Security cannot be breached

In the Junior section of the recent Bahrain Open Hockey 7s tournament, Public Security were crowned champions after dominating most of their opponents, except in their group-match against the Year 5 students of St Christopher’s School, who were unlucky to concede a last minute equaliser in an exciting 3-3 draw.

However, despite the youngsters battling hard and putting their bodies on the line, a spirit embodied by the valiant Oliver Bloodworth, they were unable to repeat their performance in the final and went down 4-0.

The Public Security side, comprising several players aged 14 or above, put their superior size and strength to good use, over-powering all in their path. With the exception of their first match, Public Security won by at least five goals in all subsequent games in the group stage.

St Christopher’s Year 5, the youngest squad in the competition, exceeded all expectations. Josh Cornelius and Oliver formed a formidable barrier at the back, while the intelligent runs and dribbling of Aiden Shretta and Sahil were a constant threat. George Axtell’s strong presence in defence and attack and Cameron Gallagher’s jab-tackling was a frustration for all opponents, while Sean Mollison’s predatory instincts helped secure vital wins against bigger and stronger opposition.

Ironically, it was the younger members of the Bombay Boys that were prevalent with a particularly notable performance coming from Marvin Pereira, visiting as a guest from India, whose individual silky skills saw him notch a number of high-quality goals. He was helped by intelligent link play with David Vaz who together ensured the Bombay Boys were always challenging.

The St Christopher’s Year 6 team, led by the effervescent running of captain Rex Tinsley and fearless battling performances from Tom Griffiths, Jackson McNaught and Llewelyn Forward saw them gain the notable scalp of their Year 7 counterparts while narrowly succumbing to the Bombay Boys who relied on a last-second strike to win their encounter.

Abdullah proved a resilient last line of defence for Year 7 with a number of goal-line saves while captain Ahmed was also notable for some strong runs.

Final Group Standings

Pos     Team          Pts    Goal Diff

1.  Public Security  10         +16
2.  St Chris Yr        5          10 +7
3.  Bombay Boys    7         -3
4.  St Chris Yr 6     3         -9
5.  St Chris Yr 7     0         -11