With the 2024 Hockey One season fixtures out, let’s take a trip down memory lane before we look at the road ahead for the Perth Thundersticks.
Round One
For the second year in a row, the Perth Thundersticks will open their Hockey One campaign with matches against Canberra Chill. Except this time, the Thundersticks will be looking to create a storm in the ACT. In last year’s opener, the Thundersticks pulled off matching 4-1 victories in the Men’s and Women’s matches respectively. A hat-trick against his old team saw James Day make his Perth Thundersticks debut in style, while goalkeeper Ben Rennie and Tom Wickham put on commanding performances on the way to victory. In the Women’s match, an incredible individual run from Neasa Flynn and goals from Georgina Dowd and Bellé Ramshaw helped the Thundersticks put other teams on notice.
Round Two
Last year, the Perth Thundersticks had a bye for Round Two. This year, the Thundersticks will instead be hosting the Tassie Tigers in their first home matches for the season. Last year’s trip to Tasmania brought mixed results for the Thundersticks, with the Women’s squad bringing home a 4-1 victory, while the Men’s team were left stunned by a 1-2 loss. The Women’s squad made a strong start and held off a resurgent Tigers outfit throughout the second half to come away with the win. The Men’s found themselves behind the eight-ball against the Tigers but a goal via Tom Wickham brought them back from the brink. Despite throwing everything at the Tigers, they were unable to break through the Tasmanian defence.
Round Three
The Thundersticks’ third match-up for the season will be up against Hockey Club Melbourne at the Melbourne Sports Centre in Parkville. When the Thundersticks hosted HCM at Perth Hockey Stadium in 2023, the day brought mixed results with the Women’s team pulling off a stunning 1-0 victory over the then-top team, while the Men’s team found themselves in a rut off the back of a 2-6 loss. The Women’s match was a top-of-the-table blockbuster that saw both sides mounting the pressure on one another. While the contest was largely in a deadlock, it was ultimately a penalty corner goal via Penny Squibb that proved advantageous for the Thundersticks to move to top spot on the ladder. Meanwhile, the Men’s team found themselves playing catch-up off the back of a hot start from the visitors. Despite plenty of exciting performances within the home side, they ultimately fell short of securing the win.
Round Four
After travelling to Melbourne, the Thundersticks will return to Perth Hockey Stadium for their second home match of the season when they take on Adelaide Fire for Round Four. Last year’s trip to South Australia brought fortunes to the Thundersticks, with both the Women’s team and the Men’s team bringing home victories. The Women’s team put up a dominant effort to defeat the Fire 4-0 and become the first Hockey One side to secure a spot in the Finals Main Event. The Men’s team broke themselves out of their rut with an emphatic 3-0 win over the Fire, which also saw Matt Willis score the Thundersticks’ first field goal for the season.
Round Five
In their final set of away matches for the regular Hockey One season, the Perth Thundersticks will hit the road to NSW to go head-to-head with the NSW Pride. When the Thundersticks hosted the Pride last year, the concept of home-field advantage did not prove favourable, going down in matching 1-3 losses. The Men’s team faced an uphill battle to keep their chances of making the Finals Main Event alive and found themselves at the mercy of a dominant NSW Pride outfit. The Women’s team were quickly put on the backfoot of the contest with the Pride scoring in the opening 20 seconds, ultimately chasing the Pride for the remainder of the match.
Round Six
Like last year, the Perth Thundersticks will be facing off with reigning champions Brisbane Blaze in their final set of matches for the regular season. Only this time around, the Blaze will travel west. In the Thundersticks’ last meeting with the Blaze, the depth of both the Men’s and Women’s teams were tested amid illness and injuries. Despite solid performances from both Thundersticks outfits, they were ultimately overwhelmed by the strength of the Blaze. The Women’s team fell short 2-6 while the Men’s team were defeated 1-5.
The Perth Thundersticks will have a bye for Round 7 before the Finals Series takes place in Tasmania on Saturday 30 November and Sunday 1 December.
Fixtures
| Round | Match | Date | Time | Venue |
| 1 | Canberra Chill vs Perth Thundersticks | Sunday 13 October | Men: 11.00am
Women: 12.30pm |
National Hockey Centre |
| 2 | Perth Thundersticks vs Tassie Tigers | Sunday 20 October | Women: 2.30pm
Men: 4.00pm |
Perth Hockey Stadium |
| 3 | Hockey Club Melbourne vs Perth Thundersticks | Saturday 26 October | Men: 3.30pm
Women: 5.00pm |
Melbourne Sports Centre – Parkville |
| 4 | Perth Thundersticks vs Adelaide Fire | Sunday 3 November | Men: 2.30pm
Women: 4.00pm |
Perth Hockey Stadium |
| 5 | NSW Pride vs Perth Thundersticks | Friday 8 November | Men: 4.00pm
Women: 5.30pm |
Macarthur Hockey Complex – Narellan |
| 6 | Perth Thundersticks vs Brisbane Blaze | Sunday 17 November | Women: 2.30pm
Men: 4.00pm |
Perth Hockey Stadium |
Round 7: BYE
Finals Series
| Round | Date | Venue |
| Semi Finals | Saturday 30 November | Tasmanian Hockey Centre |
| Grand Finals & 3rd Place Playoffs | Sunday 1 December | Tasmanian Hockey Centre |
The Perth Thundersticks is proudly supported by Sharp EIT Solutions, Bravo Apples, ERM High Voltage Asset Specialists, Polytan, and Project Innovations.
The Perth Thundersticks Women’s program is also proudly supported by the Department of Local Government, Sport and Cultural Industries.
