Sale Hockey Club, Maffra Hockey Club and Wellington Hockey Club concluded Round 5 of the East Gippsland Hockey Association 2023 season last weekend, with local outfits proving strong competitors for this year’s premiership titles.
Maffra opened the season in the women’s competition with less-than-ideal results, facing a 2-0 defeat to Orbost Hockey Club.
Maddison Fecondo was the sole goal scorer for Orbost in Round One.
Nagle/Bairnsdale suffered a 6-0 defeat at home to an in-form Swan Reach outfit.
Sarah Steele and Leila Roberts each scored two goals for Swan Reach, with goals from Sarah Grixti and Beth Roberts rounding out the final score.
Sale Hockey Club had the bye.
In almost perfect contrast results to Swan Reach’s 6-0 win in Round One, the East Gippsland side suffered a 5-0 loss to Sale Hockey Club at the GRSC in Round 2.
Caitlin Frisina put away two goals for Sale with goals from Jess Cull, Jennifer McGuinness and Maddison Richards, completing the home side’s 5-0 victory.
Nagle/Bairnsdale hosted Orbost in Round 2 with a gritty performance from both sides.
In the end, it was Orbost who claimed victory, defeating Nagle/Bairnsdale 3-1.
Casey Findley scored two goals for Orbost, and Breebo Kenny scored one.
Allison Claridge was Nagle/Bairnsdale’s sole goalscorer.
Maffra returned to action in Round 3 following a bye in Round 2, with the local side travelling to Bairnsdale to face Swan Reach.
Jo Buckler put two goals away for Maffra, which proved just enough to scrape in a victory.
Maffra defeated Swan Reach 2-1.
Sale Hockey Club hosted Nagle/Bairnsdale at the GRSC in Round 3, with the hosts overpowering the travelling outfit 8-0.
Caitlin Frisina scored a hat trick for Sale, and Bianca Klopper put away two with a goal each from Jess Cull, Jennifer McGuinness and Maddison Richards, cementing Sale’s 8-0 victory.
It was a dead even between Orbost and Swan Reach in Round 4, with neither team able to put one past either keeper before the final whistle sounded at the end of the fourth quarter.
The 0-0 result saw the points split between hosts Orbost and visitors Swan Reach.
It was a rematch of the EGHA 2022 Grand Final at the GRSC, with Maffra hosting Sale.
Sale, the reigning champions, couldn’t reproduce their previous success against rivals Maffra, falling 3-4 in a cutthroat four quarters.
Maffra were able to convert their chances in the opening two quarters and took a 2-0 lead into the main break.
Sale evened the score in the third quarter, but Maffra cemented their victory with a goal early in the fourth quarter.
Jo Buckler added a goal to Maffra’s scoreboard, with Kahlia Hillbrich earning herself a hat trick in the Round 4 match.
Caitlin Frisina, Jennifer McGuinness and Julieanne Nicholls each scored a goal for Sale.
Maffra hosted Nagle/Bairnsdale in Round 5, with the home team establishing their domination in the competition with an 8-0 victory.
Jo Buckler scored four goals for Maffra, Kahlia Hillbrich scored two, with a goal from Peta Crawford and young gun Tara Lambert completing the competitive outfit’s final score.
Sale also secured an 8-0 victory at the GRSC in Round 5, hosting opponents Orbost on Saturday, June 3.
Caitlin Frisina scored a hat trick, Maddison Richards put away two, while Jennifer McGuinness, Bianca Klopper and Sarah Boag each scored one goal.
Teams return to the field this weekend following a competition-wide break across the King’s Birthday long weekend.
Maffra host Orbost at the GRSC this Saturday, Nagle/Bairnsdale host Swan reach in Bairnsdale, while Sale has the bye.
Sale had a solid start to the season in the Open competition securing a 6-1 win over Wellington at the GRSC.
Kevin Arbuthnot and Leonard Van der Velden each scored two goals for Sale, with goals from Mark Benfield and Adam Slattery rounding out the final score.
Jimmy Love scored for Wellington.
Maffra hit the road in Round One, taking on Orbost at Bower Street Reserve.
Two goals from Nathan White and a goal each from Darren White, Dave Gover and Ryan Crawford secured a 5-0 victory for Maffra.
Swan Reach defeated Nagle/Bairnsdale 4-0.
Wellington suffered a second consecutive loss in Round 2, going down 5-2 to the competitive outfit.
Darren White scored two goals for Maffra, while Mark Phoenix, Grant van Brummelen and Nathan White each scored one goal.
Declan Jones put away the two goals for Wellington.
Sale suffered a loss at home, going down 5-1 to Swan Reach.
Adam Slattery was Sale’s sole goalscorer.
Nagle/Bairnsdale defeated Orbost 6-0.
Swan Reach ended Maffra’s winning streak in Round 3, defeating the visitors 5-0 at WORLD Hockey Field.
Swan Reach’s Riley Simpson scored a hat trick, and Jason Lavell put away two goals.
Sale hosted Nagle/Bairnsdale at the GRSC, with the home team claiming a 3-2 victory.
Mark Benfield scored two goals for Sale, and Kevin Arbuthnot put away one.
Wellington hit the road in Round 3 to take on Orbost.
The hosting side was no match against the visiting side, with Wellington sealing a 5-1 win at the end of the fourth quarter.
Wellington’s Jimmy Love scored a hat trick and a goal each from Hayden Cochrane and Declan Jones.
A strong Sale outfit proved too good for Maffra in Round 4, defeating their local rivals 5-0.
Adam Slattery put two goals away for Sale, with Maddison Richards, Luke Hughes and Mark Benfield scoring one goal each.
Wellington stood no chance against an assertive Nagle/Bairnsdale outfit.
One goal from Paula O’Neill, two goals from Shane Bartlett and Sam McPherson and three goals from Glenn Grant secured Nagle/Bairnsdale’s 8-1 victory over Wellington.
Declan Jones scored for Wellington.
Swan Reach walloped Orbost 13-0.
Maffra hosted Nagle/Bairnsdale at the GRSC in Round 5, with both teams exerting gritty performances.
After a hard-fought battle, it was Nagle/Bairnsdale who emerged on top at the final whistle blow, defeating Maffra 3-1.
Grant van Brummelen was Maffra’s sole goalscorer.
Matthew Bell, Oscar Crunden-Smith and Ashlin O’Neill each scored goals for Nagle/Bairnsdale.
Swan Reach hosted Wellington at WORLD Hockey Field in Bairnsdale, the home side dominating the visitors 11-0.
A shortage of available players forced Orbost to forfeit their Round 5 match against Sale.
This weekend, in Round 6 of the EGHA, Wellington will take on Sale at the GRSC on Friday night, Maffra will host Orbost at the GRSC on Saturday, while Nagle/Bairnsdale will host Swan Reach at WORLD Hockey Field in Bairnsdale.
