Junior Country Week Results

Success for the Wimmera at Victorian hockey championships
More than seventy players represented the Wimmera region in the annual Victorian Junior Country Hockey Championships held in Melbourne over the first weekend of the school holidays (Saturday 28 June and Sunday 29 June 2008).
The Under 15 B Boys team were successful in winning their division, after defeating a very physical Warrnambool side 3-1 in the final. Captain James Klinge led the charge to regain the lead, with the team trailing 0-1 at half time; scoring from a penalty stroke. Nathan Alexander sealed the game with a deflection into goal from a wide pass into the D. Players had won all four of their games in the lead up to the final, with Jordan Clark scoring an amazing 6 goals in the first match against Ballarat.
In other matches, the Under 15 C boys team finished third overall in their section before going down to the Grampians 3-1 in the playoff for third and fourth. Sean Creek, Bradley Alexander and Marcus Williamson were key players in this team.
The Under 13 Boys team had many players who had never seen a synthetic turf pitch and some who had only played one game of full field hockey. These boys experienced mixed success in their games and ended up in fourth place within their pool. Sam Bone, Michael Pohlner and Nick Crowhurst were key players for this team.
Both Under 17 teams played at the State Hockey Centre on the Sunday, and both teams lost their final game in a penalty shoot out. This means that the team that scores more goals after an even number of Penalty Strokes wins the match. Monique Schwedes and Michelle Farinha fought hard for the Under 17 Girls, while Tom Cook and Jarryd Bendall contributed well for the Under 17 Boys.
Although the Under 15 Girls team did not experience victory, they enjoyed the challenge of playing on turf for the first time. Roey Sanders was solid in defence and first-time goalie Emily Hicks, put in a top performance.
All teams were well supported by a large contingent of parents and relatives who made the trip to Melbourne to encourage the players.
- Junior Country Week coordinator Sally Klinge

Results

Under 15 Girls
Wimmera 0 lost to Kerang 4.
Wimmera 1 lost to West Gippsland 5 (Kelly Smithyman)
Wimmera 0 lost to Sunraysia 1.
Wimmera 0 lost to Warrnambool 5.

Under 17 Girls
Wimmera 0 drew with North Central 0.
Wimmera 0 lost to Sunraysia 5.
Wimmera 1 lost to Glenelg 3 (Monique Schwedes).
3rd and 4th play-off
Wimmera 1 lost to North Central 2 (Alannah Creek)

Under 13 Boys
Wimmera 2 d Warrnambool 1 (Brandon Rich 2)
Wimmera 0 lost to West Gippsland 7
Wimmera 1 lost to Grampians 3 (Sam Bone)
3rd in pool B and 3rd in pool C play-off
Wimmera 0 lost to East Gippsland 1

Under 15 Boys B
Wimmera 7 d Ballarat 1 (Jordan Clark 6, …)
Wimmera 2 d Warrnambool 0 (…).
Wimmera d Kerang
Wimmera d Sunraysia
Final
Wimmera 3 d Warrnambool 1 (James Klinge, Talor Dent, Nathan Alexander)
Overall Placing: First

Under 15 Boys C
Wimmera 2 drew with Grampians 2 (Brady Newcombe, Jamie Guerin)
Wimmera 0 lost to West Gippsland 7.
Wimmera 0 drew with East Gippsland 0.
Wimmera 3 d North Central 2 (Bradley Alexander, Marcus Williamson, Jamie Guerin)
Playoff for 3rd and 4th
Wimmera 1 lost to Grampians 3 (Jayden Newcombe)
Overall Placing: Fourth

Under 17 Boys
Wimmera 0 lost to Kerang 2.
Wimmera 4 d Maryborough 0 (Tom Cook 3, Nathan Jorgensen)
Wimmera 1 drew with East Gippsland 1 (Adrian Creek)
Semi Final
Wimmera 4 lost to Maryborough 4 (Nathan Jorgensen, Tom Cook, Adrian Creek, Beau Lovett)