Valley A wins int'l hockey tourney

Valley A wins int'l hockey tourney

JAKARTA (JP): The Valley A field hockey team from Hong Kong
grabbed the first division title at the Le Meridien Jakarta
International Hockey Tournament 2001 held at Bung Karno hockey
field on Sunday.

Valley A won the Gold Cup after defeating Jakarta-based STEI
1-0 during Sunday's final of the first division.

The tournament was organized by Jakarta-based International
Sports Club Indonesia (ISCI) and had 12 teams participating from
Hong Kong, Singapore, Makassar, Bandung as well as host Jakarta.

Earlier in the second division, local Dutch club Kombinasi had
a 1-0 victory over Bandung-based Mandala hockey team to capture
the Silver Plate award.

In the third division, Valley B of Hong Kong grabbed the
Bronze Bowl with a 2-1 victory over host team ISCI.

The organizers also named Carlos Sandez of Valley A as best
player.

Ken Allen of ISCI told The Jakarta Post on the sidelines of
the tournament that ISCI had run the tournament since the late
1980s with a brief pause in the late 1990s.

"We had to stop the event from 1997 to 1999 due to Indonesia's
economic and political situation at the moment. Now we expect to
organize the event annually and we hope for more sponsorship to
back our efforts," he said.

"It would be such a waste if we couldn't take advantage of the
excellent astro turf. Most participants love it."

Meanwhile, the State University of Jakarta won the Youth
Hockey Challenge after defeating Trisakti University 2-1 in
overtime last Friday. Both teams shared a 1-1 tie in regular
time. Adri from Trisakti was awarded the most talented player.

Allen said the young players could have better achievement if
they had started playing earlier.

"It would be suitable to start at the age of three or four
years old. But perhaps another problem is they cannot afford the
expensive equipment," he told the Post.

"We'll invite 12 youth teams next year, which is double the
current participants prior to the main tournament." (nvn)