Sandpiper are Lae hockey champions

Sports

THE Sandpiper men’s hockey club ran out victors on Sunday beating minor premiers Poroman 2-1 in the 2017 grand final of the Lae City Hockey Association competition.
In the women’s grand final Iruba beat Sandpiper 1-0. The women’s match was a tough contest in which the young women from Sandpiper went up against favourite’s Iruba. The match ended in  a draw after normal time forcing the match into the extra time.
Sandpiper proved to be the better team in regulation time of the match, but had goals disallowed by the match referees.
In the men’s game Sandpiper and Poroman were equal in every department until Sandpiper’s Beron Mare scored after a great pass from Kenny Polly for a 1-0 lead.
In the second half Poroman came out strongly with good set plays for Rex Loth to belt the ball past Sandpiper goalkeeper Willie Sota Rawson to equalise 1-1. Spurred on by vocal supporters of both teams the match climaxed with some exciting play. And with the clock ticking towards full time Sandpiper players took the ball into Porman territory.
Sandpiper put pressure on Poroman’s defence and finally reaped their reward with Mare scoring his second goal and the match winner.
Coach Ian Polly told The National that his boys believed in themselves that they could win. “And we won the grand final with the boys heeding the instructions I gave them. Poroman has beaten Sandpiper throughout the season proper but we have changed that  with a grand final win”.