Inline hockey: Lightning close to strong weekend

The Wanganui Lightning United in their big win over Capital Penguins in the early afternoon game on Saturday.

The Wanganui Lightning United inline hockey team were left to rue a slow start to their home leg of the Senior A League tournament over the weekend.

Lightning United were the only team able to hang with the Rimutaka Renegades, holding them to a 4-4 draw yesterday morning.

However, Lightning United had dropped their first match to the Levin Rebels 7-2 on Saturday morning at Jubilee Stadium.

Renegades won their other games, including beating the Rebels.

After the loss to the Rebels, Lightning United rebounded by hammering the Capital Penguins 13-3, while beating Tawa Typhoons 7-2 in the late afternoon game.

The draw with the Renegades followed on Sunday morning, while Lightning United wrapped up the tournament with a 8-2 win over the Napier Sharks

"It was hotly contested really. Not much between the top four teams," said club secretary Sandra Ashworth.

Ashworth said because the team's specialist goalie was away on an overseas holiday, the team rotated three or four players into the position throughout the five games.

Kieran O'Donnell was the leading goal scorer with 14, while brother James scored nine and Matthew Ashworth got five.

The team will travel to Wellington in two weeks for the third leg of the tournament, before finishing in Levin on August 5-6.