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Senior Boys Hockey make State Final

The Nossal Senior Boys Hockey team headed to Malvern for the Regional Championships with plenty of determination.

Our first game was against Melbourne High, a side that will be particularly familiar to those who remember last year's heartbreaking 1-0 loss that denied our intermediate team state qualification. This time around, it was a fiercely contested, end-to-end battle played at full sprint. Melbourne High drew first blood from a defensive error, but we responded almost immediately with a brilliant diving tap-in from Trevin, silencing any doubts. We kept pushing and were rewarded when Arjun Parikh struck a hard-fought goal to seal a gutsy 2-1 victory. A statement win that felt like revenge for last year.

Game two was a far more comfortable affair. Prince and Arjun struck early to put Dromana on the back foot, and from there, the wheels completely fell off for the opposition, their composure crumbling as green and yellow cards were handed out left and right. We capitalised ruthlessly, with Sachin and Prince adding four more goals to round off a dominant 6-0 victory. 

The third and final game against Mordialloc was the one that mattered most and we all knew that a win meant state qualification. The atmosphere was tense but electric, and we came out with enormous intensity from the first whistle, pressing hard and putting them under real pressure. Their defence, however, proved stubborn and incredibly difficult to break down. 

For a while, it felt like no matter what we tried, we couldn't find a way through. A well-earned short corner proved the breakthrough, which Prince coolly slotted into the bottom right corner. A second goal from Prince gave us the breathing room we desperately needed, and from there, the entire second half became a masterclass in defensive resilience bodies on the line, every challenge won, every attack repelled. When the final whistle blew, confirming a 2-0 victory and a place at State, the feeling was something I won't forget in a hurry.

Samarth Holla

Year 11 Student