Chronicle EditorMandla Moyo, Sports Reporter
IN preparation for an upcoming tour to South Africa, hockey teams drawn from around Bulawayo have assembled at the Kumalo Hockey Stadium for a two-day invitational tournament being hosted by the Matabeleland Hockey Board (MHB).
Among the schools and clubs taking part in the event are Falcon College, National University of Science and Technology (Nust), Midlands State University, Hippo, Petra, Ivys, Christian Brothers’ College (CBC), Bulawayo Hockey Club and Girls College.
According to MHB media officer, Jerry Sullivan, the invitational tournament is meant to give participating teams some practice before embarking on their South African tour.
“The aim of the tournament initially was to give practice matches of the highest standard to schools that are interested in going on a tour of South Africa. So the board decided to bring in teams from universities and other players from some clubs to up the standards so that the players are prepared when they get to South Africa. It also provides good pre-season training for the national squad,” said Sullivan.
“As it stands, we now have two national teams; one in each group, to give stronger competition to the youngsters. It might be one-sided in some cases, but that is the only way the young players can get there in terms of learning.”
The teams of both men and ladies have been divided into pools and will use pitches A and B for the tournament.
There are eight men’s teams, with Zima men (Red), MSU, Falcon and Petra in pool A, while Zima men (Green), Hippo, CBC and BHC are in pool B.
The ladies’ category consists of Ivys, Girls College, Petra, BHC and Girls College 2 pooled together.
The tournament is being played in a round robin format and the top two teams in each pool will face each other, while the bottom sides will also face off for the classification stage.
The awards ceremony will be held at the venue on Saturday evening. — @mandlamoyo3
Online Reporter