HOCKEY
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ST PAT'S gave a glimpse into their future and it looks bright If their 6-3 win over Confederates was any indication in women's Premier League Hockey on Saturday.
A double to Georgie Adams and goals to Sophie Conroy and Ella Menzies highlighted the value of the Saints' emerging brigade as they dealt with another young side.
Confederates have improved markedly this season and their coach Mark Pengilly admitted afterwards that he had targeted the game as one his side could win.
Pat's were simply too clinical, though, and put paid to such ideas.
"It was actually a pretty close game for most of it aside from a period of 20 minutes or so," Pat's coach Kristy Ekert said.
"We went to sleep there for a while leading up to half-time but got a goal back on the break and then at half-time I told the girls that we needed to treat it like we were nil-all.
"But everyone really wanted to be out there today and you could tell that by how well we started."
After having all the early running, Pat's produced the first goal 12 minutes into the game when Adams converted from a short corner and she was in the action again eight minutes later.
Herself and Brigette Evans scrambled for a ball in front of goal after another corner, Adams eventually knocking it home.
They made it three goals in 10 minutes when Sophie Conroy got a timely deflection to an Evans shot.
'Feds were reeling by this stage but showed some heart to drag one goal back through Grace Evans and it looked like they would go to the break trailing 3-1.
In the final 30 seconds before half-time however Evans knocked home a fourth goal from another short corner.
That blow was compounded after the break when Menzies fired home a great reverse-stick shot against the run of play, and with it the result was virtually sealed.
Again, the Orange side showed a lot of fight to stop the onslaught and they gave themselves an outside sniff of a draw with goals to Annette Pakinga and Pippa Mannix to leave the score at 5-3 with five minutes to play.
That was as close as they got.
In the final minute of the match Pat's finished things off with a goal to Kate Hamer, and they will take great attacking momentum into this Saturday's local derby with Bathurst City.
Evans and Adams were superb for the winners while for 'Feds, their goalkeeper Stephanie Hinds was as good as anyone and if not for a series of great saves, the damage could have been greater.
"The girls kept at it and to get it to 2-all in the second half was a good reward but we probably didn't really turn up to play today," Pengilly said.
"We thought we were going along pretty well in the last month or so and we've shown we can mix it with some of the good sides but in this competition if you're off against anyone you will get beaten."
ST PAT'S 6 (Georgie Adams 2, Kate Hamer, Brigette Evans, Sophie Conroy, Ella Menzies) def CONFEDERATES 3 (Grace Evans, Annette Pakinga, Pippa Mannix)