Development the big winner as DSG lifts schoolgirls hockey trophy

Diocesan School for Girls went unbeaten during the SPAR Eastern Cape Schoolgirls Hockey Challenge finals at Victoria Park High in Gqeberha to clinch the coveted title.

The SPAR Eastern Cape Schoolgirls Hockey Challenge wrapped up in fine style over the weekend when Diocesan School for Girls clinched the title in a nail-biting final against Pearson in Gqeberha.

The team from Makhanda proved an insurmountable obstacle throughout with their unbeaten run on the fields of Victoria Park making them deserving of lifting the 2024 trophy.

A goal by DSG’s Abigail Holderness, recently called up to the national U17 squad, was enough to seal the deal against the girls from Nelson Mandela Bay.

In all, 45 schools from across the Eastern Cape and Garden Route took part in the Hockey Challenge.

The two-day finale pitted the five regional winners against one another to decide the overall provincial champions.

In the semis, DSG beat George’s York High 2-1 and Pearson downed Queenstown Girls’ High 4-1 to reach Sunday’s final.

Regional organiser of the Challenge Keanon Geldenhuys said the final tournament had been well-supported despite four of the five finalists having had to travel sizeable distances.

“Parents came from far and wide to cheer on their children. The spectators loved it,” he said.

“It’s worth remembering that some of these teams don’t normally have the opportunity to play each other. It’s too far for a school from East London to travel to the Garden Route for a game, for example.”

Geldenhuys said he was particularly impressed with the high standard of hockey that had been on display by teams from the Border and Gqeberha regions this season.

The regional winners gunning for the title at VP were also well-matched.

For example, in the round-robin stage the fancied Pearson outfit only managed a draw against Clarendon High School for Girls in a match of high quality.

This year’s Challenge included an Adopt-a-School component aimed at developing players at less-resourced institutions.

Established schools used the platform to help grow the sport at lower-quintile institutions by offering training sessions, the use of their facilities and donating much-needed equipment.

Knysna High, for example, hosted a hockey day for learners from Chris Nissen Primary and, at the finals, Clarendon donated boots, sticks and balls.

SPAR EC advertising manager Roseann Shadrach said the programme had laid the foundation to be a legacy project.

She said it had the potential to uncover “hidden gems in our region that go completely unnoticed due to their lack of exposure to hockey at this level”.

“We anticipate that this initiative will have a snowball effect and that schools will latch on to it even outside the realms of the SPAR Schoolgirls Hockey Challenge.”

Geldenhuys felt people might not truly understand the value of the event.

“There is an even bigger sense of achievement in the finals because schools are now representing their regions.”

The Adopt-a-School development angle is also “a massive achievement” in the transfer of skills.

“This competition simply can’t be spoken about enough,” he said.

Echoing his sentiments, Shadrach said it had been a “privilege and joy” for SPAR to make a meaningful contribution to the sport.

She termed the success of the Challenge as “astounding”.

“We have been part of this project for eight years in the Eastern Cape. As a brand, we believe that we have enriched communities by supporting the development of schoolgirls’ hockey.”