Michaelhouse kicked off their season with a thrilling 5-4 home win over Northwood on Wednesday in an entertaining encounter that had spectators on the edge of their seats in anticipation of a twist in tail until the final second of play.
At Durban High School (DHS), the hosts engaged in a humdinger of a contest that ended in a pulsating 2-2 draw with Maritzburg College.
Michaelhouse’s victory was a wonderful start for coach Nick Bérichon’s charges, who looked like a more organised unit when compared to their start to the 2024 season.
“Last year was difficult for the boys because it was my first season, and the team was trying to adapt to a new system. This time around, we had time to work on the technical aspects of the game in the preseason,” Bérichon told SuperSport Schools Plus.
Northwood fell behind in the first half and found themselves chasing the game from that point. In the early exchanges, the sides looked evenly matched, but the visitors, while chasing an opener, were caught out on the counterattack.
Bérichon’s side took the lead through Henry Yeadon in the fifth minute of the first chukka and while Northwood was trying to regroup Michaelhouse struck again, less than a minute later, this time through Gordon Deutscher. That one-two punch left the Knights shell-shocked.
Buoyed by their lead, Michaelhouse was in the ascendency and they enjoyed the lion’s share of possession for a spell, which led to their first short corner of the match six minutes later.
The hosts almost converted it but were denied by excellent defending from Northwood on the near post. Unfortunately, for the visitors, they didn’t clear the ball far enough and the hosts piled on the pressure. They were rewarded with a goal when Deutscher fired in his second and Michaelhouse’s third.
Northwood was down but not out. Coach Justin Collins’ charges played disciplined and controlled hockey that was in contrast with the scoreboard. They pulled a goal back in the final minute of the quarter, with Luc Boyall scoring from a penalty corner, to go into the break trailing by two goals. That scoreline remained unchanged through the second quarter.
Northwood’s tireless hunt for a second goal reaped rewards in the third chukka. They found the back of the net when a sweeping move started by Ethan Schultz was neatly finished by Caleb Phipson. However, their joy was short-lived.
Michaelhouse launched a foray into the Northwood half immediately after conceding and the venture resulted in a short corner. Henry Love converted the opportunity to restore the hosts’ two-goal lead.
“We didn’t close out the match properly. This is something that we need to work on moving forward. We have to be more compact defensively,” ‘House coach Bérichon said.
The hosts thought they had the contest wrapped up when they found their fifth goal through Henry Love. It wasn’t the cleanest of strikes, but it did the trick.
The three-goal cushion lasted until the final seven minutes of the encounter when Luc Boyall pulled one back for Northwood to make it 5-3.
Luke Allen was a threatening presence in the Michaelhouse half, and he rattled the home team’s confidence when he netted Northwood’s fourth goal of the game with two-and-a-half minutes left in the contest.
Michaelhouse, though, held onto their one-goal lead as time wound down.
At The Coliseum, at DHS, the Horseflies welcomed Maritzburg College, who had lost three players to illness in the lead-up to the game.
Through most of the first half, the sides were inseparable. Then, College broke the deadlock four minutes before the halftime break through a brilliantly taken short corner.
Coach Keegan Hezlett’s DHS team toiled through the third chukka and got their reward deep into it. Like Maritzburg College, their goal came from a short corner.
With nine-and-a-half to play, the hosts snatched the lead, scoring with a brilliantly deflected shot from a long 30-metre pass.
College responded well and launched wave after wave of attacks on the DHS goal in their quest for an equaliser. Hezlett’s charges replied with salvos of their own in a quest for a two-goal cushion.
Coach Mark Sanders’ College side was relentless in their pursuit of a second goal, however, and refused to give up hope. They fought until the final second of play when they earned a penalty corner. Once it was over, the game would be done.
Knowing a share of the spoils depended on their execution of the set piece, College made full use of their opportunity by brilliantly pulling off a zigzag variation to grab the equaliser and make it 2-2.
RESULTS
Michaelhouse 5-4 Northwood
DHS 2-2 Maritzburg College
Die NWU Prestige-reeks het die afgelope naweek weer netbal van die hoogste gehalte gelewer met Zwartkop en Heidelberg Volkskool wat die meeste oorwinnings behaal het, terwyl Montana en Marais Viljoen feitlik ewe veel wedstryde gewen het.