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SAINTS retained the Bank Windhoek Outdoor Hockey Men’s Premier League title in style when they beat Wanderers 5-2 in their final match on Wednesday evening.

Although the Namibia Hockey Union still had to confirm the final standings, with some matches still to be played, while others were either postponed or cancelled, the bonus point win puts Saints out of reach of second-placed Windhoek Old Boys.

Saints have won all seven their matches to date and are on 25 points, while Old Boys, who beat School of Excellence 3-0 on Wednesday, are 10 points behind and although they still have two matches to play, Saints now have an insurmountable lead.

On Wednesday, Saints struck early against Wanderers in a frenetic first quarter.

Christiaan du Raan put them ahead when he finished off an attack, and then turned provider, feeding Alex du Plessis who volleyed into the net.

Barely a minute later Chase Landry smashed in a great shot from the edge of the box and at 3-0 Saints were well in control.

Wanderers, however, fought back and opened their account when Brandon Lensen scored from a short corner, but Saints immediately came back when Gerhard Myburgh rounded off an attack to go 4-1 ahead by the end of the first quarter.

Wanderers worked their way back into the game and Lensen gave them hope when he scored his second goal from a short corner early in the third quarter.

Saints, however, had the final say when Joseph van Niekerk scored from a short corner to give them a 5-2 bonus point victory and to all intents clinch the title.

Saints’ coach Christo du Raan expressed satisfaction with their performance.

“I think we played well, we ended in the fashion that we wanted to with a good win to maintain our winning streak and make sure that we bring it home at the end of the season,” he said.

“It looks like we have won the league title and it’s obviously a great feeling. The boys have worked hard this season, they’ve played their hearts out and made sure that we win every game,” he added.

The win saw Saints retaining the outdoor league title for the second year, while it was also a fine response after they conceded the indoor league title to Old Boys earlier in the season.

Old Boys, meanwhile, beat School of Excellence 3-0, but they took quite a while to break down SoE’s defence, who managed to hold them to 0-0 by half time.

Two goals in two minutes early in the third quarter by Ernest Jacobs from a short corner and Dylan Finch, smashing in a loose ball, put them in control, while a Dian La Cock short corner goal sealed their victory.

Old Boys coach Coenie Fourie said it was a tough match.

“We had to work hard for this one, but we pulled it through in the end. The boys were a bit lacklustre in the beginning, we had a lot of chances which we didn’t take but the boys played hard and pulled it through in the end,” he said.

Fourie said he was disappointed at not winning the league, but they had learnt a lot to build on for the future.

“It’s just one of those things – we did win two leagues this year, we were hoping to take this one as well, but we learnt a lot of lessons and we are busy building our side for next year as well. It’s been a tough league but there’s a lot of positives coming out of it and we are looking forward to next season,” he said.