Teams brace for finals challenge
With the first teams locked into Wimmera Hockey Association’s three grand finals, preliminary finals this weekend will decide their opponents.
All six teams to take to the field at Kaniva on Saturday will have their own motivations. This will lead to three captivating games of hockey worthy of the lead-in to feature games of the season the following week.
In open competition, the preliminary final will be between Warrack Hoops and Kaniva Cobras.
Yanac Tigers qualified for an unprecedented 13th consecutive grand final last week after overcoming Warrack Hoops.
It is by no means a disgrace to lose a semi-final to a three-time reigning champion team that has not lost a game in two-and-a-half seasons. But Warrack Hoops might not be taking such a philosophical view of the result of their game last Saturday.
The only team to take points off the all-conquering Tigers this season, with two drawn games, and being the last team to defeat them back in round 13, 2016, the Hoops would dearly like to have one more crack at their arch enemy. But they need to overcome Kaniva Cobras.
The Cobras are coming off the highest scoring semi-final last weekend when five goals were scored, overcoming a gallant Dimboola Burras to progress to within one win of their second ever grand-final appearance.
Throughout this season the Cobras have troubled the Hoops, registering two wins from their three games, but the goals tally is two each over the season, indicating that these two teams are evenly matched.
Both have a significant incentive to win, so this should prove to be an enthralling encounter.
As with most games this season, the exact combination of players to take to the field will go a long way to determine which team wins.
Leading players for the Hoops include Cameron Bardell and Hamish Wagenknecht in the midfield, Russell Brown as the last line of defence and Jarrod Knoop and Sandon Schultz in the forward line, but it might come down to the contribution by the fringe players to get the team over the line.
Lachie Mills, Dave Cole and Clint Beattie have been pivotal for the Cobras all season, but they too have many other players who are capable of stepping up.
Women
In a women’s division preliminary final, Yanac Women will play Horsham Jets.
From very early this season there has been a considerable gap between the top two teams and the rest of the women’s competition, illustrated by the one-sided head-to-head record between these teams.
The Jets did not win their first game until round five and only finished with five victories, in contrast to Yanac who finished on top of the ladder with 12 wins from 15 games.
It would be difficult to tip against Yanac bouncing back from its narrow defeat last weekend, but the Jets go into this game with nothing to lose.
If the game were to come down to extra time or penalty strokes, it could go either way. Yanac has leading players all over the field, but Erin Alexander, Shanaye Alexander, Susan Hedt and Mikayla Farmers will be players their team-mates will look to for leadership and structure.
The Jets’ best performances this season have been when their big four players, Ellie Morrow, Sophie Robinson, Launa Schilling and Robyn Creek, all fire at the same time, and this will be an important factor on Saturday.
Under-16s
The under-16 competition also had two standout teams from early in the season, with the Revengers already through to the grand final and Yanac Warriors clearly the other dominant team.
The Warriors take on Nhill Leopards this weekend and while the Leopards were a step below the leaders, they were also well above the remaining three teams.
Mikayla Farmers has had a great season in both the under-16 and women’s competitions, but it will be her ability to lead her team that will see it win. Jasper Croot, Nathan Colbert and Alexis Farmers will also need to play significant roles.
Leopards rely heavily on Jason Reichelt up forward, Ellie Murden in the midfield and Kendra Clark at full back, but they too will need contributions from all players. Results – First semi-finals: Open, Kaniva Cobras 3 (Goals, D. Shalders, D. Cole, M. Mcdonald; Best, L. Mills, D. Cole, D. Shalders) d Dimboola Burras 2 (T. Krelle 2; T. Dent, T. Krelle, B. Tischler); women, Horsham Jets 2 (L. Schilling, S. Robinson; S. Robinson, E. Morrow, B. Brooks) d Warracknabeal 1 (D. Rigby; A. Genn, D. Rigby, T. Bull); under-16s, Nhill Leopards 1 (M. Reichelt; M. Reichelt, J. Reichelt, K. Clark) d Kaniva Raiders 0 (O. Williams, M. Goodwin, B. Williams). Second semi-finals: Open, Yanac Tigers 1 (M. Dart; T. Alexander, J. Honeyman, B. Alexander) d Warrack Hoops 0 (C. Bardell, H. Wagenknecht, T. Krahe); women, Dimboola Roos 2 (J. Hauselburger, V. Smithyman; B. Mcmaster, E. Klinge, R. Albrecht, R. Lovett) d Yanac Women 1 (C. Beattie; E. Alexander, S. Alexander, S. Pipkorn, M. Farmers); Under-16s, Warrack Revengers 1 (O. Bennett; O. Bennett, H. Johns, L. Eilola) d Yanac Warriors 0 (M. Farmers, J. Croot, A. Farmers).