Nicola Skedgwell goes around the Massey keeper to score Wanganui's opening goal at Gonville on Saturday.
Tech College Old Boys reached a milestone for 2017 as they picked up their first back-to-back wins in Manawatu Premier 1 by holding off Palmerston North Boys High 6-4 at the Twin Turfs on Saturday.
Playing well with their Central Under 18 representatives in fine form, TCOB got out to a 6-1 lead in the final quarter before tired feet lifted off the pedal to let in a field goal and two drag flicks from penalty corners to close the margin.
Only having one reserve available, the visitors also had to play a lot of hockey a player down with two green cards and one yellow.
Coming off a win last weekend over High School Hockey Club and having previously beaten the schoolboys 3-1 at Gonville in May, TCOB were eager to get a quick start but were initially wayward with a missed stroke and two bombed penalty corners.
"We got into our pace pretty quick after that," said coach Russell Burgess.
Entering the second quarter, TCOB hit three straight goals in as many minutes, starting in the 25th minute as the team transferred right and then Ryan Gray dribbled through to slot the goal.
TCOB got straight back to the line with Craig Hillbourne getting consecutive goals from penalty corners.
Patrick Madden got the first two-minute spell for a green card late in the quarter.
After halftime, Tyler Nicoll-Hylton beat two defenders and cleared out the keeper to score the fourth goal in a individual effort.
"He ran tirelessly all day and attacked relentlessly," Burgess said.
The team then built up well from the back to send Gray away to get his double, and could have kept up the momentum except Travis Bayler got the next green card and PNBHS picked up their first goal at the end of the quarter.
Lee Moir picked up a signature "blinder" goal to start the final 17 minutes.
"Off the wrong foot, and timed it into the net," said Burgess.
"To finish the day off, [we] should have been another two goals in the last quarter."
However, the team would lose Matt Ford to a yellow card for the final five minutes of the game while PNBHS, who are still a team of big teenagers, had lifted after their field goal to score off the penalty corners and set up a slightly tense finale.
"Our boys were sitting back on their laurels a bit, but paying the price for not much bench," Burgess said.
"There was an air of confidence with a few goals in the net."
TCOB, who improved their record to 3-1-5, will now head back down to the Twin Turfs for the third straight game this Saturday against second-placed Massey (6-1-2).
They will have to do without the in-form Gray and Madden, who will be away on Central Under 18 duties.
The Wanganui women's team also pulled a double as they went to their second draw in two games, being desperately unlucky to not hold out Massey in the 2-2 deadlock at Gonville.
"They got a penalty corner right on fulltime - unfortunate," said coach Colleen Baylis, who was back on deck with the team.
Third-placed Massey are an original Manawatu Division 1 squad, but they were missing a host of regulars due to the university holiday break.
After surviving an early penalty corner through goalie Jo Bell and defender Loren Mooney, Wanganui got some chances in front of goal through Grace Godfrey and Sophie Redmayne, while Nicola Skedgwell had a chance when tapping the ball towards the left-hand side post.
Kirsty Parsons, Rebecca Bake, and Jacinta Manville all had their shot blocked from a penalty quarter right on quarter time.
Trin McCarthy was away with another penalty corner, then Skedgwell fed Liz Brooks-Mann, who nearly deflected the ball in before the goalie kicked it away.
It appeared Massey would flip the momentum when Rachael Peck worked forward to set up a chance and Shaenie Mavenzi worked it around Bell to score.
However, Wanganui would recover quickly when Skedgwell took a pass and worked into the goalmouth, bouncing it off the keeper's legs and then regaining it to score.
They would then get the lead in the third quarter with the second goal, before Massey barely equalised with time up.
"It's a learning thing, and that's what the girls said," Baylis explained.
"You've just got to be ruthless in front of goal and take those opportunities."
Bell and Baker had excellent games before they also depart on Central duties, while Redmayne did well.
Like TCOB, Wanganui occupy fourth spot on their six-team table with a 1-2-2 record, and can solidify that when they face winless College Development at Gonville this Saturday.