Under 13 State Championships
Under 13 players from Naracoorte and Tatiara Associations combined to take on teams from Adelaide clubs and other regional associations.
Over the June long weekend players from around the state participated in the 2022 Under 13 State Championships at the Adelaide University Hockey Club. The Naracoorte & District Hockey Association and Tatiara Hockey Association combined to enter an Upper South East boys and girls team in the competition.
Under 13 Girls Results:
Best players:
Upper South East 0 drew Riverland 0
Hannah Harkness, Corrie Taylor, Alice Fry
Upper South East vs Riverland
The first game for the girls was played on the turf against another regional association team, Riverland.
Upper South East spent the majority of the game in attack, with lots of strong passing and great teamwork. Tidy work for the first game that the girls had played as a team.
A solid defence led by Teagan Hocking blocked all attempts by Riverland to break into the circle depriving the USE goalie of a single touch for the game.
Multiple charges into the the attacking circle by Hannah Harkness and Sarah Johns weren’t able to be converted, but great positioning by Kaylee Anderson and Alice Fry created many very close opportunities.
Under 13 Girls Results:
Goal scorer: Hannah Harkness
Upper South East 1 drew Lower South East 1
Best players:
Teagan Hocking, Jada Copping, Ashlyn O’Connor
Upper South East vs Lower South East
Early focus and planning saw a strong drive down the right, starting with Jada Copping and flowing through Alice Fry and Sarah Johns, to finish with a goal from Hannah Harkness after just 5 minutes of play.
Upper South East stayed strong and kept attacking with Ashlyn O’Connor and Emmy Finlayson combining beautifully on the left and Kaylee Anderson making some strong tackles in the centre.
The second half was a bit more even with Lower South East picking up the pace and getting in some shots on goal, requiring Bree Ellis to make some saves to keep Upper South East in front.
A hand injury to Corrie Taylor removed a dominant defender and Upper South East had to play with only 10 players for the next 5 minutes. Lower South East took advantage and managed to slip a goal through despite the solid efforts of Hannah Harkness and Teagan Hocking to clear the ball.
With 5 minutes left to play Corrie returned to the field plugging any remaining holes in the defensive line and keeping the score to an even 1-1.
Under 13 Girls Results:
Best players:
Upper South East 0 lost to Seacliff 1
Emmy Finlayson, Eliza Withers, Sarah Johns
Upper South East vs Seacliff
Under the pump from the start, Upper South East never hesitated despite tired legs in the third game of the day.
Working very hard in the midfield Corrie Taylor and Jada Copping kept trying to feed the ball into the forward line. With Sarah Johns and Hannah Harkness running hard in the midfield it was a struggle to get the ball into the forward line for Kaylee Anderson, Alice Fry and Ashlyn O’Connor to convert.
Going into the second half with no score on the board the tired legs were starting to show. A number of well defended penalty corners finally resulted in a goal for Seacliff.
Upper South East never gave up and kept fighting to keep the ball out of their defence. Not quite able to break into attack didn’t stop Sarah Johns from trying again and again with Alice Fry and Kaylee Anderson staying alert and offering great positioning for the few balls that made it through.
A hard fought game that showcased the determination in all the Upper South East players.
Under 13 Girls Results:
Best players:
Upper South East 0 drew Grange Royals 0
Teagan Hocking, Bree Ellis, Kaylee Anderson
Upper South East vs Grange Royals
A very even game with both teams driving hard into their attacking quarter.
Brilliant feeding to the forwards by Corrie Taylor and Jada Copping saw new-comer Harriet Waters get some good opportunities to set up Alice Fry and Ashlyn O’Connor for shots on goal.
Hard work by Hannah Harkness and Sarah Johns in the midfield tied the Grange players up in knots allowing Emmy Finlayson and Eliza Withers to carry the ball wide and into the forward line.
A few fast breaks by Grange put Teagan Hocking and Bree Ellis under pressure but the dynamic duo had it under control as they consistently thwarted every attempt by the opposition strikers.
A solid performance by all of the Upper South East players resulted in a hard fought draw.
*No action shots available for this match so here are the girls warming up and the boys and girls enjoying their dinner out on Saturday night.
Under 13 Girls Results:
Goal scorers: Corrie Taylor, Hannah Harkness, Ashlyn O’Connor
Upper South East 3 defeated Barossa 0
Best players:
Harriet Waters, Alice Fry, Corrie Taylor
Upper South East vs Barossa
The game started quietly with the girls finding their feet and working the ball around.
Increasing the intensity Corrie Taylor combined with Eliza Withers to force the play into attack earning a penalty corner for their troubles. A straight injection from Hannah Harkness hit Corrie’s stick who wound up and smashed the ball scoring a magnificent goal.
After a bit of midfield play, Jada Copping fired up and worked the ball out to Alice Fry on the right. Alice ran the ball half the length of the field to get the team back into attack. A solid pass across the face of goal saw Hannah Harkness sweep it in for a second goal.
In the second half, Upper South East was ready for more as Emmy Finlayson and Kaylee Anderson took every opportunity to steal the ball from the Barossa players.
A couple of fast breaks saw Harriet Waters, Sarah Johns and Ashlyn O’Connor get multiple shots away without a result.
Never giving up, the midfielders kept the ball forward feeding the strikers in the circle until Ashlyn managed to get enough of her stick on it to knock it into the goal for a third score.
A brilliant team game with all players having an impact. A fantastic match for the spectators to watch.
Under 13 Girls Results:
Goal scorer: Hannah Harkness
Upper South East 1 drew North East 1
Best players:
Harriet Waters, Hannah Harkness, Eliza Withers
Upper South East vs North East
The last game of the weekend saw Upper South East face up to North East.
A lot of midfield play in the first half saw North East blocking Upper South East in every attempt to drive the ball forward. Most of the girls were starting to look a bit tired in their sixth game of the weekend, but kept slogging it out trying to get it through to Alice Fry and Ashlyn O’Connor in the forward line.
A few close calls near both goals excited the crowd but neither team were able to convert in the first half.
The second half saw both teams come out with a bit more determination and North East were able to make the first conversion after getting the Upper South East backline a bit tangled.
A goal down, Teagan Hocking stepped up and started cleaning up in the backline, allowing Corrie Taylor, Jada Copping and Harriet Waters to start driving forward. Some stunning saves by Bree Ellis in goals kept the girls in the game.
A sneaky pass straight down the middle gave Hannah Harkness and Alice Fry the chance they needed and they ran hard to stay in front of the North East defenders. The first shot was saved but Hannah collected the rebound and fired in a solid hit to draw the game.
Under 13 Boys Results:
Best players:
Upper South East 0 lost to Riverland 5
Mason White, Nate Harris, Lachlan Withers
Upper South East vs Riverland
The first game of the weekend kicked off on turf on Saturday morning which saw our Upper South East boys, under the guidance of Coach Gavin Boord and Team Manager Kristy Boord, take on a strong looking Riverland outfit.
Riverland were switched on early and looked set to challenge the USE boys. They continued to push the ball forward, however the Naracoorte/Tatiara defence held up well and repelled the ball numerous times before Riverland finally broke through to score.
Upper South East continued to try and attack and started to utilise the wing well, running the ball wide and finding some space, however Riverland were up to the challenge and were able to continually deny any forward motion from USE.
The Upper South East boys never gave up the fight as Riverland were able to score further goals and run the game out to record a solid 5-0 win.
Under 13 Boys Results:
Best players:
Upper South East 0 lost to Lower South East 5
Toby Boord, Henry Fry, Thomas Reekie
Upper South East vs Lower South East
Next up, the Upper South East boys were set to take on Lower South East on the grass surface.
The game started very evenly with USE moving the ball well, creating some great space and team play. The opening 10 minutes of the half was a hard fought affair with USE moving the ball forward, unlucky not to score on a couple of occasions.
Lower South East seemed to step their game up to the next level and began to attack their goals with some great goalkeeping from Upper South East keeping the score at 0-0. The attacks from LSE kept coming and a certain goal looked imminent as it flew past the goalie, only to be met by a diving Toby Boord who saved the ball on the line!
It wasn’t long though before LSE were able to find the back of the goals and scored the first goal of the game. Half time came and saw the score at 1-0.
The second half saw Lower South East awarded a penalty flick which they were able to convert to kick off their second half. The USE boys again found their backs against the wall as LSE charged hard at their circle and were able to score further goals, with the final score sitting at 5-0.
Under 13 Boys Results:
Goal scorer: Henry Fry
Upper South East 1 lost to Seacliff 3
Best players:
Toby Boord, Harrison Andrews, Seth Gale
Upper South East vs Seacliff
With Upper South East still chasing their first goal of the tournament, they were next up against Seacliff, again on the grass surface.
The game looked to be pretty evenly matched and started with a quick bolt from Seacliff who moved the ball down the field quickly and were able to score the first goal of the game, soon followed by their second.
The Upper South East boys found their groove and the midfield were moving the ball well from defence through to the forwards. The USE team were able to earn themselves a couple of penalty corners through great team play and persistence, but the Seacliff defence held strong.
Finally it was time, as Upper South East worked the ball forward again, and after some fantastic ball movement and determination, they were able to score through Henry Fry to the absolute delight of their supporters!
Seacliff were able to add one further goal to their tally which saw the final score stand at 3-1 to Seacliff.
Under 13 Boys Results:
Best players:
Upper South East 0 lost to Grange Royals 2
Mason White, Thomas Gill, Harry Martin
Upper South East vs Grange Royals
The first game on Sunday saw the Upper South East lads take on Grange Royals in cooler conditions than the previous day!
The boys from Naracoorte & Tatiara, came into the game with much belief after yesterday’s strong showing (and goal!) against Seacliff and carried their positive attitudes into this game also.
In what was a see-sawing affair, the ball moved from end to end with both sides desperate to break through for a goal.
It was Grange who scored first to give themselves the upper hand, however Upper South East continued to push hard. The game continued to be played out in tight conditions however Grange were able to add a further goal to their tally, taking home the 2-0 win.
Under 13 Boys Results:
Best players:
Upper South East 0 drew North East 0
Jack Hutchesson, Harry Martin, Thomas Gill
Upper South East vs North East
It was time to pull the boots on for the last time for the weekend, as the Upper South East boys faced off against North East in chilly conditions.
With nothing to lose, and only positives to gain, USE came charging out of the blocks with some fantastic runs forward towards goal. After a few shots on goal, North East were able to keep them scoreless and themselves, work the ball forward to have their own scoring chances.
The Upper South East lads kept up the intensity, tackled well and moved the ball across the field earning themselves a few short corners that they were unlucky not to convert. Half time came and saw the score sitting at 0-0.
The second half was played in much the same fashion – good ball movement, strong defence and attempts on goal, with both sides being denied any score by the other. The pace picked up as the game went on and the crowd could feel something special building as Upper South East ran the ball into the circle time and again, and just as they were about to belt the ball towards goal from a step inside the circle, the final whistle went with the score remaining at 0-0.
A fantastic effort by both of the Upper South East sides who improved with every game they played. A mixture of experienced players and newer players in the teams, it was an absolute pleasure to watch and all of the kids had a fantastic time!
Well done kids, we know you made your coaches very proud with your determination and “never quit” attitudes!
