“It’s a win that feels like a loss”.
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Orange High School coach Pete Shea didn’t mince his words after his side demolished Bathurst in Friday afternoon’s Astley Cup hockey fixture, winning 4-0 in what he called the Hornets’ “best performance of the year by far”.
The problem with that victory is that it wasn’t quite enough, not in terms of the overall tournament anyway.
Orange High went into the clash – the main event, at Orange Hockey Centre – trailing Bathurst by 76 points overall.
As a result, the Eva Reith-Snare-led hockey side needed to win 7-0 to earn an overall points split big enough to make up that deficit and complete a miracle, come-from-behind win in the 2018 competition’s second tie.
A 6-0 win would’ve been enough to salvage a draw overall, and either result would’ve kept Orange High’s hopes alive in the third and final tie at Dubbo next week.
But it wasn’t to be, the 80-20 split overall was enough for Bathurst to win the tie 408-392.
“It’s tough, that one,” Shea said.
“It was a great game, a great performance and as I said to the girls, it was probably our best performance of the year but it’s a win that feels like a loss, considering the overall competition.
“We had a lot of chances and we took a lot of them, Eva was great in that game and Kathryn Cox in goal was incredible as well, we just had a little bit too much to do.”
Reith-Snare was phenomenal as usual in the win, scoring a hat-trick that takes her Astley Cup goal tally to 10 from her last three games while Cox was undeniably the best on ground.
She did everything she possibly could to hold Bathurst out and did, even denying Western striker Sophie McCauley one-on-one four times throughout the clash.
The two sides traded chances in the early stages of the game but as the clock ticked on the Hornets begun winning the upper hand, earning a number of short corners. The third of those ended with Reith-Snare’s first goal in the 21st minute.
Sarah Barrett produced a stunning finish just three minutes later to give Orange High a 2-0 lead and more than a glimmer of hope, but the Hornets couldn’t capitalise on a number of chances late in the half and held that two-goal lead at the break.
As Cox continually denied Bathurst and the Hornets continually won short corners, it looked inevitable the home side would add more to its tally.
But the Hornets couldn’t, not until the 53rd minute – seven from full-time – anyway.
Reith-Snare scored her second from a stroke at that point and then completed her hat-trick two minutes later, sparking frantic questioning of whether a 4-0 win would be enough.
It wasn’t, although Bathurst coach Jacqui Hood admitted to a few nervy moments in the last four or so minutes.
“I was a bit nervous but the girls just played so well to hold them out, that was our plan the whole time because they do have a very, very good side, we knew they were going to be very tough,” she said.
“They slipped a few in there but it’s the result we needed, backing up as the last game after two big days of sport is a big effort as well, that is a big ask, particularly when they knew it was coming down to them.
“I just need to say that Orange High’s sportsmanship throughout the entire tournament was just beautiful. It doesn’t matter who wins, the spirit of the Astley Cup is always here.”
- ORANGE HIGH SCHOOL 4 (Eva Reith-Snare 3, Sarah Barrett) def BATHURST HIGH SCHOOL 0