Wits will be no pushovers when Round One of Varsity Hockey gets underway from May 1-4 in Potchefstroom and head into the event with a completely new squad and a determined coach.
Wits have a completely overhauled squad – with just three current players having Varsity Hockey experience. One of those players is Kim Mentor who represented UFS-Kovsies in the 2013 event and she believes Wits will prove they are a team to look out for under the guidance of former National Ladies stalwart – and the best striker South Africa has produced – Pietie Coetzee.
“Pietie [Coetzee] has brought a new dynamic to the team since she became head coach in 2013. Wits was always known as more of a social team but since she has taken over, she has changed the mindset of the players to be more competitive and prove to everyone that Wits are a force to be reckoned with.
“We will be a completely different side to the one that played in 2013 and we will go out there to compete as much as we can and hopefully pull off an upset or two along the way. By the end of this round, we will hopefully have been able to show people that Wits is on the rise,” she told varsitysportssa.com.
The 21-year-old Marketing student described Varsity Hockey as “the best thing ever” as it has taken the sport to a new level by providing a professional setup which allows players to thrive in a stress-free environment.
“It is absolutely amazing that there are people willing to invest in the game of hockey and aid in the development of the game. Varsity Hockey is the best thing that has happened to hockey in the country and I am so excited to part of yet another Varsity Sports event.
“With Inter-Provincial tournaments, the players are usually the ones who need to source their own funding and the stress that causes can have a negative impact on personal performance. But now that we are treated like professionals and get to experience something similar to what happens in Europe and the World League events, there has been a massive improvements in the standard of the game.
“The new crop of players [first years] have been exposed to high quality hockey on TV and have picked up many new skills and techniques by simply watching the game. So it is awesome to see the game grow in the country,” she added.
Wits finished the 2013 edition of the competition in eighth place after losing to NMMU-Madibaz in their final match but will be a team to watch as they look to make a massive improvement on that performance under the guidance of Coetzee.
Round One of the Varsity Hockey tournament gets underway on Friday, May 1 at North West University in Potchefstroom.
