Premier League Round 14 – Match of the Round Preview

Published Fri 07 Jul 2023

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Round 14 – Match of the Round Preview

North East Hockey Club v Adelaide University Hockey Club

Preview by Bevan Jones

Premier League Men

It will be two teams desperately looking for a win when 4th placed North East with six wins, two draws and four losses in 2023 host bottom placed Adelaide University with a 0-13 record so far this year.

North East’s last game was in round 12 against Forestville when they won 5-0 and they will be looking to cement their spot in the top four whilst Adelaide University will be looking to bounce back and get their first win of the year after they lost 4-1 to Port Adelaide in round 13.

Last time these sides met was in round 8 when it was North East proving far too strong with an 8-1 victory.

Adelaide University Coach, Max Bail, said he hoped his team can turn things around from the last time these sides met.

“North East at North East is always a tough challenge. They have a good mix of youth and experience throughout their lines,” Bail said.

“Last time we played we took a lot of learnings out of the game and will look to implement them and see if we can flip the result this time around.”

North East goalkeeper Dylan Evans said they were looking to continue to build on their good recent form particularly at home.

“The Warriors are pumped to play in front of our home crowd at our amazing facilities in Golden Grove this Saturday,” Evans said.

“We are eager to continue our form through this game as we move to the back end of the season.

“We take confidence from our form at home this season and are looking forward to another great day out this weekend.”

North East at home will be too strong and they have too much to play for. North East to win 5-1.

Premier League Women

It will be a hotly fought contest this Saturday at North East Hockey Club when the 6th placed North East with a 5-8 record host 4th placed Adelaide University with six wins, one draw and six losses in 2023.

Both sides are coming off losses in round 13 and will be desperate to bounce back, North East lost 4-0 against Seacliff and Adelaide University went down 6-2 against Port Adelaide.

In their last clash in round eight it was Adelaide University taking the win 3-1.

Adelaide University Coach Darren Neimke said they were looking forward to another good challenge against North East on Saturday.

“We're preparing for another tough game against North East as it always is when we play against them.

“Our attack looked great last week, and we expect to continue that form.

“Not everyone puts two goals away against the top side, so it's a real feather in the cap for the team who have worked hard all year to make that part of our game a real focus point.

“As a team, we're really happy with where we're at right now, but we know there's always room to improve.”

North East Coach Holly Evans said taking their opportunities in front of goals was the key to beating Adelaide University.

“We had a couple of players out against Seacliff but some of the players that came in stepped up well,” Evans said.

“Last time we played Adelaide Uni we hit the post twice and had more shots than them but still lost the game 3-1.

“Our ability to convert is the key against Adelaide Uni and we need to put the ball in the back of the goal as they won’t be the sort of team that will lay down and die.”

This will be another great contest between these two sides and North East will be desperate to keep in touch with the top four and get revenge from round eight, but I think Adelaide University will win in a close one 4-3.