A scorching 30-degree day at Perth Hockey Stadium saw the Perth Thundersticks take on Hockey Club Melbourne in the Round 1 of the inaugural Sultana Bran Hockey One League. Following two convincing wins, Hockey Club Melbourne teams are now sitting on top of the ladder (Women) and second (Men).
The Men matched the steaming conditions in the first game, firing 6 goals in the first term, with HC Melbourne leading 2 – 4 going into the first break with goals and conversions from Ephraums and Captain Russell Ford. The Thundersticks fought hard in the second term to leave the scores level at 4-a- piece come half time.
Ford scored a fantastic field goal in the third quarter to bag a hat trick performance but wasn’t able to seal the conversion. The HC Melbourne men held on to their lead in the fourth term to finish the match with an emphatic 4-5 win.
While the conditions cooled down slightly for the second fixture of the day, the temperature was still in high 20’s for the womens match. HC Melbourne women came out firing with Claire Messent scoring an early goal in the first term from a well-drilled penalty corner battery. Some fantastic saves from Rachel Lynch kept Hockey Club Melbourne in the lead, but the Thundersticks ultimately levelled the scores to enter half time break at 1-1.
The third term saw some great performances from Laura Barden and unsuccessful penalty corners for both teams with the scores level leading into the last minute of final term.
The scene was set waiting for a mighty moment where Madi Ratcliffe rose to the occasion with a fierce tomahawk goal in the last 22 seconds. Ratcliffe then went on to seal the game with a solid conversion to finish the game 1-3 to HC Melbourne.
Hockey Club Melbourne will host their first home game against the Brisbane Blaze on Sunday 6 October. Tickets can be purchased here
Women’s Match Details:
Hockey Club Melbourne 3 (Messent 5’, Ratcliffe 60’/60’)
Perth Thundersticks 1 (Tonkin 26’)
Men’s Match Details:
Hockey Club Melbourne 5 (Ephraums 7’/8’, Ford 11’/12’/32’)
Perth Thundersticks 4 (Wickham 7’/7’, Mitton 20/20’)
For all other Hockey One League details please visit https://hockeyone.com.au/