The horn sounded as The University of Toronto Blues skulked off the field at Varsity Centre. The players looked downcast after the humbling result of their game against the visiting Western Mustangs. The coaches tore into the players, chastising them for missed opportunities and urged them to improve on their effort for the coming weeks.
It may come as a surprise that this game last Saturday was played by the women’s field hockey team. The pervasive feeling of gloom did not come from a loss, but a 2-2 tie. Welcome to the heightened expectations of Varsity Blues women’s field hockey, where anything less than a decisive win is considered a failure. For the defending OUA Champions, there is a culture of winning. Saturday’s result was unacceptable.
The Mustangs scored the only goal of a sun-drenched first half off of a short corner. Western goaltender Meggy McTavish also made a great save on a free shot. Western went into the half up 1-0, as mothers of the Western players squealed with delight in the stands. The second half began with a completely different atmosphere. U of T fans started screaming encouragement, as a drum beat sounded, the tempo increased, and photos were snapped left and right. But most importantly for the Blues, the goal scoring finally began. Even with the renewed energy, there were a number of missed opportunities. Although U of T took the lead, by the time the blinding sun hid and the temperature dropped, the pressure ratcheted up. The Mustangs pulled off a fast break with six minutes left, as a rocket pass found its way to Elsbeth Tate, who tapped it into the net. The score remained tied, as no strokes the field hockey equivalent of a shootout—are played during the regular season. A tie is like kissing your sister, but it looked like the kiss of death for the frustrated Blues.
Blues forward Rianna Sterk was disparaged by the result, but vowed to bring out a positive result from the game. Sterk scored the first Blues goal on an outlet pass almost immediately after the second half began. She explained that each game can be summed up with one word.
“The word of the game was ‘first’. First to score a goal, first to get a short corner, and we weren’t doing any of [those things],” she said.
The word “fast” could also describe the game. “It’s become a tendency of ours to come out slow and we need to fix it,” Sterk revealed. Western did seem to get the lion’s share of chances in a sloppy first half, but the second belonged to skilled players like Sterk.
The Blues expect to dominate every opponent. “Anything but winning by two goals feels like a loss,” Sterk said. “[Western] scored two goals that shouldn’t have gone in.”
Sterk is a leader by example, as her speed in transition can be awe-inspiring. She attributed her goal to a fast start. “Personally, I come out flying. I find that I play better after the half. [In the] first half, we are usually slow coming out […] This week at practice we are going to have to run.”
Blues field hockey coach John De Souza could not hide his disappointment with the tie. “We missed so many offensive chances. We missed three one-on-ones with the goalie. We gave up a lot more chance today than we normally would,” he said.
The tie was especially painful for a visibly shaken Kaelan Watson, a promising fullback born in Richmond, British Columbia, just south of Vancouver. Watson sat out the second half, taken down on a dirty play. Watson, a smallish athlete, dribbled away from a Western player, who then hooked her feet and pulled them out from behind her. Watson fell hard on her neck, kinking her neck muscles. Exemplifying the strength of this Blues team, Watson promised to play in the next game.
Sterk dismissed injuries as an excuse for the loss. “We have more than enough skilled players to sub in for anyone that’s injured.” Instead, she pointed to her team’s overall lack of intensity. “We can’t play seventy minutes straight at ‘full hockey’, for some reason we get in these strange slumps,” Sterk said.
Sterk has the additional incentive to play “full hockey”. “In my next [game], I want to get a hat trick because I want to finish first in the OUA in scoring,” she said, confidently adding, “I’m going to step it up and get a couple of goals and we should dominate the rest of the teams.”
Luckily for field hockey fans, there is a golden opportunity coming up to see Sterk and the Blues take on the entire league. The University of Toronto will be hosting the 2008 OUA Field Hockey Championship at Varsity Centre, Oct. 24 to 26. A friend of the team noted that only a small pocket of fans rushed the field when the Blues won the OUA Championship last year. Hopefully, there will be a larger contingent this year when the Varsity Blues win the championship.
