A for awesome . . . so far

GIMME FIVE: LOB Masters players Jim Conning and Clive Phelps can’t stop THC’s Tamanay Tuhou from scoring with this backhand shot in Poverty Bay men’s club hockey on Saturday. Tuhou was on the scoresheet five times as THC’s youth overcame the Masters’ experience 11-2. Picture by Paul Rickard

THE YMP men’s and women’s A teams continue to set the pace on the LJ Hooker Turf at Harry Barker Reserve. Both are unbeaten after four rounds of their Poverty Bay club competitions.

They are the teams to beat at this stage of the season and those coming up against them are finding that all too tough to achieve.

YMP women put eight goals past GMC Gold last Thursday night and on Saturday afternoon the YMP men beat Lytton Old Boys A 5-0.

“The YMP match against LOB A got off to a slow start but . . . after that first goal — boom — they were away and LOB A could not keep up with them,” hockey commentator Tony Scragg said.

“The YMP women have started the first half of their matches quite slowly and we saw that again at the weekend.

“But in each game they have piled on the goals as the match has gone on.”

THC men hand LOB Masters a lessonIn other Saturday encounters, THC men handed LOB Masters a lesson in speed and accuracy with an 11-2 thumping, including five goals to Tamanay Tuhou.

“They scored four early goals then we held them out till halftime,” Masters midfielder Scragg said. “But in that second half they just kept coming.

“We scored a couple of goals ourselves and we were pretty happy with that.

“THC, at this stage, are the only team capable of mounting a real counter to the challenge posed by the YMP men.”

YMP B men got up over Gisborne Boys’ High by a solitary goal from Bonny Seymour.

“The game could have gone either way,” Scragg said. “Both sides fought hard for the result. The fitness of Boys’ High came through at the back end of the game but credit to the YMP defence, who held off some spirited attacks.”

Ngatapa women’s team continue developmentBen Holden Fencing Ngatapa women’s team continued their steady development with a 7-0 win over Te Aowera, including four goals to Jamie Humphreys.

Coach Scragg was a happy man.

“The girls played well, eventually, and the result was a fair indication of the run of play. I’m happy with how the girls are tracking at this stage,”

Gisborne Girls’ High and YMP B fought out a tight contest that ended in a 1-all draw — Brooke Willock and Trish Hina swapping goals.

The other noteworthy result from the weekend was GMC Kowhai’s 7-1 whipping of Paikea.

“Kowhai are bringing a new vibe to the competition and it’s very refreshing,” Scragg said. “No one can afford to take them lightly from here on in.”