Geelong hanging on in battle to avoid relegation

GEELONG is still in the fight to avoid relegation from Vic League 1 men’s hockey after a 4-2 win over Casey at the State Hockey Centre on Tuesday night.

While they trailed 2-1 at half-time, the Sharks had too much firepower for the undermanned Casey, which played the match — postponed from Round 2 — with 10 men.

Missing regular goalkeeper Sam Stoneley and captain and key defender Mark Jackson through injury, Geelong also took time to adapt to a different Casey forward structure, coach Terry Moore said yesterday.

“We were a little disorganised in the backline and took some time to adjust,’’ Moore said.

Geelong scored first through a Greg Hutchison field goal in the sixth minute. Casey replied three minutes later and took the lead on 19 minutes when it converted a penalty corner.

“We shuffled things around in the second half and the plan was to keep the ball moving and play smarter hockey to take advantage of the weight of numbers,’’ Moore said.

Youngster Jayden Schram levelled the scores in the 47th minute and Geelong took the lead with a Luke Hatton penalty conversion seven minutes later.

Sean Fizgerald then sealed victory with a field goal in the final minute.

Moore said Hutchison and midfield Lachie Hannah stood out in what was an even team performance.

“The younger guys and mid-range players have really stepped up in the second half of the year,’’ he said.

After a slow start to the season when it had only one win and one draw from the first eight rounds, Geelong has posted four wins and two draws in its past nine matches.

The Sharks have some work to do at the weekend when they travel to Melbourne to tackle top side Penleigh Essendon Grammar School.

Geelong is one win (and +1 goal difference) clear of Gippsland Bulls, which is in the rel- egation zone with Frankston.

An upset win by Geelong or a draw would keep it safely in eighth spot, but a loss opens the door for high-scoring Gippsland, which faces University (7th).

Both games are at 3.30pm tomorrow.

Geelong’s women Premier League team (15th) will be looking to end its season on a high when it travels to Yarra Valley (13) for the final round.

The teen-packed Geelong has lost its past five games in what has been its inaugural season in hockey’s top flight.