At the completion of the O35 NSW Veterans Mens tournament, the following players have made the State Side, including several from our region.

v Round 15 fires off down the Central Coast with the local derby between The Entrance and Gosford. Despite the differences in the teams ladder positions and performances this year, this game will be a cracker and certainly will pull a crowd at the North Wyong complex. The Entrance has won both games this season but last outing it was a 3-2 scoreline with Gosford actually taking the lead. Hugh Wickerts defection from Gosford to The Entrance will only add a little bit of extra space to this clash.

Coach of The Entrance, Ray Winwood-Smith, submitted this report: "Last week game against Souths was like playing two different games. The first half we got a leason and we were behind on the score board at half time 4 nil, in saying that the guy's played there heart out and didn't deserve to be behind. Myself as coach, I put my hand up for that, as I made changes to position and the style of play to try and work around a number of players with injuries and a few guys that had been sick in bed all week. At half time we changed it again and come back with a better half resulting in winning the half 2 nil, and would say that we controlled the second half very well with a number of scoring opportunities just missing the mark.
This week we come up against Gosford which being the local Darby regardless of the results on the board is always a difficult game, one that the boys are looking forward too. You never know what team Gosford will put on the field and if they have everyone available then it will still be a difficult game and we will need to play as we did in the second half last week to ensure we get the result. The remaining games leading up to the semi's are all as important as each other and you can not afford to drop a game.
Training has been pulled back this week to one session on Friday night to try and allow the guy's to get over there injuries and sickness that have been impacting the team over the last 3 weeks, basic's will be the focus at training this week to keep everyone fresh for Sunday."

No team news from the Gosford Camp, but the side which took the field last week against Tigers was young and enthusiastic and no doubt this seasons rebuilding will produce results in the seasons to come.

v The big game this weekend is undoubtedly the Souths v Norths clash from midday at the NIHC. Always a highlight matchup, but this particular clash involves a desperate Souths team bent on a top 2 finish and improving thier chances of maintaining thier perfect HCPHL attendance on Grand Final day. Norths have been able to register 2 wins this season over thier biggest rivals but those results will be discarded for this clash. Both teams like to score goals, and plenty of them, so this hopefully will be a classic with heaps of goals and end to end action.

Souths currently sit 3rd on the ladder and must win if they want to push for that top 2 spot. A win moves them just 2 points behind Norths, whereas a loss could see them drop well behind both Norths and Maitland. It should mean the team plays this game like it was a final, and should produce a wonderful spectacle for those watching the game. No teams news from Souths as yet, but watch this space.

Norths know a win is crucial to keep the chasing Maitland Rams at bay. The team has had a couple of high scoring results against teams in the bottom half of the draw thier last 2 outings, but will be itching for a crack at and a 3rd win in a row this season against thier arch rivals. Skipper Silas Moss has reported the following: "The biggest games on our radar are any of the matches against our modern day rivals South Newcastle. And as defending premiers sitting in third position, they have a point to prove and a lot to lose in this match.
Depending on other results, a loss will probably see them out of contention for a top two finish. With this in mind, I'm expecting the Lions big game players to step up to the plate which will make for a cracking encounter.
A few of our boys have headed to the snow, so we'll not be at full strength, however the side we field will be competitive."

v At 1:30pm the NIHC is the venue for the Wests v Tigers clash. This game should be a close one, with both games between the teams this year being thrillers. Back in round 2 Wests scored late to clinch a 4-3 victory, and then in Round 10 it was a 4-4 draw. The scores reflect how close the teams are and both will be bouyed by thier efforts last week.

Wests once again proved they are a thorn in the Maitland teams side after coming from 3-0 down last weekend to get back on level terms, for the second time this season. A late goal to the Rams clinched the points, but the Wests squad proved they can play some good hockey and will be looking to take that into this weekends clash. Wests stalwart Dean Farrow generously contributed this information on the upcoming clash: "The upcoming clash for the West Rosellas against Tigers is one the team looks forward to as it is the decider in a best of 3 matches for the Evan Skliros/Steven Dearing Trophy. The first 2 matches have resulted in a win for Wests and a draw. A win or a draw for Wests on Sunday will secure the trophy. On the other hand it is a must win for Tigers to retain the trophy, after drawing the series last season and winning the previous season.
Unfortunately for Wests it will be a big ask as 9 regular PHL starters are unavailable for the match. Four of those players will be competing in the State Championships for the Over 35's to be held at Homebush this weekend which include John Mayers, Dean Farrow, Nic Fraser and Mitchell McGlashan. Although this will test Wests depth this weekend, the team will be giving the club it's best shot at securing the trophy. Wests welcome the return of Jack Grosskruetz, as his senior hockey has been committed to the Sydney competition this season."

Tigers had a good morale boosting win over cellar dwellers Gosford last weekend, and played some pretty attractive hockey. The team will be hoping to get a win and kickstart an end of season run to challenge for 5th spot. The team cant make the finals, but a run of form would be welcomed and set the squad up for a serious crack in 2011. Coach Evan Skliros had this to say: "Tigers will be once again without Blair Brown (injured),Tom Brough, Adam Barry, Wade Ratcliffe and David Doyle all with work commitments. We will also be without Tim Lovell (1 week suspension).Still waiting to hear from Jordan Styles and Luke Witchard, but hopefully will see their return.
Tigers main problem this year is keeping the same team on the park, at last count we have used 30 different players in PHL. Luckily we have a large compliment of players ready to step up from 2nd and 3rd grade to fill in, who have done a great job.
Had a good game last week against Gosford. Leading at one stage 5-1, one wheel fell off. We missed plenty of opportunities but luckily held on to a 5-3 win against a young and enthusiatic Gosford."

v  The final match of the day sees University and Maitland head to head from 3pm at the NIHC. The Rams have had comfortable wins over the Students in both encounters this season, and the pundits would be expecting much the same this weekend.

University should be clsoe to full strength now the Uni holidays are over. This is a good sign for the Seapigs, as they have produced some good results this year when thier full compliment of players are available. They are a good team to watch play. Ian Benson filed this tidbit on the squad for this game: "A bit of a dissappointing final score against Norths on the weekend, we ran out of legs in the end.
It will be a tough game against Maitland who we have struggled a bit against this year. We saw the end of the Wests V Maitland game last week, which would suggest that Maitland are struggling for a bit of form. Hopefully we turn up to play and really stick it to them."

The Rams are gunning for the minor premeirship and wont want to slip up here. Rams rivals all benefited from Uni holidays, registering good results against the Students. the Rams wont have this luxury. However knowing the results of earlier games does give the team the knowledge that a win could take them first, or a loss could see them drawn into a 2nd spot battle with Souths and The Entrance. Coach Nathan Baker reports: "It's crunch time for the Rams now as we head into the premiership rounds of the competetion, a win this weekend could see us move into 1st spot if the North v South result goes to the Lions while a win to the Blue Machine will give us a 5 point buffer over Souths which is handy in it's own right. We of course need to get up over a much improved Uni outfit for any of this to come to fruition. We've had the wood over Uni this year in the results department but the matches have been closer than the scorelines would indicate so we will need to be at our best to secure the result away from home. The Rams will be without Brett Gallagher and Myself who are away with over 35 duties while Pete Urquhart is in serious doubt with a shoulder injury. We will train hard this week and try to work on some new combinations to fill the void that is left by the absence of two quality players (Gallagher/Urquhart) and one pretty ordinary one (Baker)."

HunterHockey appreciates the input from the clubs. Now lets support those clubs by spending a bit of time each weekend watching the ebst hockey on offer in the region. Support your team, your club, your sport.

COURTESY OF STEVE MINA

Its seems with only 5 Rounds of hockey left Regals, Tigers and Central have secured a finals appearance. While South and University battle it out for 4^th place. Central have a chance on getting a 2^nd place finish while Tigers and Regals are still fighting it out to get the minor premiership.

After round 10, the Women’s Premier League really copped a blow when Oxfords had to remove themselves from the top grade due to the unavailability of players at the end of the season. This has left the season one that everyone can learn from decisions made. Unfortunately some Premier League Women’s teams have now often not played for up to 3 weeks in a row. This can hurt the momentum of teams and becomes a challenge if you are playing a team who has had the chance to play each week without a break. In my honest opinion Newcastle Women’s Hockey is getting stronger. Looking at our results from the junior state championships we made 5 from 6 finals and won 3 of those finals.

Under 15(1), 13(1) and 13(3) won their division. Under 15(2) and 13(2) were runners up and the Under 18’s made the semi finals. This really shows the depth of hockey in Newcastle and in a few years will see these players playing Premier League.

Regals have only dropped one game which was against Central and last week drew with Tigers in an epic battle. For many years now, Regals have proven that they are a team of talented players. They are currently sitting in the top spot with Tigers sitting closely behind. Regals will look to better the performance this week against Central to ensure they keep a nice lead on Tigers.

After years of placing near the bottom of the ladder, Tigers are working hard to try and clinch the minor premiership. This year Tigers have achieved some great performances taking points from last year’s premiers Central twice and now a point from Regals. Tigers have really played well this year and I think they have a chance to take out the big one.

Central really have not shown what they are capable of, after dropping games they should have won. They are safe to make the semi’s however it is always to be in second place so you are guaranteed a second chance come semi’s. Their next encounter is with Regals who they have only beaten once. Central will need to win their next for games to get second place and this will hopefully give them the confidence they seem to lack at present.

The team on the rise is Souths. They are having their best seaon with 3 wins under their belt. This team has managed to only lose games by 1 or 2 goal for most of the season. An incredible feat coming off years of getting thumped. Souths are currently holding on to 4^th place and look to make their first final series however University are only 1 point behind and every game from here on will be vital to keep in 4^th place.

University have struggled this season. Their games have been close and they have looked promising in stages however its hard to field the same team week in and week out with many students having University commitments. Not to worry they have been playing much better hockey the last couple of rounds and only sit one point out of the top 4. They need to make the most of these next few games to have a chance of a finals game.