UFS-Kovsies will host the 2015 Varsity Hockey on Monday, May 18 after they claimed a tough 3-1 victory over Maties to knock the defending champions out of the tournament at UJ on Monday.

It was a very tense affair with possession regularly exchanging hands but two first half goals proved to be the difference between the sides despite Maties throwing everything they had at Kovsies.

In the other semifinal, UJ booked their spot in the final after putting in a dominant display in front of their home fans to beat UP-Tuks 2-0.

Goals from captain Kaila Flemming and star striker Lilian du Plessis in the first and second chukkas were just rewards after the home side put in a mammoth effort on defence throughout the 60 minutes for the victory.

UFS-Kovsies 3-1 Maties

Maties made a fast start to the match and placed Kovsies under all sorts of pressure, with captain Erin Hunter running the show. Kovsies slowly started making their way back into the match and took the game to the Stellenbosch ladies. Kovsies found their reward with three minutes remaining in the quarter when Ayanda Gans slapped home from close range after a fantastic initial save by Maties’ Nicole Le Fleur. Kovsies continued to have the upperhand for the rest of the quarter but were unable to add to their tally.

In what was a carbon-copy of the first quarter, Maties dominated the early exchanges but found no reward for their efforts and were punished for their missed chances when Line Malan smashed home a short corner to double Kovsies’ lead. The tense nature of the contest continued through out the quarter and despite having numerous circle entries, Maties were unable to find the elusive goal before the half-time break.

Kovsies came out firing from the restart and went in search of more goals to settle the match but could not get through Le Fleur in the Maties goal. Maties found themselves with a numerical advantage – after Nicole Walraven was sent to the sin bin for a poor tackle – and took full advantage when a Quanita Bobbs shot was deflected home by Heather McEwen with six minutes remaining in the quarter. This set up a tense final quarter with a solitary goal separating the sides.

Maties continued to go in search of their second goal but found themselves down to 10 players when Bronwyn Kretzman saw yellow for a poor tackle. Kovsies took advantage of the extra player when Walraven slapped home an effort off a rebound from a short corner with eight minutes remaining on the clock. She then turned villain a minute later when she was handed her second yellow card of the match – and should count herself lucky not to see red.

Maties were unable to make any further in-roads as Kovsies maintained their winning momentum to march into the final.

Mugg & Bean Star Save of the Match: Nicole Le Fleur (Maties)
Jet Striker of the Match: Ayanda Gans (UFS-Kovsies)
FNB Player of the Match: Cornelle Botha (UFS-Kovsies)

UJ 2-0 UP-Tuks

It was all UJ in the opening few minutes of the match and after two quick attacks they were awarded a penalty. Captain Kaila Flemming stepped up to take it and her pin point low shot went past the UP-Tuks’ keeper to give her side the lead. While UJ dominated the opening stages of the quarter, UP-Tuks did get some fluidity in their game after they got more possession, but their final pass let them done on a couple of occasions with UJ taking the lead into the second chukka.

UP-Tuks started the second spell way better and were nearly rewarded with a goal in the third minute with the powerplay in affect in the opening four minutes. The Pretoria side’s more expensive approach also allowed UJ some glimpses on goal on the counter and they nearly got their second in the ninth minute after some good interplay. The Joburg ladies finished the quarter the stronger and got goal number two a minute and a half before half-time after a fantastic low backhand shot from star striker Lilian du Plessis.

UJ continued where they left off before the break, giving UP-Tuks no time on the ball and attacking with speed in the danger area. UP-Tuks’ struggle for possession in the third chukka meant that they had to live of scraps and when they did get the ball, their technical ability let them down at crucial moments. There was a brief period of the quarter in the seventh and eight minutes when UP-Tuks got three penalty corners in a row, but again UJ handled the pressure well to keep them out. UJ were happy to defend their two-goal lead until the hooter sounded for the end of the chukka.

UP-Tuks got a massive advantage in the fifth minute of the fourth chukka after UJ had two players sent off after green and yellow card offences. With the Pretoria ladies exerting more pressure with their extra players, another UJ player was yellow carded in the eighth minute giving UP-Tuks a golden chance to turn the game on its head. They could not break their opponents defence however, and UJ closed out the game comfortably in the end for the win.

Mugg & Bean Star Save of the Match: Carmen Smith (UJ)
Jet Striker of the Match: Lilian du Plessis (UJ)
FNB Player of the Match: Ashleigh Tarr (UJ)