Sibling Success In Track & Hockey Tournament
[Written by Stephen Wright]
There have been major sporting moments to savour for the Minors family recently.
Not to be outdone by her younger brother Dage, who came third in the 1,500 metres in the USATF Bermuda Games just a week ago, Tse Smith captained the women’s hockey team to glory at the Central American and Caribbean Games qualifiers over the Easter weekend.
Bermuda had already beaten Jamaica and Guyana to qualify for the CAC Games before their final match against Puerto Rico on Sunday, but the goalless draw ensured they topped the group.
Tse admits the pressure was on to deliver something remarkable after her brother’s show-stopping display in front of the NBC Sports television cameras at the Flora Duffy Stadium.
“My parents have been arguing about who Dage and I get our talent from!” Tse told Bernews.
Dage added: “It’s been a good week for our family. We are modest people, so we’re just taking it all in. Our parents are our number one fans and have done a good job raising us. I know this felt good for them.”
Dage Minors in action during the USATF Bermuda Games
Leading Bermuda to the CAC Games is extra special for Tse, who missed the qualifiers in Kingston, Jamaica, in 2018 because of ruptured knee ligaments.
She served as the assistant coach for that tournament and feared she would never play again.
“I completely blew my knee in 2017 and spent a whole year doing rehab,” Tse said.
“There were so many times when I thought I’d never get back. I thought I’d end up coaching and was looking into doing some courses.
“However, when this opportunity came around to play in front of our home crowd, I just felt it was too good to turn down. Thankfully my knee was in good shape.”
The 32-year-old said she was confident Bermuda could achieve their qualifying objective but admits their dramatic wins over Jamaica (2-1) and Guyana (1-0) exceeded her expectations.
“For those girls who were part of the previous qualifiers when we finished fourth, this felt like redemption,” Tse said.
“In all the years I’ve played hockey for Bermuda, I don’t think I’d ever won an international game before the victory against Jamaica. That felt so special.
“Even though we went a goal down, we never dropped our heads.”
Bermuda scored twice in the final quarter to beat Jamaica and defeated Guyana with less than a minute on the clock.
“We like to keep our spectators on the edge of their seats,” Tse added. “It was so exciting!”
Bermuda’s hockey team after winning the tournament yesterday
Tse believes reaching the CAC Games, held in San Salvador, El Salvador, next summer, will provide a perfect platform for the Bermuda Hockey Federation to grow the sport on the island.
“Hockey isn’t like football, cricket or athletics in Bermuda,” she added. “It’s a small group consisting of friends and families. We held a tag day before the qualifiers, and people were like, ‘There’s hockey in Bermuda? Where’s the ice!’
“It was good to get people down [to the National Sports Centre] who have never actually watched the sport before.”
The midfielder picked up another knee injury in the penultimate game against Guyana, falling awkwardly after jostling with an opponent during a short corner late on.
She is hoping for positive news from an MRI scan this week.
“I have twisted my knee,” she said. “I’m praying it’s a minor setback.
“All the players are already thinking about the CAC Games. We’ll take a few weeks to rest and then get back to it.”
