Hockey: Maungakaramea take down leaders

Maungakaramea closed the gap on competition leaders Mangapai by getting a 4-2 win over their rivals in the premier men's hockey competition on Saturday.

Maungakaramea player/coach Sam Webb said his team were up for the match, and they looked it as they came out firing in the first quarter.

"We had a really good chat before the game and everyone knew we had to be a bit better this week," he said.

Maungakaramea converted early and held on to the 1-0 lead into halftime.

Mangapai have won the three previous encounters between the two sides and despite two quick Maungakaramea goals at the start of the second half, Mangapai weren't going down without a fight. Stepping up their game, they managed to get one back when Maungakaramea failed to clear on defence.

Webb admitted his side lost their way at the end of the third period.

"We lost track of the game for a little bit but once we had a breather at three-quarter-time we just knew we had to calm down and keep the ball and control the game," he said.

"We still knew we were good enough to run the game and that's what we needed to do."

One goal each in the final quarter brought the final score to 4-2 and pushed Maungakaramea within two competition points of Mangapai on the table.

In the other men's match, Springfield beat Bream Bay United 6-1.

In the premier women's competition, Old Girls put on a dominant performance to beat Hikurangi 5-0 on Friday night.

Whangarei Girls' High School capitalised on a quick start to beat Maungakaramea 4-1 and Springfield beat Mangapai 6-0 on Saturday.