Wits hockey brotherhood
READY FOR ACTION: Number seven,Jaryd Povall and his Brother,number six, stand in front of coach, Mark Sanders.
THE NUMBERS three to seven add a unique aspect to the Wits hockey club.
The men’s hockey squad includes brothers, Jaryd and Matthew Povall and three brothers, James, Craig and Michael Daniels. Between them, they hold three to seven of the 21 jersey numbers in the team.
Coaches views
Do the brothers come as a package, or is it a coincidence that all the brothers were picked for the squad? Wits Hockey coach Mark Sanders says, “They’re all good enough. That is the only coincidence.”
Interview with the two sets of brothers
Wits Vuvuzela spoke to the two sets of brothers and, perhaps naturally, found some rivalry between the sibling groups.“There are only two of us Povalls, so at least we don’t need a team bus to travel to
games and training,“ says Matthew. The Daniels brothers respond with laughter, and Craig adds, “Yes, two’s a company, threes a party.”
The Daniels brothers say it doesn’t matter to them that the Povalls are brothers. They are simply two team members, the same as everyone else in the squad. The Povalls say the three brothers are dynamic, hardworking and bring good energy to the team.
Commenting on the Povalls, Craig Daniels said, “They are brothers too, so sharing that experience of playing with someone that is so close to you is always special – especially at the level we are playing…Them being
brothers just contributes to how well they know each other on and off the park, which helps.”
All the brothers believe that being siblings and playing as team mates brings a different feeling to a team. The Daniels brothers stick up for each other, but also realise each of them can stand up for themselves. They are brothers and team mates on and off the field.
Since people were asking about the Daniels brothers on Twitter, Wits Vuvuzela posed the question: which set of brothers do they believe is more appealing to the ladies. “Definitely the Daniels’…We’re a lot more fun,” says Craig with a wink.
Another player, John Tatham, also has two brothers who play hockey, and if they were part of the team, it would be even more of a family affair.
Varsity hockey tournament
The Wits hockey team will be looking to improve on this past weekend’s performances, which saw them get only one point from three games. They will play the second leg of the Varsity hockey tournament this coming weekend in Bloemfontein against Kovsies, Rhodes and Tuks.
luca@witsvuvuzela.com
