Young gun squad set to ignite Scorers season
The Toowoomba Hockey season gets into full swing tonight with one of the highlights of the THA season.
The Iron Jack Challenge gets underway for its third season at Clyde Park as four teams look to claim ascendancy.
Teams are selected through a draft process prior to the season starting, with veterans of the local A-grade competition combining with the brightest young talent in the region.
Reigning champions SQPS Scorers come in with another star-studded roster, however they will be up against it to defend their crown, with Stafford’s Strikers, GCC Pink Batts and HSR Hot Shots all in the mix.
Greggy Dean takes up the mantle as coach of the Scorers, and said it was an exciting competition to be a part of.
“There’s a lot of young kids coming through and it’s good to mix them around and give them the chance to play with some older players from different clubs,” Dean said.
“I’ve seen the boys that are younger having a bit more of a say when they go back to their own clubs. They’re more willing to offer and it adds value to each individual club.
“It’s my first year coaching in the competition, so Karl
Harland and I sat down in the draft.
“We looked at a side that had up and coming forwards and some wise heads in the team that will fit in behind them and hopefully feed them.
“If we can have some success and get these 15 and 16 year olds on the field to be around that structure, good things will happen for Toowoomba Hockey in the future.”
The Scorers have been able to assemble a roster littered with Queensland experience, and Dean said they will give the side another strong chance at success.
“Karl has experience at a Queensland Country level,” he said.
“Matt Siebuhr has won national championships with Queensland and premierships with Newtown. Michael Boyd is another with some experience at a high level.
“At the back we’ve got Brett Rollason in the net. He’s played for Queensland quite regularly as a veteran and we hope he can start the talk and that can continue through the team.
“With our younger guys, we want that speed upfront and them to understand that hockey is a much faster game at present.
“We want to try and get the ball moving and continuing that motion. We’ve got the artillery to do some damage upfront this year, it’s very exciting.”
The Scorers take on the Hot Shots to open their season tonight, following on from the Pink Batts and Strikers, which opens the year at 6.45pm at Clyde Park.
TEAM LISTS GCC PINK BATTS
Craig Smith (captain)
Kynan Haddock (co-captain)
Shaun Alexander Cameron Baxter Sam Bullen Nathan Case
Alex (Walt) Cronk
Kaleb Gaschk
Alex Hilton
James Lush Callum McCurly-Ault Josh McPaul
Brad Messenger Carter Mogg
Cory Mogg
Will Nielsen William Ready Aaron Robertson Ryan Williams (coach) Sam Warhurst (manager)
HSR HOT SHOTS
Lachlan Brownhalls (captain)
Jack Bergemann (co-captain)
Josh Bidgood
Daniel Burge
Tom Burge
Corey Guse
Jack Hill Bradley Hobday Harrison Hughes Liam Matherson
Jay Mogg
Corey Moore
Jack Moore Dylan Ready Jaiden Schroder Zachary Sinton Matthew Wallace Keiran Wilkie Grant Campbell (coach) Keith Wilkie (manager)
SQPS SCORERS
Karl Harland (captain) Dylan Pember (co-captain) Michael Boyd
Kane Bradford Matthew Burge
Tom Campbell
Henry Cronk Lachlan Cronk Oliver Harding Jack Hawthorne Jacob Johnston Cameron Love Micah Mathewson Brett Rollason William Scorer Matt Siebuhr Ashley Ziviani Greggy Dean (coach) Peter Klein (manager)
STAFFORD’S STRIKERS
Craig Richards (captain)
Elijah Mathewson (co-captain)
Nick Bidgood
Ryan Bidgood
Liam Brown Braydon Denman
Michael Elasser Dylan Gleeson Drew Knecht Caleb Lindsay Ryan Loxley
Zac Matherson Garth Miller Damien Morey Mitchell Pammenter Liam Pember Mitchell Smith Matthew Tarlinton Scott Downs (coach) Briane Northwood (manager)
FIXTURES
Rd 1 (21 Feb) – GCC Pink Batts vs Stafford’s Strikers (6.45pm), SQPS Scorers vs
HSR Hot Shots (8.10pm)
Rd 2 (28 Feb) – SQPS Scorers vs GCC Pink Batts (6.45pm), HSR Hot Shots vs Stafford’s Strikers (8.10pm)
Rd 3 (6 Mar) – GCC Pink Batts vs HSR Hot Shots (6.45pm), Stafford’s Strikers vs SQPS Scorers (8.10pm)
Rd 4 (13 Mar) – SQPS Scorers vs HSR Hot Shots (6.45pm), GCC Pink Batts vs Stafford’s Strikers (8.10pm)
Rd 5 (20 Mar) – HSR Hot Shots vs Stafford’s Strikers (6.45pm), SQPS Scorers vs GCC Pink Batts (8.10pm)
Rd 6 (27 Mar) – Stafford’s Strikers vs SQPS Scorers (6.45pm), GCC Pink Batts vs HSR Hot Shots (8.10pm)