By Blair Burns
It was a special day for the Cardinia Storm women’s hockey team as three generations of the Kelly family shared the field together and celebrated a big win over Southern United 2-1.
Jacqueline, Lilly and Merrilyn Kelly were all key contributors in the victory and enjoyed the special moment of playing alongside one another.
Despite an early goal from United, Storm fought back and the young guns in the side stood up to even the ledger.
Coach Zena Nicholas took it upon herself to deliver for her side when it mattered the most and scored both goals in the victory.
Lauren Walsh, Alana Nancarrow and Courtney Gibbons were all influential in defence, starting attacking plays for the Storm.
The Mother’s Day thriller against Southern United fell in Cardinia’s favour and the team now sits in third position on the ladder with an impressive 4-1 record.
The victory not only marked a historic milestone for the club, but also boosted the momentum as the team goes into Pink Round this weekend.
The Men’s Metro 1 team took on Monash Collegians in an exciting top of the table clash as they travelled to Monash University for the match.
Both teams battled hard throughout the day and they couldn’t be split as they finished the match tied at 2-2.
The Collegians struck first blood, but a swift response from the Storm followed as Jean Blignaut found the back of the net from a short corner.
Adam Welcome was exceptional in defence for Cardinia, chopping off long balls and running the defensive half of the field with his strong leadership.
Cardinia soon had the lead thanks to a creative play from Kieran McLellan in the second quarter, but now the test was to try and hold on to the lead.
Cardinia’s left-handed players caused some confusion for the defenders, but the Collegians managed to even the game up in the fourth, scoring their second goal.
As the game neared the finish, things tightened up and both teams had chances to steal the points.
Hasantha Jasinarachchi narrowly missed a shot, while Collegians earned a couple of late short corners but the defence held up, with the match ending in a draw.
In the Men’s Metro 2 side, it was an evenly played contest between Mentone and Storm, however the home team got on top of the contest and Mentone raced away to win 3-1.
As he so often does, Cardinia captain Dan Albrecht led from the front, scoring the sole goal for the Storm, while Zena Nicholas and Harkeerat Singh Oberoi both played strong games.
The teams look forward to the next encounter, eager for more challenging and exciting matches this weekend.
