Wairarapa finished third at the national division one women's hockey tournament played in Tauranga last week.
The defending champions lost out to Hawke's Bay and Waikato on making the final by just one point.
This despite the fact they had hammered Waikato 7-3 in preliminary round play.
Coach Andy Wilson said defeats at
the hands of Hawke's Bay and Canterbury B on the Wednesday had come back to haunt Wairarapa later in the week. They were the only losses suffered by Wairarapa all tournament but were enough to keep them out of the decider.
Instead they met Canterbury B for a second time in the play-off for third and fourth and this time it was Wairarapa who prevailed 3-2.
Wilson was happy with the overall performance of Wairarapa with nothing pleasing him more than the progress shown by the younger members of his squad.
"It was a tough week for the youngsters but they did a magnificent job," he said. "It was encouraging for the future, that's for sure."
A standout player for Wairarapa was Wairarapa College student Wendy Hull who this week is attending a national under-16 coaching clinic and will be involved in matches against Queensland under-16.
