Above: Australian captain Melanie Brogan led the Dandenong-based Barbies to a bronze medal against the men in the Open B Grade division.By Paul Pickering
FOUR days, 98 games and more than 50 hours of inline hockey were played at the Dandenong Skate Centre over the Queen’s Birthday weekend.
It was, by any measure, a sporting marathon of exhausting proportions.
The Victorian Inline Hockey Championships were being held at the Dandenong South venue for the second time in three years, but it was the first time in the tournament’s history that the entire fixture has been played at one rink.
So it was relieved rink manager John Brogan who declared the tournament to have been “a great success” on Tuesday.
The championships, which are compulsory to any player hoping to be selected in the Victorian team, attracted clubs from as far as Geelong, Bendigo and Sale, as well as a handful of visitors from Tasmania.
There was no shortage of local talent on display either, with Dandenong-based teams taking part in the under 12s, open age and all categories in between.
Among the most successful were the local Rangers teams that won the Open A Grade, under 12 and under 14 titles, while the home town Scorpions and Barbies finished first and third respectively in the B Grade competition.
And while daily crowds of about 1500 people packed into the venue, it was the Barbies – a team of ladies led by Australian captain Melanie Brogan – who quickly became the fan favourites in an entertaining series of battles with the men.
At tournament’s end, Brogan was delighted to hail the weekend as a resounding win for the emerging sport.
For more information on the inline hockey program available at Dandenong Skate Centre, call 9794 8039.
