Capt Peter Young, 155 Sig Sqn, (red shirt) stretches to gain control of the ball over an Air Force player at the NSW Inter-service Hockey Championships in early May.

Photo by Bill Cunneen, Army newspaper

By Leut Stuart Cayzer

AN UNDERSTRENGTH Army team struggled against strong competition at the NSW Inter-service Hockey Championships from May 5-7.

Although overwhelmed in both their games, Army team members left with their pride intact, having kept the score margin tight against numerically superior Air Force and Navy sides.

The first men’s game of the championships was between the Army and RAAF.

The Army side consisted of several known, strong ADF players and a number of new faces that were to play a big part in the team’s week.

Both sides started at a frenetic pace with the strike power of Army showing early.

Capt Shane Peachey made several drives in attack that placed the less mobile RAAF defence under pressure. Capt Peter Young controlled the centre of the field well but was placed under immense pressure by the RAAF midfield, which had pushed deep into Army’s area.

One of the new players, reserve SCdt Lindsay Burrows, had played a crucial role keeping the Army defence together, eliminating the fast-attacking RAAF side and feeding the ball back to Capt Young to re-roll into attack.

The pressure from RAAF had began to take its toll with fast breaks down the sidelines cutting into the circle to create opportunities that eventually paid off for Air Force just before halftime.

Army’s lack of numbers and the depth of the RAAF bench would be the telling factor in the second half as Air Force came out to prove its strength.

Sgt David Johnston, the Army Goalkeeper, had been able to make many vital saves, but the sheer number of shots and depth of the RAAF bench prevailed several more times before the end of the match.

The final score of 3-0 gave credit to the strength of the Army defence lead by SCdt Burrows, who earned best and fairest for the match.

The Army team came out to prove a point during its second game of the carnival. The game against the Navy team historically is the liveliest game played each year and this was to be no different.

Navy fancied their chances of success, but with several key players missing, the Army team thought they had a fair chance after their efforts against the RAAF the day before.

After several good drives into Navy’s territory, Capt Young found Cpl Nelson Parlett on the back line where he successfully lifted the ball past the Navy’s keeper to score. This spurred the Navy team into action and the fight for the game was officially on.

Navy responded with several drives into Army’s circle that paid off twice before halftime, setting up for a thrilling conclusion to the match. The second half was typified by a determined Navy team wanting to stamp its authority on the match pitted against a defiant Army defence.

With the Navy two goals up, Army worked hard to create chances in attack, but the final score ended at 3-1 to Navy.

The NSW combined services sides were selected at the conclusion of the week-long event.

The NSW team will compete at the ADF Hockey championships in Albury from June 5-11.

.