Otago teams chastened by Canterbury

You could call it a reality check.

You could also call it a crushing defeat.

Whatever you call it, it was certainly a learning experience.

Otago was thumped 11 games to one by Canterbury in the Mainland Cup in Christchurch during the long weekend.

Otago pathways manager Hymie Gill expected the senior and under-18 women’s teams would struggle and he was right.

The senior women’s team lost its opening two games 9-0 and its final encounter 4-0.

The under-18 team women were defeated 9-0 on Saturday, 6-0 on Sunday and 6-0 on Monday.

The senior men’s team was much more competitive but also went winless. It suffered 3-2 and 3-1 losses before compiling a heavier 6-2 loss on the final day of the tournament.

The Otago under-18 men’s side strung back-to-back 2-0 losses together before holding Canterbury to 0-0 on Monday.

It won the shootout to record Otago’s only victory.

"The senior men played pretty well but couldn’t put the goal in and that was our downfall," Gil said.

"They didn’t play as well in the last one and the score blew out.

"The under-18 men did really well, I felt. They were up against one the best under-18 teams in the country.

"But it was far tougher than what we expected for the women. The senior women got better over the three games and were actually starting to play some really nice hockey.

"It was the same for the under-18 girls. We were there for a learning experience."

 

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