Story and pictures by Marvin Lowe
A Seng Kang player (in white) blocks a shot from a St Nick’s player. (Photo 1 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
Teck Whye Secondary, Thursday, February 19, 2009 – CHIJ St Nicholas Girls’ School laboured hard to eke out a 1-0 win against a resilient Seng Kang Secondary School in a B Division North Zone Hockey Championship match.
Right from the start, St Nicks dominated the game. They controlled the tempo of the game and dictated the flow of play for most periods of the game. They launched countless attacks into the heart of the Seng Kang defense but failed to score.
Seng Kang mustered all their strength and stood their grounds in the face of the onslaught, bravely throwing their bodies in the line of the St Nicks shots to block them. For their unceasing effort, they held St Nicks scoreless by the end of the first half.
The second half began with St Nicks continuing their assaults and trying to break the duck. It was only until mid way through the second half that they finally scored through a penalty corner. It was a well-taken penalty corner and a momentary lapse by the Sengkang defense that allowed the goal. A strong shot was blocked by the keeper but the defense failed to clear it, allowing St Nicks to sneak ahead with a simple tap in.
With this victory, St Nicks looks set to move into the next round. They will face Teck Whye next in their final group game for a top of the table clash.
A Sengkang player reaches in to tackle. (Photo 2 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
St Nicks players setting up for a shot. (Photo 3 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
One of the many shots blocked by the Seng Kang defense. (Photo 4 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A St Nicks player attempting a shot from the edge of the box. (Photo 5 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A St Nicks player sends a cross in from the wings. (Photo 6 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
Yet another Seng Kang player bravely blocking a St Nicks shot attempt. (Photo 7 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A St Nicks player tries to go past her markers. (Photo 8 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A Seng Kang player puts her stick in to block. (Photo 9 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A Seng Kang player guides the ball out to safety. (Photo 10 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A St Nicks player tries to barge her way past the defenders. (Photo 11 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A clever turn by the St Nicks forward saw her escape her markers. (Photo 12 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
Another fierce shot by a St Nicks player forces the Seng Kang player to duck. (Photo 13 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A St Nicks player weaves her way down the wing. (Photo 14 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
A goal mouth scramble which nearly led to a St Nicks goal. (Photo 15 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
The St Nicks forward pushing the ball past the defenders. (Photo 16 © Marvin Lowe/Red Sports)
N.B. If you know the names of the players featured, feel free to let us know in the comments section and we’ll update the captions. Thanks.
st nicks won 5-1
the st nicks girl in photo 11 is beatrice goh.
the st nicks girl in photo 14 is rhys wong
the st nicks girl in photo 13 is hui yi
the st nicks girl in photo 16 is janna ju
the st nicks girl in photo 5 is elaine
thats it.
g8 work marv. :}