Men's Country Week Review

Men’s Country Week 2010 – June 12th – 14th

The 2010 Men's Wimmera Country Week team improved greatly this year by almost making the division 3 grand final at Footscray Hockey Club in Melbourne. The last two Country Week competitions had seen the Wimmera team come dead last, only managing a few goals with barely any wins.

Our first game against the Under 15 Victorian “Lightning” Development Team was a high scoring affair from both sides. The Lightning players had plenty of skills and the legs to run, but backed themselves too much when going one on one causing lots of turnovers. After the first half of the game we had gained 'turf legs' and had settled in to a fast passing game. The final score was 5 – 5, Wimmera’s goal scorers were Stuart Hoffman, Josh Creek, Josh Halsall, Aaron Creek and Jarrod Knoop.

Our second game against Central Victoria saw our passing and attacking plays improve. The Wimmera team is made up of players from different teams that usually play against each other. We had only had about an hour to practice together before the start of the competition. Looking back on the weekend it was obvious that our first two games were our best because we weren't tired from exploring Melbourne’s nightlife. Jarrod Knoop’s two goal haul for the Wimmera team brought them into the lead late in the last half, beating Central Victoria 2 – 1.

The third game saw us go up against Warrnambool for a tough game that ended in a 1 all draw. There were plenty of turnovers, short corners, fast plays and strong defence from both teams which kept the score down. Joel Wilkosz played his best game of the competition by saving multiple and successive shots at the Wimmera goal.

The last game ended in a defeat from the North Central team 3 goals to 0. Being the fourth game in the competition we were very tired and North Central played an excellent attacking and defensive game.

Even though the Men’s Wimmera team are not used to winning many games, Country Week is quite a fun weekend with like minded hockey players from country areas just like the Wimmera. The Wimmera team would like to thank Colleen Halsall and Simon King for their roles in helping to organise the Wimmera Team for Country Week.

The 2010 Men's Wimmera Country Week team:
Joel Wilkosz, Ryan Booth, Ryan Robson, James Terry, Josh Creek, George Nikkleson, Josh Halsall, Brett Tischler, Darren Brown, Aaron Creek, Craig Bowler, Jamie Wardle, Jarrod Knoop, Tristan Knoop, Stuart Hoffman