All eyes will turn to Bloemfontein this evening with the University of the Free State Kovsies women’s hockey team hosting UJ in the final of the Varsity Hockey.
The side stands a good change of handing the University their 3rd major Varsity Sport title in less than two months after topping the table throughout the competition.
Last month the Shimlas won their first ever Varsity Cup rugby title and they followed this up with the Varsity Sevens title a few weeks later in Cape Town.
One cannot forget that Kovsies are also the reigning Varsity Netball champions aftetr clinching the title last year.
The majority of the Kovsies team playing this evening represented the Free State U21 side which lost to Northerns in the final of the IPT which was also played in the City of Roses.
Kovsies coach, Braam van Wyk who is a household name in Free State hockey circles believes that there won’t be extra pressure in tonights match.
"I don’t think there is extra pressure. The only pressure we experience is the pressure of our own goals that we set in the beginning of the year and that is to be the best that we can be,” van Wyk said.
While the Kovsies side hammered the University of Johannesburg 5-1 in their previous match during the round robins, Proteas midfielder Nicole Walraven is expecting a much tougher UJ-side this evening.
"It is going to be a different game, they have stepped up their game as well especially with Lilian du Plessis back in the striker position. She is going to make it a much tougher and much quicker game," said Walraven.
The player received two yellow carded during their 3-1 win over the University of Stellenbosch Maties in the semi-final however, she has been cleared to play tonight.
Along with Walraven solid performances by Tanya Britz, Liné Malan, Izelle lategaan and Cornelle Botha can see the girls in red can run out champions this evening.
Walraven is of the view that their national training camp at the beginning of the year has given them somewhat of an edge.
"The fact that there were four of us at that camp in January, I think it could have helped us lift our level of hockey as well. The exposure that we had made us step up our game and pull up our socks to have a higher standard of hockey," the player added.
Tonight’s final at the Varsity Astro’s will see a new champion being crownded after Kovies knocked the defending champions, Maties out. The side from Stellenbosch who the inaugural title back in 2013.
The championship match this evening gets underway at 18:45.
