Pace to settle top clash

HIGH-FLYING Premier League hockey men’s side North-West Graduates will test themselves against defending champion Derwent for the first time since the shutdown from 1.15pm.

The Bulldogs have added Matt Lim, Marcus Richardson, Aiden van Staden, Harvey Bessell and Dan Harper to their squad since overcoming Derwent 4-3 on opening day.

“The main thing is we’ve been together for some time now and the players are starting to link up in patches,” Graduates coach Stephen McMullen said.

“Gobindraj Gill has been great over the last three weeks and I put that down to maturing as a player with us, meaning more leadership opportunities and development both with T.I.S. sessions and feedback from Hockey Australia.

“We know we’ll be challenged by them (Derwent) all year and I’ve noticed in recent weeks they’ve been scoring a lot of field goals.”

Derwent occupy second on goal difference and coach Nathan Fitzpatrick is awaiting late assessments on the availability of Torin Bester and Keegan Popowski before finalising his line up.

“North-West are clearly the benchmark. They have been very active with their recruitment and it looks to be paying off, so it’s about ensuring that we are taking every opportunity,” Fitzpatrick said.

“I am sure it will be a highscoring and fast-paced match so the team that is able to convert those opportunities will be the one that comes out on top.”

Former Kookaburra Jeremy Edwards is a big inclusion for OHA when it faces Canterbury from 2.45pm.

“He is someone who doesn’t get to suit up for OHA that often any more, so we are all very excited to have him with us for the remainder of the season,” OHA coach Nick Leslie said of Edwards.

University and DiamondBacks have made goalkeeper changes for their 4.15pm clash, with James Shepherd (Uni) and Grant Woodcock (DBacks) returning.