HOCKEY
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ORANGE’S over-40 division one and over-35 division two sides both walked away from Bathurst with 2015 Hockey NSW Women’s Masters State Championship titles last weekend after dominating their respective age groups.
Both sides went through their respective campaigns undefeated, and both came up trumps in nail-biting finals against teams they had played out draws with in the preliminary stages of the competition.
A 1-all draw against Far North Coast (1) in the group stage was the only game in which Orange didn’t claim a win in the over-40 division, with the side proving too strong in the final against the same opponent, winning 2-nil.
Orange qualified for the final with wins in the group stage over Newcastle (2-nil), Sydney South (7-1), Dubbo (3-2), Sydney Northern Beaches (3-nil) and Illawarra South Coast (2-nil).
Orange’s over-35 division two side met Nepean in the final, having already drawn (1-all) with the Sydney-based team in the group stages, and produced a strong performance to claim a tight 2-1 win and secure the title.
Orange had five other relatively easy wins throughout the group stage, defeating Manning Valley (1-nil), Wagga and District (1) (1-nil), Dubbo (9-1), New England (5-nil) and Goulburn (6-2) on its way to the decider.
“Everyone was very happy with the results, we expected our 35s and 40s to be real title shots,” Orange spokeswoman Jane Rowlands said.
“All the players played extremely well, and we came out of it without any major injuries which was a godsend considering the weather.
“I think the 40s playing a lot of their games on grass was a real deciding factor, most of the other sides had more games on turf.”
Orange’s five other masters sides all performed with aplomb, despite missing out on their respective titles. They came away with a number of top-four finishes - including the over-55 side, who Rowlands said were “ecstatic” to finish third.
