Tornadoes blow away competition

TORQUAY Hockey Club has capped off an incredible season by winning six premierships across its senior teams and junior age groups.

The Tornadoes earned flags in both the senior men and women’s top-grade competitions in 2021, while its under-10, 12, 14 and 17 sides also all saluted.

Geelong Hockey Association called off its finals amid COVID lockdowns during this year’s winter season, meaning Torquay was declared the winner of the six leagues due to finishing top of the ladder at the abrupt end of the season.

The senior victories mean the Tornadoes now have three premierships in both its male and female ranks, which the club said was proof of its commitment to balance gender and inclusiveness across its teams.

Club president Andrew Crowley said the amazing accomplishment was unprecedented for the Tornadoes, and that the junior success indicated a bright future for the growing club.

“We’ve never won six,” he said.

“Our best ever is probably three – we’ve won both the men’s and women’s before, but never won under-17s.

“We would have loved to play in the finals for sure, it would have been an amazing day if we could have got all our teams in the grand final.”

Mr Crowley said this year’s success was extra sweet for the Tornadoes following the challenges of the previous year, which forced the club to build from the ground up in 2021.

“It was a battle in 2020. We didn’t get the senior season started at all and the junior season only lasted around five games, so we had to absolutely rebuild the club this year,” he said.

“There’s been a lot of hard work, but that’s why it’s so special what we’ve achieved.

“We’re looking at a strong year going into 2022, but we’re always looking for new people coming to town or kids wanting to start.”

Mr Crowley said club membership had rebounded to above 2019 levels ahead of the upcoming season and that the club was keen to grow further as more potential players moved to the region.

Torquay Tornadoes celebrated their season at a local club function, where all junior players that attended received their premiership medal.