Dalefield in fight to stay in top flight

AGGRESSIVE WORK: Phillip Arkell, left, is one of Dalefield's best.PHOTO/FILE

Dalefield will be defending their spot in the Wellington premier division men's hockey competition when they play top second division side Naenae in a promotion-relegation match at the National Hockey Stadium in Wellington on Saturday.

It's a challenging end to the season for the mainly young and inexperienced Dalefield side who have secured just the one win in 15 matches on the club scene this season and conceded 135 goals while scoring only 14.

Important as the result is, however, coach Dave Blackwood is taking a somewhat philosophical stance leading into the game.

"Obviously we'll be going all out to win but, at the end of the day, what will be will be," Blackwood told the Times-Age yesterday. "All you can do is trust that your best is good enough, if it's not then you don't deserve to be there, do you?"

Blackwood is adamant that bare statistics don"t tell the whole story for his Dalefield squad in 2014.

For while they had secured just the one win - over Northern United - they had competed strongly in numerous other games only to struggle to get the ball in the back of the net.

" I'd hate to think how often we put ourselves in a position to score and didn't take advantage of it, it happened in game after game," he said. "And it wasn't through any lack of effort, it was more inexperience than anything else. We weren't clinical enough in our finishing."

Blackwood said it was also important to recognise the standard of play in the premier division series.

"This is about as tough a club competition as there is ... and I don't just mean hockey when I"m saying that," he said. "Just about every weekend you are meeting teams full of players who have played for national teams at some level. It is tough and it is physical, there is no place to hide."

Another problem for Dalefield is that all too often this region's top young talent are lost to the bigger centres just as they are about to fulfil their potential, either to continue their education or take advantage of the greater range of work opportunities.

"I guess that's something we are always going to be fighting. It would be nice to think we could keep a team together for three or four seasons but it's hard to imagine that happening."

Blackwood said it was usual for premier division clubs to "import" players to strengthen their sides from season to season but there too Dalefield invariably missed out simply because of the distances required to attend trainings and the like.

"When you are the only team not based in Wellington you don't have quite the same appeal, do you?"

Despite all the hassles, however, Blackwood believes Dalefield, and Wairarapa hockey in general, have benefited immensely from them playing in the Wellington premier division competition.

"You only have to think how many young guys have started with us and gone on to play at the top national and international levels, take that opportunity away and you have to wonder how far they would have progressed. We give them something bigger to aim for and that's important."

As to Saturday's match, Blackwood has little knowledge of Naenae but says his "spies" have told him they are a well-drilled team who should provide spirited opposition. Dalefield, for their part, are expected to be at full strength and they will be relying on their more consistent performers like Tane Workman and Phillip Arkell and goalkeeper Mikey Spicer to lead the way and ensure their present status is maintained.