IT may not have been the desired result, but Orange turned a few heads in going down 1-0 to Campbelltown in the under 17 girls’ final of the Hockey NSW Indoor State Championships at Wollongong over the weekend.
Producing some brilliant hockey throughout an unbeaten run in the pool games, Orange then took a giant step forward in the indoor game with a 1-0 victory over Sydney (3) in the division two semi-finals.
And although eventually defeated 1-0 against Campbelltown in the final, Orange coach Mark Pengilly said his outfit surprised a few sides in the state-wide indoor competition.
“A lot of the Sydney teams we did,” Pengilly said.
“The girls played really well and performed above expectations to get through to the final.”
The competition started well for Orange thanks to a 6-0 win over Illawarra (2).
It then continued in the right vein with a 2-0 triumph over Macarthur (2) before sharing the spoils with Campbelltown in the third and final pool game courtesy of a 1-all draw.
Orange then progressed through to the semi-finals as the number one seed and accounted for Sydney (3) with the lone goal from Tiff Atkinson enough to see Orange progress to the final.
But a determined Campbelltown proved too great a hurdle for Orange in the decider.
The girls, led well by Ebony Press, Rach Pengilly, Louise Kempson and Steph Hinds, all heavy contributors throughout the tournament, peppered the Campbelltwon goalkeeper but she held strong, handing her side the 2012 title.
“Their goalkeeper pulled off some miraculous saves,” Pengilly said.
“We’re extremely happy with the way the girls played.”
Orange will be represented in the under 15s girls’ championships later this month and the under 13 girls’ championships in November.
