to Auckland Grammar School.
The 1st XI Hockey team would like to thank parents, students and staff who braved the cold weather and came out to support the team throughout the season.
The team’s final competition for the year is the New Zealand Secondary Schools Championships where the will compete for the Rankin Cup during Winter Tournament Week.