Goalkeeper Andrey Rocke of Courts Malvern was named Senior men’s Player of the Year 2015, while Alanna Lewis of Paragon retained the title of Senior women’s Player of the Year honours, at the T&T Hockey Board’s annual awards ceremony held at the Atrium, Guardian Life, Westmoorings, on Sunday.
Having attained this honour, both athletes also received the executive’s vote to serve as the discipline’s nominees for the upcoming First Citizens Sports Foundation Sportsman and Sportswoman of the Year Awards. Meanwhile, forward/midfielder Kristien Emmanuel, also of Malvern, and Samantha Olton of Shandy Carib Magnolia, who played similar positions were voted the respective Youth Players of the Year.
While Rocke was no stranger to the Goalkeeper of the Year Award, citing his territorial nature at the net, it was his first time the Player of the Year honour came his way. Mickell Pierre of T&T Defence Force, Jordan Reynos (QPCC) Akim Toussaint (Paragon) Shaquille Daniel (Notre Dame) were contenders for the coveted award which Rocke eventually took home.
The performances of Rocke and Emmanuel ensured that Malvern ended the season and could enter the new one with much deserved bragging rights. But Notre Dame would not be left out, thanks to the ability of centre-midfielder Shaquille Daniel to recognise, convert and seize goal scoring opportunities. He won the men’s Championship Division award for Most Goals–18.
Judging from the quality performances witnessed during the season under review Patricia Wright-Alexis (Harvard Checkers), Kayla Brathwaite (Notre Dame), Petal Derry (Harvard Checkers) and Bittney Hingh (Shandy Carib Magnolia) were no doubt seeking to ensure Paragon’s Lewis could not defend her Senior Female Player of the Year title.
They were wrong. As fate would have it, Lewis, who enjoyed being a defender and mid-fielder, was not to be dethroned. She went on to win her fifth title in the past seven years. Moments before Lewis took the spotlight to accept her honour, however, her club Paragon emerged as the women’s Team of the Year, while Petrotrin copped the men’s award for Team of the Year.
Rocke described the senior men’s accolade as an honour. He seemed visibly overwhelmed by the fact that the title carried with it the right to be the Hockey Board’s nominees for Sportsman of the Year, too.
Rocke said his days as a goalkeeper in football prepared him for hockey. Football was his main sport. He played hockey in off season. In the absence of the (hockey) goalkeeper, he would usually be called to fill the position. Before long he was a permanent fixture.
“I didn’t make it in football, so I pursued hockey later in my life. I was about 26 years old. I made my first national team at 26 and never turned back. It’s a difficult game. The average guy just can’t run on the field to play it. It’s a game you have to train very hard for. You need to train for all sports, but hockey requires a certain amount of skill. That challenges me. I enjoy a challenge. I enjoy playing the game,” he said.
Lewis, meanwhile, was so focused on being a standout athlete that she could not remember the year’s the senior woman Player of the Year Award had her name etched on it. She expressed surprise at being able to retain the award citing that 2015 did not bring with it much international exposure for her, but she delivered for her club.
“I didn’t think that I had good games throughout the season, but I guess to them (officials) I did,” she said.
Lewis admitted that her innate desire to maintain her level of athleticism was no easy feat, but declared that her willingness to rededicate herself to the sports continued to nourish her.
Looking ahead, she was focused on the national team turning on the charm and scoring the required goals to go past the Word League Round One in 2016. Once that was achieved, she said, the team would be guaranteed of a place in the second round of the contest in 2017.
2015 honour roll:
Senior Player of the Year: Male
Andrey Rocke
Senior Player of the Year: Female
Alanna Lewis
Youth Player of the Year: Male
Kristien Emmanuel (Malvern)
Youth Player of the Year: Female
Samantha Olton (Shandy Carib Magnolia)
Top Five Players 2015: Female
Patricia Wright-Alexis (Harvard Checkers)
Alanna Lewis (Paragon)
Kayla Brathwaite (Notre Dame)
Petal Derry (Harvard Checkers)
Brittney Hingh (Shandy Carib Magnolia)
Top Five Players 2015: Male
Mickell Pierre (T&T Defence Force)
Andrey Rocke (Malvern)
Jordan Reynos (QPCC)
Akim Toussaint (Paragon)
Shaquille Daniel (Notre Dame)
Goalkeepers of the Year:
Female: Petal Derry (Harvard Checkers)
Male: Andrey Rocke (Malvern)
Under 19 Division: Girls
Shandy Carib Magnolia
Paragon
Malvern
Most Goals: 21
Gabrielle Thompson (Paragon)
Boys:
Malvern
QPCC
SHAPE
Most Goals: 17
Jarryon Paul (QPCC)
Trinity Division: Women
Shandy Carib Magnolia
Harvard Checkers
Paragon
Most Goals: 9
Stacey Siu Butt (Shandy Carib Magnolia)
Men:
QPCC
Paradise
Malvern
Most Goals: 5
Nicholas Camacho (QPCC)
Ishmael Campbell (Notre Dame)
Mixed Veterans:
QPCC
T&T Defence Force
Notre Dame
Most Goals: 7
Ryan Mouttet (QPCC)
Nicholas Wren (T&T Defence Force)
Opening Day Winners
Women: Harvard Checkers
Men: QPCC
Outdoor League: Championship Division Women
Paragon
Harvard
Shandy Carib Magnolia
Most Goals: 9
Stacey Siu Butt (Shandy Carib Magnolia)
Championship Division: Men
Petrotrin
Notre Dame
QPCC
Most Goals: 18
Shaquille Daniel (Notre Dame)