Competing teams include Maties, Rhodes, UFS-Kovsies, UP-Tuks, UJ, UCT-Ikeys, NMMU and WITS.
Saturday’s opening matches got off to a thrilling start with UFS-Kovsies securing a 2-1 victory over NMMU’s Madibaz and UP-Tuks clinching a 2-0 victory in their match against UCT.
UJ and Maties showed they would take some beating this weekend with both teams securing strong wins over their opponents.
UJ dominated Rhodes in their opening game to win 7-1, with Maties securing a 5-1 win over the Wits home team.
However, the second day brought with it a day of draws, with all four matches ending deadlocked at end of play proving just how closely-fought this year’s Varsity Hockey season will be.
The first two matches of the day saw UCT vs. Rhodes and NMMU’s Madibaz take on the home side, both ending in a 1-1 draw. In the second half of Sunday’s play, UJ fought hard to come back from UFS-Kovies’ 2-0 lead to ultimately tie at 2-2.
This was followed by some hard and impressive play from both Maties and UP-Tuks with the final score of 2-2 an accurate reflection.
The non-stop and high-tempo action carried on throughout on Monday.
A hard fought battle in the opening game saw UJ clinch a late victory against UP-Tuks. Clinton Panther, national star and UJ player who proved pivotal throughout, scored a late goal to take his side to a 3-2 win.
However, whilst Maties may have gotten off to a strong start on Saturday, they were no match on Monday for UFS-Kovsies. The first team to score in a powerplay this tournament, Kovsies showed great defensive action against Stellenbosch to take home a 3-1 win.
NMMU’s Madibaz got off to a convincing start with stunning goals by Ignatius Malgraaf and Grant Kapp to give their side a 2-0 lead by the end of the first chukka.
Madibaz went on to ultimately secure a dominant 5-0 victory against Rhodes, but it was the final match of Monday’s play which proved disappointing for the home fans.
UCT, who scored against the home side within the first two minutes, went on to win with an impressive 4-2 bonus-point victory against Wits.
Aired live on SuperSport Channel 210, the Varsity Sports concept is designed to capture the essence and excitement of university sport, where the best can test themselves against their peers.
The second round of Varsity Hockey will roll out from 10 to 12 May 2014 in Stellenbosch and Bloemfontein.
The programme includes:
STELLENBOSCH
10 May 2014
Maties vs UCT at 14:00
UJ vs NMMU at 15:45
11 May 2014
Maties vs NMMU at 17:00
UJ vs UCT at 18:45
12 May 2014
NMMU vs UCT at 17:00
Maties vs UJ at 18:45
BLOEMFONTEIN
11 May 2014
Wits vs Rhodes at 14:30
Kovsies vs Tuks at 16:15
12 May 2014
Rhodes vs Kovsies at 14:30
Tuks vs Wits at 16:15
Varsity Sport
