Round 5 Review

Wimmera Hockey Association matches were played at Nhill on the weekend, in some tough wet weather.
The women’s competition saw the Horsham Highlanders and Warracknabeal compete in a very even game. Warracknabeal caught the Highlanders by surprise in the opening minutes through Karin Triffitt, who got a crucial goal. The rest of the game was played out very evenly and despite the best efforts of the Highlanders Kate Ferrier and Ellie Morrow, they were unable to score. Warracknabeal also had some solid attack in Alana Argent and Jenny Ford and the game ended 1-0 for Warrack.
In an upset win, Kaniva managed to get over the unbeaten Thunderbirds 3-0. Kaniva came out firing, Nicol Wilson converting a strong hit at goal after some good passing downfield. The Nhill defence played very well, led by goalie Rosa Goode and defenders Jeanette McLeod and Pam Cramer. In the second half, Kaniva were once again in attack, with Mary Kedwell dominating through excellent stick work, control and passing. Kaniva were able to get 2 more, including a beautiful reverse stick deflection from Rachel Clarke. Nhill had some strong attacks through Katrina Wallis and Laura Wallis and were unfortunate not to convert.
In the junior competition, the Black Hawks took on the Bandits. Bandits were far more experienced as a team and were able to score 3 times within the first half, despite a determined Black Hawks defence coming from goalie Eric Hayden. The Black Hawks managed to get a score on the board before half time thanks to a great solo run from Andrew Valentine. In the second half, Bandits used their good teamwork through half backs Jarryd Bendall and Ben Smith to get another 3 goals but the Black Hawks stayed determined until the finish. In the end it was a comfortable win for the Bandits.
Dimboola Kangaroos had a convincing win over Yanac Warriors in another of the junior matches. It was a fast game with Dimboola having most of the play. Nathan Jorgensen was top scorer for the Kangaroos with 3, but captain Elizabeth Klinge was also on fire, scoring 2. The Warriors put up a great fight, however, and scored 2 of their own through Sam Bone and Anna Reichenbach. In the end the Kangaroos scored a convincing win over the determined Warriors.
The men’s competition saw the Warracknabeal Hoops dominate over an undermanned Hurricanes team, to prevail 6-3. Nhill Tigers continued their winning run to overcome Dimboola 5-2. The other women’s match between Yanac and Dimboola was won by Yanac 2-0. The other junior games saw Raiders trounce the Kookaburras, 11-1 and Leopards score 5 to beat Bombers, who were unable to score.