Techno recruit in good form

GAME ON: Wanganui's Haley Mallinder moves the ball for the NZ Senior XI against NZ Maori's Tamara Dudley at the Hawke's Bay Festival of Hockey last week.PHOTO/PAUL TAYLOR A-HBT15134602

THE Tech College Old Boys women's team, known as Techno, will have their latest recruit in solid form as Haley Mallinder tasted success with the New Zealand Senior XI at Hawkes Bay's Festival of Hockey last week.

Mallinder was chosen for the squad after being named in the tournament team at the National Senior Tournament in North Harbour last December, which the Wanganui women's representative team attended for the first time in seven seasons.

At the festival, NZ Senior went through the round robin unbeaten against NZ Maori, NZ Indians, a Hong Kong team, and Hawkes Bay Affiliates - which was made up of former Black Sticks and current national age group representatives.

They then met NZ Maori again in the final and won 3-1 at Park Island in Napier.

"Whoever did the selection of the team was very [astute] because the team was very even, there was no individuals," said Mallinder.

"It wasn't like seven girls from one region. We were from completely different ends of the country - there was two girls from Gore."

As the Manawatu Division 1 competition gets underway this coming Saturday, Mallinder has transferred from Collegians to join Techno, citing their family orientated club being good for a mother of two.

The challenge for both Collegians and Techno in the Manawatu women's competition and the new-look TCOB's men's team in their grade will be trying to get back into the top four after all three missed the championship semifinals in a disappointing 2014.

"I think we're back in the building stages, to be perfectly honest," said Mallinder.

Sarah Reid returns to Wanganui after playing at Canterbury NHL level, while another Collegians player in Amelia Standing joins Techno at goalie.

Standout goalie Melissa Hylton, who played in the Oceania Pacific Cup in December, has to fit this season's games around work so will be a field player when available.

Formerly a Taranaki representative and now based in Palmerston North, Hayley Ross also joins the team, which will be coached by Taranaki's Mark Lyles, who has played and coached at Central level, including taking the Wanganui team to last year's National Senior Tournament.

Jan Dixon will again coach Collegians, with a few senior players returning to the sport, along with the latest crop to come out of secondary school.

One bright spot for the local teams is that Manawatu Hockey have arranged the competition draws so that both the TCOB teams play one after the other on each weekend, which will give them the chance to provide sideline support on away trips.

Entering an expanded eight-team competition with the arrival of Hawkes Bay in the Manawatu League, the TCOB men have introduced more of a top-down structure in the form of new manager Ian Williams and coach Colleen Baylis.

Baylis assisted the team when available in 2014 and and ran the dugout for player-coach Trent Williamson.

"She was pretty much the coach last year," Williamson said.

Importantly, given the stumbles of last season, TCOB have added depth by gathering an extended squad and most crucially a couple of recognised strikers, overall being a mix of senior players and new high school bolters.

"I reckon we've got a good chance," Williamson said.

"Hawke's Bay are in our league and they've got a good team, it's basically their rep team.

"We've got 16 players to give the rest of us old fellas a break.

"I'm eight years older than the next person in the team.

"We can change our gameplan halfway through ... change things up from the sideline."

Callum Wilbur, Matt Ford, Ryan Balsely, and Matthew Perry are seniors, while goalie Andrew Thomas has returned from Australia, Bryce McKenzie comes back full-time, and Chad Warner can play "on and off".

While the Manawatu League starts properly this weekend, the teams have already been playing two games on Saturday for the past two weeks in the HMI Cup.

Last Saturday, Techno had a 5-1 loss to College, then were narrowly beaten 1-0 by PNGHS scoring a late goal.

Collegians, have defaulted their games.