Ladies A have been crowned champions of the Women’s Hockey Premier League, scoring a total of 62 goals for…0 against!

This season for the HKFC Ladies A team has been one of great success, having recently just raised the trophy of the Hong Kong Women’s Premier League! This season, we have trained hard and bonded as a new team, which has shown in our results, having won 14 of 15 games!

Let’s go back to hot and humid August, when the Ladies Premier A 2023-2024 hockey season was fast approaching. HKFC Hockey Section was very fortunate to be introduced to many new players and faces, making this season incredibly competitive from the off. The Ladies A team this season certainly had a new look, introducing players from different teams in Hong Kong and from across the globe! We welcomed Sze Sze Chuen, Yi Man Chan, Ika Lo, Siena Poulton and Maisie MacDonald. This meant that the lines of defence, midfield and forward were presented with brand new players, with varying styles of play, making it an overall new dynamic across the pitch. As a team, we had to learn about one another, communicate and adapt in order to create a cohesive, winning unit.

The league started in October with a nail-biting match against HKFC Ladies B’s. Despite the friendly faces, this is always a competitive and tight game! No doubt we were all apprehensive before our first game together as a new group. However, our hard work in pre-season paid off; a decisive 5-0 win fuelled us with confidence as we progressed onto the next games. What followed was an impressive winning spree, with some notable highlights being a 12-0 win against Phoenix A and 9-0 win vs Bauhina A. This also meant that we had a number of players in our team competing for the top goal scorer title of the premier league. Our very own Captain, Nicola Bruce, scored a great total of 13 goals this season, Tiffany Chan scored 12 goals, and both Yi Man Chan and Leigh Cummings followed closely with 11 goals each.

Despite these high points, there were also some moments which really tested us as a team. In November, we were faced with an extremely tight game against KCC A which resulted in a 0-0 draw. Ahead of our rematch, we knew it would be tough. We knew we needed to play our game; play simple hockey, work hard for one another, be patient and the rewards will come. After some tense moments and a great fight from both sides, Yi Man Chan spotted a crucial opportunity. She took the chance - pushing the ball past the line into the bottom left corner to secure a 1-0 win for HKFC Ladies A, ensuring we stayed at the top of the league table for another week running!

We have also had tight games against Coyetez, another very strong side. We won by a narrow 2-0 scoreline the first time we played them. The next time we played them we won 8-0! This result gave us a great opportunity to reflect on how much we had grown together as a team, and just how good we can strive to be. Of course, a huge factor in our success this season has been our attacking play, moving the ball forward as a team with great intensity and momentum resulting in some fantastic goals scored throughout the year. However, it must not go unnoticed that our defensive play has been equally as strong. Our amazing Goalkeeper, Ange Mok, did not concede a single goal this season, being the only goalie in Women’s Section to have achieved this!  

Also a special mention to our Hong Kong National Team Players Tiffany Chan, Yi Man Chan, Katy Mountain and Yammi Chui who played in the Asian Games back in October. Together with Sze Sze Chuen, they were able to capture the champion in the recent 7th Women’s Hockey Invitational Tournament on our home turf. After Christmas, we welcomed back Nikki McLucas after giving birth! We were so pleased to have her back and she added so much to the team for the second half of the season, helping to attack the forward line!

A huge thank you must go to our leavers. Julie Groos will be returning home to Germany and Siena Poulton has earned a hockey scholarship for a boarding school in England. The Ladies A will miss you hugely, however we couldn’t be happier for you! We wish you every success and we can’t wait to keep in touch and hear all about your news. Your new hockey team will be very lucky to have you!