A last minute Devin Hooper dagger earned GCC a hard-fought 2-2 result with Old Fort in the Men’s Division, in the opening fixture of the Diamond Mineral Water International Indoor Hockey Festival last evening, at the National Gymnasium on Mandela Avenue.
With less than 20 seconds remaining, the veteran Hooper raced into the right side of the arc, following a forward pass from Stephen Xavier, before firing past the advancing goalkeeper Anthony Cole to seal a point.
Prior to the dramatic end, GCC had taken the lead in the 14th minute, as Peter DeGroot netted with a well-placed shot into the lower left hand corner, from inside the centre of the arc, after collecting a Dwayne Scott cross from the right flank.
Their lead was short-lived, as Jason DeSantos equalised two minutes onward, skipping past two opponents while racing into the left side of the arc, before curling a shot past the custodian Medroy Scotland into the right corner. The score remained unchanged heading into the halftime interval. Upon the resumption, Kevin Spencer almost gave GCC the lead in the 23rd minute, as his shot from the right side of the arc, crashed into the right upright.
However, Old Fort took the lead in the 31st minute as DeSantos bagged his second, unleashing a powerful shot from the right side, into the top left hand corner during a penalty corner. Nonetheless, Hooper made his presence felt in the dying moments to secure a point for the Bourda based unit.
Up to press time, Carib Hockey Club of Trinidad and Tobago was slated to face-off with Ball Washers of the USA, at 19:10hrs in the Veteran’s section. Similarly, Hikers was programmed to battle Queens Park of Trinidad and Tobago in the same section at 20:00hrs.
At 20:50hrs, GCC was scheduled to match skills with Carib in the Men’s Division, while Hikers were slated to oppose Queens Park at 21:40hrs in the second match of the same division. The tourney resumes today at the same venue with another six fixtures.
