The Yanac hockey fields will witness the penultimate round of the Wimmera hockey regular season on Saturday, where several intriguing stories will be played out to decide a couple of key positions for the finals.
Second place on the Open ladder is on the line when the Hoops take on the Cobras, and the Horsham Jets and Dimboola Roos are both playing for a place in the finals when they take on each other in the biggest game on the Women’s fixture.
- Open -

The pivotal game in the Open division will be the match-up between the Warrack Hoops and Kaniva Cobras to decide who will claim second place on the ladder going into the finals.

The Hoops could have settled this last week against the Nhill Rangers, but when they came out of that game with a draw, they left the door open for the Cobras to overtake them. The Hoops go into the game with a two-point advantage on the ladder, and a win or draw will be enough to ensure they finish second, while a Cobras’ victory will see them move ahead with a narrow advantage that the Hoops will struggle to overcome in the one remaining round.

The Yanac Tigers should extend their undefeated streak to fifty-five matches when they take on the fifth-placed Nhill Rangers and finally end any hope the Nhill team has of a late-season charge into the finals.

The two points from the bye should be enough for the Horsham Hurricanes to relax, as they will have enough of a lead over the Ranges to claim the last place in the finals, barring an unlikely sequence of significant last-round upsets.

- Women -

After a big round thirteen last weekend, in which the Nhill Thunderbirds leapfrogged both the Horsham Jets and Dimboola Roos to return to the top four for the first time in nine rounds, two games this week could go a long way to defining the lineup for the Women’s finals.

The big encounter will be between the Dimboola Roos and Horsham Jets, from which the winner will finish the round in the top four, and the vanquished will be under pressure to reclaim a place amongst the leaders. These two Teams are locked together on points with six wins and a draw each and have similar goal differences, so there is little to separate them. It will come down who can put their best team on the field on the day.

Form suggests that Kaniva should be too strong for Warracknabeal and confirm a top-two finish, while Yanac should keep the Nhill Thunderbirds’ chances of playing finals in limbo for another week with a win, although a confidence-boosting four-game winning streak by the ‘Birds could make them a challenging opponent for the reigning premiers.

- Under 16 -

Regardless of results, no teams can improve their position on the Under 16 ladder before the finals, but matches between the leading teams are an excellent opportunity to gain an advantage over potential finals opponents.

The biggest such match-up this week sees the competition-leading Yanac Warriors take on the third-placed Nhill Leopards, which should see the Warriors remain undefeated. In the remaining games, if they play to their potential, the other two finals aspirants should also have wins, with the Kaniva Raiders taking on the Warrack Revengers, and in an encounter that could be closer than their previous results might suggest, the fourth-placed Horsham Bombers will play the fifth-placed Dimboola Kangaroos.


Wimmera Hockey Association - Round Fourteen

Yanac Recreation Reserve - Saturday 17th August 2024

Field One

9.30 am- Under 16- Yanac Warriors v. Nhill Leopards
11.00 am- Under 16- Yanac Women v. Nhill Thunderbirds
12.30 pm- Under 12 Development Program
 - Yanac Lowan Starsv. Nhill Bandits
 - Kaniva Rampagers v. Warrack Avengers
 - Dimboola Kookaburras v. Horsham Black Hawks
2.00 pm- Under 16- Dimboola Kangaroos v. Horsham Bombers
3.30 pm- Open- Yanac Tigers v. Nhill Rangers

Field Two

11.00 am- Under 16- Kaniva Raiders v. Warrack Revengers
12.30 pm- Open- Kaniva Cobras v. Warrack Hoops
2.00 pm- Women- Kaniva Women v. Warrack Women
3.30 pm- Women- Dimboola Roos v. Horsham Jets

Bye - Horsham Hurricanes