The second night of action in the ExxonMobil National Indoor Hockey Championships saw the Hikers establishing dominance in two divisions, while the GCC ladies, in typical fashion, showed their class.
Playing in their first match of the season, the GCC Roulettes managed to upstage opening night winners Saints 3-1.
A powerful penalty corner flick by young national striker Abosaide Cadogan followed by two spectacular individual goals from visiting Belgian midfielder Leo Berlie and Captain Alysa Xavier sealed the match for the Roulettes.
Nicole Eastman managed a penalty corner for Saints who put on a good show in the early minutes, but then faded toward the end.
Despite also finishing with a victory, GCC Ignite had a tougher challenge against the Misfits, who led for almost the entire first half following an early goal from former national Maria Munroe.
Midfielder Sarah Klautky however, launched the comeback of Ignite with a double in the second, only for Misfits’ Romichelle Brummel to draw even at 2-2.
Captain Aliyah Gordon, who had been the stabilising force for her team, scored the final goal of the match to secure the hard-fought 3-2 victory for Ignite.
The Pepsi Hikers managed the highest goal tally for the second night in a row when they defeated the Guyana 40s 6-3 in the Men’s First Division competition.
The Guyana 40s put up a brave challenge and seemed to draw the best out of the Hikers, but got tired as the night wore on and succumbed to the constant pressure of the Hikers.
Captain Robert France was the high-scorer of the match with a hat-trick of goals.
Saints and YMCA Old Fort battled to a 2-2 draw in a match featuring two youthful and energetic sides. This match contrasted that of the Hikers and 40s tactical duel and was played at lightning speed with both sides fighting to the final buzzer.
Bounty GCC seemed to make the job harder against 50 Not Out than it should have been.
Despite a Kevin Spencer goal in the opening minute of play, GCC would not score a second until the second half through Kareem McKenzie, but added two more in quick succession.
Philip Fernandes was the lone player on target for 50 Not Out with two goals, but his efforts fell shy of GCC’s four-goal tally.
Saints Scorpions were the big winners in the Men’s Second Division competition with a 4-0 victory over the Saints Sensations. Scorpions’ Baraka Garnett was the star of the show with a hat-trick of goals for his team.
The Hikers Cadets completed the list of matches with a narrow 5-4 victory over YMCA Old Fort in the other Men’s Second Division match-up.
Games continue all week in the evenings from 17:00h and conclude on the weekend, beginning at 15:00h on those days.
