Dominant.
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There is just no other way to describe NSW’s performance at last week’s Hockey Australia Under 21s Championships, where the sky blues took home gold medals in both the men’s and women’s tournaments.
Incredibly both sides did it without dropping a game too, claiming their Australian titles in the most emphatic of fashions.
Both sides had a distinctly central west feel.
Combined, there was eight of the region’s brightest prospects in NSW’s sides, all of whom had a massive influence on that sterling result.
One of those was former Orange Wanderers star-in-waiting Hayden Dillon, who now plays his club hockey in Newcastle and was magnificent across the six-game campaign.
He was joined in NSW’s men’s side by Parkes’ Kurt Lovett and Lithgow duo Sam Gray and Lachlan Sharp.
Sharp claimed player of the tournament too, scoring four goals along the way.
Dillon and his side pushed through the preliminary stages of the tournament with relative ease, defeating Tasmania (8-1), Queensland (4-3), South Australia (11-1) and Western Australia (2-1) to top their pool.
The sky blues faced Victoria in the semi-final, winning 2-1 and setting up a State of Origin-style decider showdown against Queensland.
From the outset, it looked like NSW would romp home.
Dillon’s side shot to a 3-0 lead after just 25 minutes thanks to a Blake Govers double and another goal from Isaac Farmilo.
Then the maroons switched on.
The two sides traded goals in the third quarter and NSW led at the final break 4-2.
The maroons battled hard in the final quarter but left their run too late, Corey Weyer’s final-minute goal proving a consolation as NSW held on.
Lithgow Panthers prodigy Abby Wilson headlined the sky blue women’s side, she was joined by clubmates Rene Hunter and Andrea Gillard, along with Dubbo’s Emma Corcoran.
Their side was just as clinical on its way to the final, defeating ACT (10-1), Western Australia (1-0), Tasmania (2-0) and Queensland (2-1) in the group stage thrashing South Australia (6-0) in the semi-finals.
Wilson slotted four goals in those five games in a superb showing but Hunter was the star of the show in the final.
Western Australia had eight shots in the final to NSW’s two.
Crucially, Hunter’s side put both of those away while its opposition could only sneak one past her in goals.
Matt Findlay
Formerly a sports specialist, I'm based at Orange and shift between wide-spread range of subjects here and, often, across the entire Central West region of NSW as well. I have almost a decade of experience in the media and marketing industries both here in Australia and internationally, along with journalism I have experience in content strategy, brand development, and digital and social media. Along the way, I've been fortunate to win a handful of media awards and be nominated for several others too.
Formerly a sports specialist, I'm based at Orange and shift between wide-spread range of subjects here and, often, across the entire Central West region of NSW as well. I have almost a decade of experience in the media and marketing industries both here in Australia and internationally, along with journalism I have experience in content strategy, brand development, and digital and social media. Along the way, I've been fortunate to win a handful of media awards and be nominated for several others too.
