International Hockey Festival semis coming up

he penultimate day of the 39th Barbados International Hockey Festival scheduled to play on Friday, at the National Hockey Center in Wildey  has a series of semi-final playoff matches that will feature three of the four defending champion teams.

A new women’s champion will be crowned because the 2023 winners NY Islanders did not field a team this time around. Therefore, the University of the West Indies (UWI) Blackbirds ladies will play Toronto United for the women’s title.

The semi-final will however determine who plays the final for the men’s with Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) hoping to reach the championship match and repeat as festival kings.

During the preliminary round of the tournament which started on Monday, the Guyanese men did not have the best opening match, losing 2-0 to Total Hockey Club (THC) as well as 1-0 to UQI.

GCC recovered quickly and won their next two matches; A Badd Connection (ABC) (3-0) and Barbados Union of Teachers (2-0). They were then held to a 0-0 draw against the Du Badd men.

Slated to play the first men’s semifinal match of the day, it should be an interesting battle on the hockey turf between GCC and rivals THC, also with a strong men’s team.

THC, with four wins, will head into the match feeling confident knowing that they defeated GCC in the early preliminary round of the tournament.

The other men’s semi-final between Du Badd and ABC should also make for a blockbuster exchange. Two of the top club teams in local hockey, bragging rights of reaching the final is at stake for both teams, posting with an array of talent in the lineup.

The Du Badd Mixed team is also in the semi-final and will challenge a strong Hikers squad for a spot in the final. In the second Mixed semis of the day, defending champions Rockets, playing extremely confident up to this point, will hope to keep competitors NY Islanders from reaching the championship final.

Defending Masters champion UWI are scheduled to take on ABC in the semi-final. When two really good teams such as UWI and ABC clash there will be a battle to decide which team will walk away with the rights to the finals.

The other Masters semi-final match features Old and Drag Down Club taking on All Stars, and again there is no telling which of the two sides can reach the final given their exceptional performances in the preliminaries. (AS)