Premier League Round 4 – Match of the Round Preview

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Round 4 – Match of the Round Preview

Seacliff Hockey Club v Adelaide Hockey Club

Preview by Bevan Jones

Premier League Men

Tuesday night’s round four top of the ladder battle between 1st placed Seacliff Hockey Club and 2nd placed Adelaide Hockey Club at Mate Stadium, promises to be an absolute beauty. 

In their three games so far, Adelaide Hockey Club have a 2-1 record and Seacliff are 3-0. 

Adelaide had a tight 3-2 win over Forestville in round three and Adelaide’s Coach, Shaun Dawson, said he was looking forward to testing themselves against another one of the competition’s contenders. 

“It's always a competitive match between Adelaide and Seacliff. It will be a test for both teams squad depth and fitness, as we are both backing up games from Sunday,” Dawson said. 

“We’ve had to play well and work hard to get the results we have had so far this season and will look to continue that in this week’s match v Seacliff. 

“We are looking forward to seeing the talent and experience both Adelaide and Seacliff have, going head-to-head.” 

Seacliff have started the year on fire again and they are coming off a 5-2 victory against Burnside in round three. 

Similarly, to Dawson, Seacliff Coach Matt Morton said with both teams having a short break it would make for an interesting encounter. 

“We understand both teams (Seacliff & Adelaide) are coming off a two-day break, playing Sunday and Tuesday,” Morton said. 

“Combine that with a mid-week game and other external factors, it will come down to a game of mindset and application. 

“We're also aware of the long season, so it's about us progressing in our way of play over anything else.” 

This should be a great contest, but I am tipping Seacliff to win in a tight contest 3-2.

Premier League Women

The 3rd placed Adelaide Hockey Club face a big challenge against last year’s premiers and 1st placed Seacliff Hockey Club in this week’s round four women’s match of the round, at Mate Stadium on Tuesday evening. 

Adelaide had a solid 4-0 victory over Forestville and despite a tough draw to start the season women’s Coach, Brodie Gleeson, said they relished the chance to battle with some of the competition’s championship contenders in 2023. 

“We are excited to come up against last year’s premiers and it will be good to see where we sit against the top teams, especially after a 1-1 result against Port Adelaide recently,” Gleeson reflected. 

“It’s a really good test and we are looking forward to the challenge and understand they are the team to beat this year. 

“After this game, we would’ve played three of last year’s top four so it will be good to know where we are at for this year.” 

Seacliff are 3-0 in 2023 and had an impressive 4-1 victory against Burnside in round three. 

Seacliff Coach, Matt Morton, said they were expecting a tight contest against Adelaide. 

“We're looking forward to a quality match against Adelaide,” Morton said. 

“Both clubs have had extremely close contests over the past few years, and we anticipate this match to be no exemption.” 

There is no doubt this will be a tight contest and with both teams coming off short breaks it will a survival of the fittest. 

Seacliff to win 4-3.
 

This week’s Matches of the Round are LIVE on LiveHockey - https://livehockey.com.au
Women @ 7:00pm | Men @ 8:30pm