Hockey
19 August, 2024
Hoops and Cobras play out thrilling draw
After the penultimate round of the Wimmera Hockey Association’s regular season at Yanac, on Saturday, key positions remain to be decided on both the Open and Women’s ladders from what is now shaping as a big last round next weekend.
The battle for second place on the Open ladder between the Hoops and Cobras ended in a stalemate, keeping that struggle alive for another week, and a combination of results in the Women’s competition has kept three teams in the running for the last two places in the finals, which now may not be decided until the last match of the season.
- Open -
In the match that could have decided second place on the Open ladder, the Warrack Hoops and Kaniva Cobras played out a thrilling tie, leaving them both still in the running to claim a top-two finish and the ‘second chance’ in the finals that goes with it.
After a see-sawing first quarter, a Lachie Mills short corner goal six and a half minutes into the second quarter put the Cobras ahead, which was matched less than two minutes into the third quarter when Tim Jorgensen scored for the Hoops, also off a penalty corner.
This equality on the scoreboard was mirrored across the field, with neither team dominating any aspect of the game.
Mills was named as the Cobras’ best player, along with defenders Clint Beattie and Adam Wallis, who were both solid on the backline, and Jorgensen was the Hoops’ best, with Ethan Schilling adding some pace in the midfield, and Royce Bennett, some experience amongst the defenders.
This result maintains the Hoops’ tenuous grip on second place, but the Cobras could still overtake them with the right combination of results next week.
Although the Nhill Rangers put up a solid fight, the competition-leading Yanac Tigers did enough to maintain their undefeated run with a win.
A penalty corner count of twenty to one in favour of the Tigers suggested the reigning premiers dominated, but some excellent defence led by athletic goalkeeper Kayden Rowe and experienced fullbacks Lee Marra and David Reichelt kept the Tigers’ score to just three goals.
Shaun Alexander, Zach Dorrington, and Josh Cramer scored the goals, and Todd Alexander, Luke Reichenbach, and Simon Farmers were the Tigers’ best players.
While the Tigers have been assured of a place in the finals for some time now, this result put to an end any realistic chance of the Rangers making a late claim to a finals berth, barring an unlikely sequence of results in the last round, but they can still influence the order that several teams above them will finish.
The Horsham Hurricanes received two points for the bye on Saturday, which should be enough for them to stay in fourth place.
- Women -
A combination of results in the Women’s division has set up a big final round next weekend\ where all three matches could help decide which of the three teams still in the mix for the two places in the first semi-final get to play on after round fifteen.
In the biggest game of the day, the Dimboola Roos outlasted the Horsham Jets to score a victory by one goal, which saw them move back into third place on the ladder and the Jets drop to fifth.
In a must-win game for both teams, an early field goal by Vicki Elliott gave the Roos the advantage in the first quarter, after which solid defending would be enough for them to finish with the advantage on the ladder.
Horsham was forced into a position where they needed to now score twice to move back into the top four, and attacked relentlessly, dominating the penalty corner count, but the robust defence led by Jennie Hausleberger, Cara Hadzig, and Ashlee Baker prevailed, and the teams went into the final quarter without any further scoring.
Midway through the last period of play Dimboola’s Leah Graham snuck the ball past the Jets’ goalkeeper from a passage of field play to increase the margin by another goal.
The Jets rose to the challenge, and Hannah Werner, who was named as the Jets’ best player, gave them a glimmer of hope with a converted short corner, but in the three minutes of play remaining, they were unable to add to this, and the Roos took the victory by one goal.
This has elevated the Roos from fifth to third on the ladder, and the Jets dropped from fifth to fourth, reviving memories of their fall from the top four after the last match of the regular season last year, although with one round remaining this year, they still have a chance of claiming some finals action.
After climbing into the top four for the first time since round three after round thirteen, the Thunderbirds face a big challenge to still be there when it counts, and their first obstacle was to take on the top-of-the-ladder Yanac.
Reflecting their relative records for the season, Yanac dominated most of the play, earning more than twenty penalty corners for the match, but the ‘Birds fullback Naomi Kuhnell confidently led a defensive combination that, despite the pressure of so many attacking forays, restricted the scoring to just four goals. Chyna Kessler and Cally Shurdington provided some drive out of defence for Nhill, but they were met by a solid wall of navy blue midfielders.
Erin Alexander stopped almost everything that came near her as she patrolled the half-backline for Yanac and regularly directed the ball forward where Caitlyn Alexander created many opportunities, and Lexi Farmers capitalized with two goals. Erin Alexander and Susan Hedt scored the other two of Yanac’s final tally of four goals.
Yanac already has a big enough lead that they will finish as minor premiers, and despite their loss not being ideal for their chances of playing finals, the Thunderbirds finished the round in fourth place and have the opportunity next week to play to remain there.
Kanva removed any doubt that they would earn a top-two finish with a win over a Warracknabeal team that put in some spirited defence in one of their better performances in a below-par season.
Kaniva’s Jules Braisby and Zoey Smith shared goal-scoring honours with two each, Haley Pearse chipped in with one to set the margin at five, and Hanna Braisby and Nyree Hutchins shone in defence to be named as their better players.
For Warracknabeal, Eileen Eichberger and Eddie Bull put in strong performances in the midfield and goalkeeper Melanie Bentley stopped many more scoring attempts than Kaniva was able to get past her.
This has set up a big final round where although one must miss out, the Roos, Thunderbirds, and Jets can all still qualify for the finals, but they all must rely on winning their game next weekend and hope that at least one of the others falters, making for an intriguing round of hockey to end the regular season.
- Under 16 -
The finalists in the Under 16 competition have been set for a while now, but that didn’t
detract from an exciting penultimate round of matches.
In a season that has seen many one-sided games, the biggest result this week was a five-goal win by the Kaniva Raiders over the Warrack Revengers. Charlie White continued his good season with two goals and was amongst the Raiders’ better players, along with Logan Krelle and Caleb Bedford. For the Revengers, Ellie Williamson, Josh Nuske, and Ruth Johnstone were among the best.
The dominant Yanac Warriors played out a closer-than-expected game with the Nhill Leopards, winning by just one goal, scored by Sean Pedie in the second quarter. Arche Zanker and Pedie were named as Yanac’s best players, while for Nhill, Deegan Clark, Lanie Clark, Thar Shue Bee, and Oliver Bone all put in performances that suggest that the Under 16 premiership is not just a two-team race between the Warriors and Kaniva Raiders.
The fifth-placed Dimboola Kangaroos played out a draw with the finals-bound Horsham Bombers, with Jasper Ward and Justin Schwarz the goal scorers and best players for their respective teams.
Wimmera Hockey Association - Round Fourteen Results
- Open -
Yanac Tigers 3 (Goals - S Alexander, Z Dorrington, J Cramer; Best - T Alexander, L
Reichenbach, S Farmers) defeated Nhill Rangers 0 (Best - D Reichelt, K Rowe, L Marra)
Kaniva Cobras 1 (Goal - L Mills; Best - L Mills, C Beattie, A Wallis) drew with Warrack Hoops
1 (Goal - T Jorgensen; Best - T Jorgensen, E Schilling, R Bennett)
Bye - Horsham Hurricanes
Pts GD
Yanac Tigers 46 37
Warrack Hoops 32 11
Kaniva Cobras 30 0
Horsham Hurricanes 18 -21
Nhill Rangers 14 -27
- Women -
Yanac 4 (Goals - A Farmers 2, E Alexander, S Hedt; Best - E Alexander, C Alexander, M
Mackley) defeated Nhill Thunderbirds 0 (Best - N Kuhnell, C Kessler, C Shurdington)
Kaniva 5 (Goals - J Braisby 2, Z Smith 2, H Pearse; Best - H Braisby, N Hutchins, L Stimson)
defeated Warracknabeal 0 (Best - E Eichberger, E Bull, Melanie Bentley)
Dimboola Roos 2 (Goals - V Elliott, L Graham; Best - J Hauselberger, C Hadzig, A Baker)
defeated Horsham Jets 1 (Goal - H Werner; Best - H Werner, S Schwarz, L Schilling)
Pts GD
Yanac Women 46 61
Kaniva Women 38 29
Dimboola Roos 30 -3
Nhill Thunderbirds 28 10
Horsham Jets 26 -1
Warrack Women 0 -96
- Under 16 -
Yanac Warriors 1 (Goal - S Pedie; Best - Archie Zanker, S Pedie, Asher Zanker) defeated
Nhill Leopards 0 (Best - D Clark, L Clark, T Bee, O Bone)
Kaniva Raiders 5 (Goals - C White 2, L Krelle, J White, L Williams; Best - L Krelle, C White,
C Bedford) defeated Warrack Revengers 0 (Best - E Williamson, J Nuske, R Johnstone)
Horsham Bombers 1 (Goal - J Schwarz; Best - J Schwarz, H Knoop, H Mackereth) drew with
Dimboola Kangaroos 1 (Goal - J Ward; Best - J Ward, R Hadzig, C Elliott)
Pts GD
Yanac Warriors 52 69
Kaniva Raiders 46 59
Nhill Leopards 36 33
Horsham Bombers 20 -32
Dimboola Kangaroos 10 -59
Warrack Revengers 4 -70
- Under 12 Development Program -
Yanac Lowan Stars 2 (Goals - M Campbell, A Cramer) v. Nhill Bandits 5 (Goals - N Krelle 3,
D Bee 2)
Kaniva Rampagers 1 (Goal - A Curtis) v. Warrack Avengers 1 (Goal - C Peters)
Dimboola Kookaburras 0 v. Horsham Black Hawks 3 (Goals - H Mills, L Rose, L Hobbs)
