Premier League Round 20 – Match of the Round Preview

Published Fri 18 Aug 2023

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Round 20 – Match of the Round Preview

North East Hockey Club v Seacliff Hockey Club

Preview by Bevan Jones

Premier League Women

The women's hockey season is really starting to heat up with several games having finals implications and this one being no exception.

The North East Warriors sit sixth on the ladder with eight wins, one draw and ten losses and 25 points but they are still a finals chance and currently sit two points behind fourth placed Adelaide University who have 27 points.

The Seacliff Tigers sit in second place with 46 points, 15 wins, one draw and three losses and are five points off top placed Port Adelaide on 51 points. They are currently eight points ahead of third placed Adelaide so can’t finish any lower than second.

Seacliff will be looking to bounce back after a 2-1 loss last week against Port Adelaide in the top of the table clash whilst North East will be full of confidence after a 4-0 win over Forestville.

The Tigers and Warriors last met in round 13 and on that occasion, it was the Tigers proving to be too strong with a 4-0 victory.

Seacliff coach Matt Morton said despite last week’s loss against Port Adelaide there were some positives to take out of it.

“We were still missing some players last week, it wasn’t the result we were focusing on, more internal areas,” Morton explained.

“We were fairly pleased with the effort considering we were missing personnel and we are looking forward to the next couple of weeks.

“North East will come out firing with finals on the line for them so we will be making sure we are getting out of the game what we want, we are still missing some players and so it’s a good chance for others to step up.”

Warriors coach Holly Evans said her team had hit form at the right time of year.

“We are really excited to play Seacliff and we think it will be a really good opportunity and I feel like we have really grown over the year and the last couple of months we have been playing some of our best hockey of the season,” Evans explained.

“There is a real good vibe around the group, we have scored goals and been really competitive against Port Adelaide and Adelaide and they have both knocked off Seacliff this year so it shows that we can do it, we just have to play with confidence which I think we can do.

“It’s going to be a really competitive game; they move the ball at pace so we will try and play quickly ourselves.

“We are still in the hunt for finals so we are looking forward to making sure we can secure at least a point from the game against Seacliff to secure finals and then it is really cool because our destiny is in our own hands.

“If we don’t beat Adelaide University next week then we don’t deserve to be in finals.

“It is really cool, that our destiny is in our own hands and if we don’t beat the fourth placed team Adelaide University next week then we don’t deserve to be in finals.”

Prediction: In closing, this is a huge test for North East as they push for a spot in the finals and if they can pull off a victory against Seacliff it will give them great confidence going into the finals. I still feel as though Seacliff will just be a bit too strong though and will be eager to bounce back from last week’s loss. Seacliff to win 3-2.

Premier League Men

With only two more rounds to go, the men’s hockey season is well and truly heating up and fans are gearing up for an electrifying showdown between the top-placed Seacliff Tigers and the fourth-placed North East Warriors.

With both teams hungry for victory, this clash promises to be a highly anticipated match.

The Tigers, with a 16-3 record, are riding high from a 2-0 victory in round 19 over last year’s premiers Port Adelaide whilst the fourth placed Warriors with nine wins, four draws and six losses are coming off an impressive 5-2 win over Forestville.

With fifth placed Grange only two points behind North East this makes the game even more important, whilst for Seacliff it’s all about finals preparation as they can’t lose top spot even if they lose their last two games.

Seacliff and North East last met in round 13 with the Tigers getting the win 4-1.

Seacliff coach Matt Morton said with top spot locked in it was all about finals preparation for the next two weeks.

“It is an interesting next couple of weeks for us, we know where we are going to finish, individually and a team we have been setting different goals internally about what we want to get out of the last two games for finals,” Morton said.

“We know that it’s going to be a crunch game for North East as between them and Grange it’s quite tight so we are going to expect a red hot North East and we are going to relish the opportunity.”

North East coach Jordan Glover said his team was excited by the challenge of taking on one of the premiership favourites.

“We are really looking forward to playing Seacliff again,” Glover said.

“We will have a team-first approach and need to be very much at our best coming into the back end of the season.

“Seacliff provide lots of challenges for teams to manage so we are really looking forward to the game on Saturday.”

Prediction: In conclusion, as fans eagerly await the whistle, anticipation builds for this clash. Seacliff's bid to maintain their supremacy clashes with North East's determination to upset the apple cart. The Warriors will be desperate for a win to keep fourth spot and will put up a brave fight against the Tigers but I feel as though the Tigers have a bit too much class and will win 3-1.