Home advantage in the final round causes devastation for the Tassie Tigers and elation for the Brisbane Blaze, as the final spots are booked for this weekend’s Road to Hobart finals series.
Here’s how it went down in the final round.
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HC MELBOURNE
Aisling Utri’s double in the third quarter was enough to seal a 2-0 win over the Tassie Tigers but her heroics came a little too late for HC Melbourne, who couldn’t surpass NSW Pride on the women’s standings to jump from fifth spot and secure the last finals position in Hobart. It’s a case of de ja vu for Melbourne, who just missed out on a place in the finals in 2023. They finish up the season with three wins in seven matches.
Melbourne shook up the men’s competition a match later with a dominant 6-3 win over the Tassie Tigers. The three-goal differential saw Tassie pack their bags and exit the competition, while Melbourne jumped Perth to end the regular round in second on the standings and set up a semi-final berth against the WA outfit. Ben White’s double opened and closed the scoring on a night where Melbourne fired, as he shot up the goal-scoring leaderboard to end the regular season with five goals. Cooper Burns’s goal off the penalty corner in the second quarter handed him his fourth goal of the season before the team heads to Hobart this weekend.
TASSIE TIGERS
A sensational comeback season for the Tassie Tigers women relieved some of the pressure in the final round as they entered the match against Melbourne, having secured a spot in the finals. But they still had it all to play for as they attempted to set up a favourable semi-final berth in their home city. The away side struggled to get a goal on the board in Victoria which has set them up for a brutal match against the unbeaten Perth Thundersticks on Saturday afternoon. It’s not ideal for Tassie, yet they’ll have the home crowd behind them as they enjoy their first Liberty Hockey One League finals berth.
The home-final dream came to an end in Melbourne for Tassie Tigers men, as they crashed to a 3-6 loss against HC Melbourne and had to rely on Brisbane losing their final match against Adelaide on Saturday night. Tassie hometown hero Eddie Ockenden and Ehren Hazell levelled the scores at three-all against Melbourne in the second quarter in a valiant bid to save their season, but a firing Melbourne side doubled the scores by the 48th minute and ultimately handed Tassie a goal differential that was too great and ended their season.
HC MELBOURNE WOMEN: 2 (Aisling Utri 36’ & 36’)
TASSIE TIGERS WOMEN: 0
State Netball and Hockey Centre, Melbourne
HC MELBOURNE MEN: 6 (Ben White 10’ & 48’, Craig Marais 17’, Cooper Burns 20’, Connor Tuddenham 38’, Peter Scott 45’)
TASSIE TIGERS MEN: 3 (Jack Welch 15’, Eddie Ockenden 21’, Ehren Hazell 21’)
State Netball and Hockey Centre, Melbourne
BRISBANE BLAZE
The Brisbane Blaze bounced back from a round six loss to record their fourth win of the season with a 5-3 victory over Adelaide in Queensland. Recently retired Hockeyroo Renee Taylor had Brisbane on the board inside the opening three minutes as they raced to secure second on the standings and a favourable semi-final berth. But it was former Hockeyroo Savannah Fitzpatrick’s hattrick that saw Brisbane blaze ahead to a 4-1 lead with time ticking on the clock. Hockeyroos star Steph Kershaw sealed the win as they set up a blockbuster match-up against the NSW Pride in the second semi-final on Saturday.
Elliot Dale single-handedly did enough for Brisbane, with a great goal and a conversion in the opening 11 minutes to save the defending champions’ season and book a last-minute semi-final spot in Hobart. Their 2-0 win over Adelaide was enough to see Tassie knocked out of the competition in what can only be described as a desperate late-season revival for the Blaze. By the end of round four, Brisbane needed to win all of their remaining matches and have results go their way, to save a winless opening four rounds after a bye. Fortunately, three wins on the trot and Tassies’ three-goal loss to Melbourne on Friday night saw Brisbane through to the finals with a semi-final berth against the table toppers Canberra Chill on Saturday.
ADELAIDE FIRE
The Adelaide Fire has had a tough 2024, with both sides losing their final regular match by two goals in Queensland. The Fire women put up a solid performance against the defending champions as their international star signing Margot van Geffen starred in the third quarter in a bid to secure their first win of the season. But it wasn’t to be for either side as they both placed 7th from seven teams to finish their season in last place. Despite the results, Landon Morley certainly fired this season in the men’s competition, finishing the regular season first equal in the leading goal scorer standings with seven goals.
BRISBANE BLAZE WOMEN: 5 (Renee Taylor 3’, Savannah Fitzpatrick 39’, 49’, 49’, Stephanie Kershaw 58’)
ADELAIDE FIRE WOMEN: 3 (Zara Pelham 32’, Margot van Geffen 43’ & 43’)
Queensland State Hockey Centre
BRISBANE BLAZE MEN: 2 (Elliot Dale 10’, 11’)
ADELAIDE FIRE MEN: 0
Queensland State Hockey Centre
NSW PRIDE
Abby Wilson’s hattrick saved NSW finals hopes on Sunday afternoon in Goulburn, as the Pride clung on to fourth spot with their 3-0 win over Canberra. The hockey-loving country crowd turned out to cheer on the Pride, who faced a must-win match to secure their position over HC Melbourne, and Wilson started her charge early, scoring just a minute after hit off. The Pride will be pulling out all of their stocks this weekend as they look forward to a rematch against the defending champion Brisbane Blaze in the second women’s semi-final of the day in Hobart on Saturday.
In the men’s match, NSW put on a bold performance to challenge Canberra. Miles Davis opened the scoring right on the buzzer of the first quarter before Canberra bounced back in the first minute of the second to take a 2-1 lead. They levelled through Dylan Downey’s goal not long after but it wasn’t enough as they exited the season in 6th. It’s been a season of rebuilding for the Pride, who took on a new coaching team last minute and suffered many ups and downs as they now look ahead to the 2025 season.
CANBERRA CHILL
The Canberra Chill women fell to a 3-goal loss against the Pride as they struggled to score a goal in their last game of the season. With the season all but over and their Finals hopes off the table, Canberra headed to Goulburn keen for a win to finish 2024. But a motivated Pride outfit prevailed in the country town to hand the Chill their fourth-straight loss and end the season for last year’s finalists.
Aiden Dooley’s seventh goal of the season saw him equal first spot on the leading goal scorer standings, while also securing a much-needed confidence-boosting 3-2 win for his side as they now turn their attention to the finals. Finishing the regular season on 25 points, after going through the opening five rounds unbeaten, Canberra have only lost once in seven matches to secure a semi-final berth against the defending champions Brisbane who have scraped into the finals. In knockout stages though it can be anyone’s game and they’ll need to rise under the pressure of a big occasion to make the grand final.
NSW PRIDE WOMEN: 3 (Abby Wilson 1’, 40’, 40’)
CANBERRA CHILL WOMEN: 0
Goulburn Hockey Complex, NSW
NSW PRIDE MEN: 2 (Miles Davis 15’, Dylan Downey 22’)
CANBERRA CHILL MEN: 3 (Hayden Dillon 16’, 16’, Aiden Dooley 39’)
Goulburn Hockey Complex, NSW
ROAD TO HOBART SEMI-FINAL MATCH-UPS & TIMES
Saturday, November 30 – Tasmanian Hockey Centre
(All times AEDT)
11.00am – Men’s Semi-Final 1 – Canberra Chill v Brisbane Blaze
12.30pm – Women’s Semi-Final 1 – Perth Thundersticks v Tassie Tigers
2.30pm – Men’s Semi-Final 2 – HC Melbourne v Perth Thundersticks
4.00pm – Women’s Semi-Final 2 – Brisbane Blaze v NSW Pride
Hockey One
