Taylorian

HOCKEY 53

Hockey Tour to South Africa Last summer our senior players travelled to South Africa to play against some of the world’s best hockey schools in the Cape Town International Hockey Tournament. Our group contained Windhoek Affies from Namibia, Fairmont, WP Invitational, and SACS – the number 1 ranked hockey school in South Africa and eventual winners of the tournament. The 1st XI put in a respectable performance, coming out of the group with two draws and two defeats, giving us the chance to compete with four teams for 13th place. After beating Curro Durbanville on flicks, the team ended an incredible week in Cape Town with a narrow 2-1 defeat against Tier 1 English school, Millfield. The 2nd Team also represented the school in the Evolve section of the tournament and performed well against some other schools’ 1st XIs. Aside from the hockey, the group embarked on a thrilling journey to the famous Table Mountain. There were a few nervous faces as we undertook the steep ascent via cable car, but the view from the top was a sight never to forget – a breathtaking panorama of endless peaks and valleys, and the glistening Atlantic Ocean. After our stay in Cape Town, we set off on a domestic flight to Johannesburg, where we played out last game of the tour against Helpmekaar College, winning on shuffles. We then went on safari and saw a vast array of animals: giraffes, elephants, zebras, hippos, owls, and the most enthralling of them all, lions. A stop in Pretoria preceded the return journey home, and the end of a truly fantastic tour. Tom Ford and Faaris Ahmed (U6th)