Excitement builds ahead of epic Grand Final Day

WATCH THE PREMIER DIVISION 1 AND 2 GRAND FINALS ON LIVE HOCKEY AND STREAMER

From prospects of drought-breaking victories to potential historic milestones, there’s plenty for grand finalist teams to be excited about as the 2023 Hockey WA Premier League season reaches its climax.

Melville City Hockey Club and Hale Hockey Club are set to do battle for the Premier Division 1 Men’s Premiership, while the University of Western Australia Hockey Club and the Suburban Lions Hockey Club will go head-to-head for the Premier Division 1 Women’s Premiership during the highly anticipated 2023 Hockey WA Premier League Grand Final Day, presented by Brightside Live, on Saturday 16 September.

For Melville, Saturday’s clash presents an opportunity to become the first team to pull off a three-peat since YMCA Coastal City won in 2013, 2014 and 2015.

Captain Tim Geers said the vibe around the playing group has been “as good as it’s ever been” for the last few years.

“We’ve taken great confidence from the past couple of years and it’s a very different feeling this time around to what it was three years ago when we went into the first [final],” he said.

“We’re a bit calmer these days but I’m sure as the week progresses the nerves will start to settle in and the excitement for Saturday will build.”

Geers said while the prospect of achieving a three-peat gives the team a new goal to aim towards, Melville will step up to the challenge set by Hale.

“Our last three games have been separated by a goal,” he said.

“They’ve been close encounters. I suppose we line up very well against each other and we play similar styles of hockey.

“For us always against Hale, it’s about stemming the flow of goals.

“They’ve got guys like Liam Flynn and Sam McCulloch who can score quite freely so as long as we can keep that under control, we’ll get our opportunities down the other end and it’s just about making the most of those.”

After pulling off two clean-sheet victories in as many weeks, Hale will be looking to keep up their strong form as they look to win their first premiership since 2010.

“It’s really positive. We started the finals campaign a little bit shaky and then put together two good performances with back-to-back clean sheets which is rare in finals,” captain Liam Flynn said.

“We’re really happy and excited going into the weekend.”

Flynn said the two clean-sheet victories will give the team an extra boost in confidence going into Saturday’s match against Melville.

“I think we shared the spoils during the season which means it’s probably going to be really a tough and close game again with lots of goals,” he said.

“They’ve got a bit of grand final experience in the last couple of years so we’ve just got to go out there and play as hard as we can.”

Meanwhile in the Women’s grand final, UWA look to finally scratch their seven-year itch and achieve their first premiership since 2016.

Captain Pippa Morgan said excitement has been building amongst the team in the lead up to Saturday.

“We’ve come close in the last five or six years – we make semis but haven’t quite gone all the way yet,” she said.

“Everyone’s getting up and about and the girls are really excited so it’s going to be a good day on Saturday.

“I think the match on Saturday is going to be pretty tough, but we’ve just got to shut down their strengths, just play our normal game and hopefully get over the line.”

Saturday’s final puts the Suburban Lions on the precipice of history as they look to win their maiden premiership.

Lions’ Charlotte Owens said the prospect of winning the team’s first premiership has brought “huge excitement” around the club.

“I think nerves will build as we close into the actual day but at the moment there’s a lot of excitement,” she said.

“We’re looking forward to a good week of training to prepare ourselves for it.

“UWA are very competitive and are a great team so we’ll be focusing on our strengths and what we can try and do to bring our best game.”

Division 2’s grand finals will see Hale take on UWA for the Men’s premiership, while Melville and Victoria Park will go head-to-head in the Women’s grand final.

Melville will have an opportunity to sweep the division 3 titles, with their men’s team set to face off against Curtin University while the women’s team will go up against Whitford.

Along with plenty of elite hockey action on the fields, an abundance of free activities and fun vendors will be on offer throughout the day, including Healthway’s Fuel to Go & Play Fun Zone, sprinting challenges and on-field stick skills workshops.

Bravo Apples and Tucker Fresh IGA will also be on hand to enrich hockey fans’ days – and their stomachs – with Bravo Apples handing out their signature Apple Slinkys and Tucker Fresh IGA offering Finals Fever Grazing Boxes.

WATCH THE PREMIER DIVISION 1 AND 2 GRAND FINALS ON LIVE HOCKEY AND STREAMER

2023 Hockey WA Premier League Grand Final Day, presented by Brightside Live

When: Saturday 16 September, games starting at 12.30pm

Where: Perth Hockey Stadium at Curtin University

Cost: $5 for adult tickets, kids under 18 free entry

Fixtures

12.30pm – Women’s Premier Division 2 Grand Final @ Turf 1

Melville City Hockey Club vs Victoria Park Xavier Hockey Club

1.00pm – Men’s Premier Division 3 Grand Final @ Turf 2

Melville City Hockey Club vs Curtin University Hockey Club

2.15pm – Men’s Premier Division 2 Grand Final @ Turf 1

Hale Hockey Club vs University of Western Australia Hockey Club

2.45pm – Women’s Premier Division 3 Grand Final @ Turf 2

Melville City Hockey Club vs Whitford Hockey Club

4.30pm – Women’s Premier Division 1 Grand Final @ Turf 1

University of Western Australia Hockey Club vs Suburban Lions Hockey Club

6.15pm – Men’s Premier Division 1 Grand Final @ Turf 1

Melville City Hockey Club vs Hale Hockey Club