Defending champions Hunter, South Coast and North Coast all struck double wins as the State CHS Girls Championships got underway in Tamworth on Tuesday.
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North Coast were one of the most impressive sides on the opening day, last years runners-up hammering Sydney North 8-1 before defeating hosts North West 5-2.
Their southern counterparts also had little trouble finding the back of the net notching wins over Sydney West 5-nil and Sydney East 3-nil, while Hunter accounted for Sydney South West 4-1 and Sydney East 6-nil.
The loss to North Coast gave North West a win and a loss to start their campaign after beating Riverina 2-nil in their first game.
“The girls started really well,” manager Kim Kelly said.
“They meshed really well together as a team and made use of the opportunities they had.”
She said they had to work hard in defence but were able to shut down the Riverina midfield and limit their opportunities.
Riverina did still have some good moments of attack, and chances, but the defence stifled those.
Against North Coast a poor first half hurt them with the coastal side pumping in four goals in the first half.
“The North Coast attack was pretty slick in the first half,” Kelly said.
“They put together some really good passes, which put the defence under pressure.”
“The girls did come back in the second half.
“The second half was essentially 1-all.”
A bit loose in their marking in the first half, she said their man on man defence picked up in the second half.
Their communication was also a lot better.
Despite the loss, North Wests finals hopes remain alive with the top two from each pool to play off in Thursday morning’s semi-finals.
Kelly believes they can finish in the top two.
The first hurdle to that will be Western at 10.10am on Wednesday morning. They then play Sydney North, who after their first round loss to North Coast had a 1-all draw with Western. Western finished off their day with a 2-nil win over Riverina.
Play continues at the Tamworth Hockey Complex at 9am on Wednesday morning.