Hockey
9 May, 2025
Round three hockey opens tonight
The third round of the Wimmera Hockey Association season will be played at Dimboola across Friday evening and Saturday, and while some teams are already starting to establish their place within their competition, others are yet to find their form, which sets up some captivating encounters.
The headline game is the rematch of last year’s open division grand final, and the scene could not be set up better.
Both the Yanac Tigers and Warrack Hoops are undefeated going into this match, where outright top place on the ladder, and early-season bragging rights, are on the line.
Both have already survived tight matches against the determined Horsham Hurricanes, but the Tigers’ big win last weekend over the Cobras suggests they are full of confidence and will be hard to beat and should continue their five-year undefeated streak.
The winner will finish the round on top of the ladder, and while the vanquished cannot fall below second, they will feel some pressure from the winner of the other Open match between the Kaniva Cobras and Nhill Rangers.
Having only played one match each so far this season against a current top-two team, these teams are yet to settle their line-ups, making it difficult to judge their form.
This will be a significant encounter for both as they attempt to establish themselves as contenders and put pressure on the early leaders.
After narrow losses to the two top teams to start their season, the Horsham Hurricanes have the week off to regroup before their next outing.
On Friday evening, the Dimboola Health and Fitness Centre co-tenants, Dimboola and Horsham, meet in the under 16 and women’s divisions.
In the underage match, the Horsham Bombers are looking for their first win for the season, but will find the Kangaroos a formidable opponent, while the women’s match promises to be an entertaining encounter.
The Dimboola Roos are undefeated but have only succeeded by a single goal in both of their games, while the Jets enjoyed a big confidence-boosting win last round, which sets this up as another game that could go either way.
The women’s games continue on Saturday with another vital match when, after a slow start to their premiership defence, Kaniva will be looking to earn their first points for the season as they take on the Nhill Thunderbirds in the women’s division.
Having shown the better form, with a big win in round one and a narrow loss in round two, the ‘Birds should start as favourites.
In the remaining Women’s match, Yanac should be too strong for the struggling Warracknabeal, but with nothing to lose, the latter team can still cause some headaches for any team that dares to take them lightly.
The under 16 games on Saturday morning will see the Warrack Revengers, coming off a win last week, take on the Yanac Warriors, and while the reigning premiers should be too strong, the Revengers should still make them work for the points.
The Nhill Leopards and Kaniva Raiders will also entertain, but the former team should be too strong.
– SIMON KING