Maties handed Kovsies their first Varsity Hockey defeat when they edged the Bloemfontein side 1-0 in Potchefstroom on Monday.
Kovsies cruised to comfortable victories over NMMU and UCT on the first two days of Varsity Hockey action, but they could not find a way past a highly motivated Maties outfit.
The team from Stellenbosch went down to hosts Pukke on Friday before drawing their match with UP-Tuks on Saturday, so they had a point to prove against the previously unbeaten Kovsies.
There were no goals in a tense opening period, and the decisive blow came at the start of the second period when Maties striker Quanita Bobbs took her opportunity well to put her side 1-0 up.
Kovsies threw everything at their opponents in a desperate attempt to find an equalizer, but they could not get through the resolute Maties defence.
The scorer:
For Maties: Quanita Bobbs
BROADCAST NOTE:
The planned broadcast of the Varsity Hockey matches between Kovsies and Maties and UJ and Pukke had to be suspended, following a technical fault in Supersport’s outcast broadcast van.
Supersport has apologised and will now feature highlights packages of both matches, especially for the fans who couldn’t make it to the North-West University’s astro fields.
The next round of Varsity Hockey matches takes place from 11 – 13 May at the University of the Free State and the University of the Free State. Supersport have now decided to broadcast four of the matches on 13 May (two from Bloemfontein and two from Johannesburg).
All four playoff matches will also be aired live from the University of Pretoria on 20 May.
