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Swingin’ Spring League

12 May 2017
Emma M, Hope ‘19, Photo & Article
Unbeknownst to many Brentwood students and faculty, there is a fun way to play field hockey in third term: it’s called Spring League. This is the first year that students have had the option to participate in Spring League inside the athletics timetable, where members of the team practice twice a week and have a game every Tuesday night. Furthermore, unlike many of the sports at Brentwood, we play on a team comprised of both boys and girls.  Consequent of our diverse team, both with gender and skill level, our coach Ms. Whitney has had an interesting task in preparing us to compete against some top-notch teams in the Cowichan Valley.  After a meager few practice to organise our positions and teach our players the basic rules, we were thrust into the strenuous environment of real games. Every week we exercise some enthusiastic rigor in an attempt to make a dent in the opposing side’s defence; what we have in determination, however, we lack in technique. So we keep pushing at practice, developing our stick work, and learning to hit that ball with the strength necessary to penetrate the opposing team’s line of defence.  We are fighting against uphill odds, as the competition we are facing in the Cowichan League is jam-packed with kids who have been playing since they were 6 years old. Since we are playing with a team containing an overwhelming majority of athletes who started playing hockey this year, it is a difficult task to merely score a goal. In spite of this, we fight onwards.  On May 9th, Brentwood (the Red team) played the Orange team in a game that truly tested our wits and stamina. We started the night with an hour-long practice, where we focused on honing our ability to make tight, quick passes, and break the momentum of opposing forwards. Finally, the game began, and Brentwood had the starting ball. Unfortunately, the opposing side was incredibly acute with their stickwork, and it was clear that Red’s defence was going to be truly tested. So test it they did, but the strength of our rivals only increased our valiant efforts to prevent a unbridled slaughter at the hands of these opponents. “Drive! Drive,” was one of the vigorous cries from Mrs. Whitney that prompted our violent labor throughout the game. In the end, we didn’t taste any victory, but we managed to pull through with only a 0-3 loss.  After the game, the team gathered on the bus back to the school, and we discussed our play over fruit cups and potato chips. Despite our lack of triumph, we all agreed that our improvements are definitely beginning to shine, and we can’t wait to contend again next Tuesday!  Emma M, Hope ‘19, Photo & Article

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