The October half term saw a strong hockey squad of combined year 11,12 and 13s travel to Malaysia for an intensive 5 game schedule. Landing in Kuala Lumpar the team were greeted with an early morning training session at the fantastic National Hockey Stadium. With just enough time to shake off the jet lag from the 13 hour flight the girls played their first of 2 games against the KL Development Team. After adjusting to a different playing surface in the form of water based hockey pitches and their opposition’s style of play; the girls took control of the game to win 3-1. The second fixture against the same KL development club was a more tightly fought game with the team narrowly losing 2-1.
Following these opening matches, we made our way to Malaysia’s hockey capital of Ipoh. We were fortunate to play in the fantastic Sultan Azlan Shah Stadium which has played host to the highest level of international hockey with its annual mens tournament. The stadium and pitch were a fantastic experience for the girls playing on the same surface as Olympic medal winning teams. Two fixtures against Raja Peremuan Sports School saw the girls grow as a team against some talented and well drilled opposition and were unfortunate to taste defeat in both matches.
To round off the tour we travelled north again to the island state of Penang to play Mutiara Impian School. Having gelled well as a team and acclimatised to the conditions and playing surface the girls put in a gritty final performance, showcasing the progress they had made to win their final match 2-1
As a team the girls were fantastic ambassadors for the school on and off the pitch and made some great strides individual and technically, bonding more and more as a team over the course of the trip. We are very proud of the girls and the way they represented Emanuel hockey.
Mr C MacDonald, Director of Hockey