Marist Whites to work on combination

The Marist Whites men's hockey team made an impres­sive start to their campaign, thrashing Ventures Two 5-0 in their pool opener at the National Hockey Centre, Suva, yesterday.

The convincing victory provided an early boost for the side, who had five overseas-based players.

Speaking to SUNsports yester­day; head coach Je'an Bentley was pleased with the team's perfor­mance but said there are still room for improvement.

"It was a good game to start our campaign, and I thank the boys for their effort," Bentley said.

"It was a structured game and we had a new mixture of players from overseas and Fiji.

"The boys are trying their best to gel with each other, and we are still learning and understanding each other as a team."

Bentley said the overseas players had added valuable experience and skills to the squad, while local play­ers had benefited from tournament exposure leading into the competi­tion.

"Most of our players in Fiji have been playing in tournaments, which helped with their preparations," he said.

"We had five players who came from overseas and they have con­tributed well to the team. They bring experience, skills and the lo­cal boys will learn a lot from them.

"We are privileged to have them because they have added new things to the team."

With the opening win secured, Bentley said the team would focus on improving their combinations and ball movement in its remain­ing matches.

"It's about understanding each other, positioning ourselves better and moving the ball more rather than carrying it into positions," he said.

The Marist Whites will now look to build on their strong opening performance as they continue their campaign at the 30th anniversary of the Marist Eastgate Memorial