Hockey: Springfield in upset

Kendyll Peters expresses her elation en route to Hardie & Thomson Springfield's upset 2-1 victory over favourites, ChillTech Old Girls. Photo / John Stone

Hardie & Thomson Springfield have upset ChillTech Old Girls, 2-1, to take the 2015 women's premier title in fighting fashion.

Consistent on defence and with a knack of unsettling Old Girls' attacking links, Springfield kept up with the season-dominant Old Girls side through the first three quarters, before jetting to a 2-1 lead inside the final 10 minutes.

Leaving their run late, Springfield coach Grant McLeod was elated that his exuberant outfit had the mettle to sustain their intensity in the closing stages.

Old Girls' Samantha Polovnikoff was a standout in the thrilling grand final.

"It's been a battle all year with them but we just knew that if we could hang in there we'd have a chance," McLeod said.

"I'm not sure about the heart palpitations during the course of the game, there was a bit of excitement there, but it was a good contest. There were opportunities either end and we hoped that there'd be a good spectacle, and I think that was the case."

Setting the tempo of the match, Old Girls came out intent on playing a fast game.

Striking first, Old Girls' Jess Macalister got her team on the board just five minutes from the end of the first quarter.

A good showing from up-and-comer Samantha Polovnikoff saw her go close several times, however the defensive effort of Springfield was solid.

Leading 1-0 into the halftime break, Old Girls appeared to be executing smoother connections than Springfield.

With both goalies having a busy day at the office, Springfield managed to get one back after several failed attempts.

An Elese Russell equaliser for Springfield in the third quarter levelled the game and lifted the intensity of both teams to another notch.

With the game locked at 1-all heading into the final 10 minutes, Springfield's day got a whole lot better as the drizzle and rainy squalls subsided.

Scoring the winning goal, Springfield youngster Kelsey Eaton put Old Girls on the ropes which they definitely didn't like.

With 30 seconds being a long time in hockey, Old Girls ramped up their efforts downtown in the final minutes and pulled their goalie from the field to add strength to the frontline.

Their last-ditch attempts, however, were left too late.

With less than a minute to play, Polovnikoff spied an opportunity to send the game into overtime but failed to convert.

Missing out on securing a perfect winning record for the 2015 season, Old Girls coach Alan Lints said Springfield's style of play was difficult to counter.

"They play a slow game, they didn't really put too much pressure on us.

"The issue was they converted the chances that they had," he said.

"They put them away and managed to slow the game down.

"They broke us down, and got in our way. We just missed some critical shots, which came back to haunt us."

In the premier women's playoff for 3rd, Whangarei Girls' High School held off Maungakaramea to win 1-0 and secure a podium finish for the season.