Hockey: Belgian reps add hint of extra flair

Goals are always memorable but Northland hockey import Gauthier Boccard's golden goal in the Belgian national final has become an internet sensation.

Boccard's astounding length of the turf dribble evading five defenders to score in the 2012 final has been a huge hit on YouTube and teammate Alexandre de Paeuw said "nearly everyone" has seen it.

"We won the championship last year with Gauthier's golden goal which was sensational because we only had 10 men on the field," de Paeuw said.

The Belgian internationals are here to play for Northland in this year's NHL competition. They play for the Waterloo Ducks, who are looking to make it three national titles in a row after defending their title again this year.

They are enjoying their stay in New Zealand but say the level of hockey is very different from what they are used to.

"All the teams in Belgium are very close. Here it's not really the same with some teams far ahead of the others, like Auckland," he said.

Northland was handed an 8-0 drubbing by Auckland in the opening round on Saturday before playing North Harbour in a much closer match on Sunday.

"We were much better in the second game, we played very well in the second half to come back to 1-3 and we were unlucky not to make it 2-3," he said.

Northland's comeback eventually stalled and Harbour ran out 4-1 winners.

De Paeuw said the focus will be on the midfield and defence in the games to come.

"If we can play as well for 70 minutes as we did in the second half on Sunday then we can expect to win some games," he said.

Coach Dave Adams says the Belgians give the side some extra flair in a competition that is much harder this season with the Black Sticks available to play. Northland's only Black Stick, Shay Neal, is once again sidelined through injury.

De Paeuw has visited New Zealand with the Belgian team before but he and Boccard are enjoying the opportunity to see more of the country from their Ruakaka base this time around.

* Search "boccard youtube golden goal" on Google or watch Boccard's sensational Golden Goal here.