Ric Charlesworth Classic round two wrap-up

The bright blue turf of Perth Hockey Stadium has never looked so good under the lights for the start of round two of the Ric Charlesworth Classic.

With some juicy match-ups, there were bound to be performances that reflected this - boy did they stack up!

Up first were the women's, with the Breakers coming off a close 2-1 win over the Suns facing the fighting Highlanders, who are looking for their first win in the tournament.

It was an extremely tough contest from the get-go, with contested hockey through the guts of the pitch the starting theme of the game, with both sides eager to lead the attack early.

Chantelle Ciallella managed to break the seal in the 13th minute with a solid goal to put the Highlander sin the box-seat to secure their first win of the tournament.

It didn't take Breakers long to rain on the Highlanders parade, scoring in the 15th minute going into the first break, with a cracking goal by defener-come-striker Penny Squibb, riding off her form that crowned her the top scorer of Hockey WA's Women's Premier One Division.

The Breakers looked to stamp their authority on the game, with a goal to Shane Wardrope in the 23rd minute breaking the Highlanders hearts.

It was a constant tussle between the two sides, with some cracking oppoortunities by both, most notably the Breakers who looked to seal the win, narrowly missing the goal on multiple occasions.

The Highlanders had other ideas, with a goal to Savannah Fitzpatrick drawing the sides level, and a new sens of life bought to a rampaging Highlanders side.

In the end, the Breakers held off a fighting Highlanders team, with a final score of 2-2 not leading to the Highlanders first win, but they now have points on the board.

The men's had both teams fighting for their first win, with both teams having narrow losses in the first round.

The first half was all the Outbacks, with the Highlanders having minimal control over any aspect of the game, with the Outbacks laying some strong defensive tackles that lead to all-out attacks.

The Outbacks piled on 4 un-answered goals in the first half, sinking any hopes that the Highlanders may have had, assertin gtheir dominance and stamping their name on the competition.

Goals to Cian Chase (7'), Tom Harvie (16'), Jesse Regan (17') and Matthew Lewis (20') saw the Outbacks command the lead in the first half, with the Highlanders unable to respond, turning it over on multiple occasions.

The second half saw a fightback from the Highlanders, who looked to show that the could be competitive in the tournament.

A consolation goal to Brodee Foster in the 30th minute gave the fans at Perth Hockey Stadium a glimpse of the damage the Highlanders can do when they're on form.

The Outbacks sealed the win with a 36th minute goal to Hamish Adamson, controlling the play for the rest of the match, sinking the hopes of the Highlanders faithful.

The second instalment of round two commenced under lights at Perth Hockey Stadium on Thursday the 29th October.

First up was a clash between the Suns and the Outbacks; the Outbacks coming off a commanding 5-1 win over the Highlanders and looked to come out firing to secure their spot as the team to beat in the women's competition, with the Suns looking to find their first win of the tournament.

It was an absolute arm-wrestle between the two sides in the first, with neither side being able to break away with a score due to lockdown defending from both sides.

Some great through ball play from the Outbacks looked to put them in good stead and on top of the Suns; a solid goal from Kim Leiper in the fifteenth minute adding pressure to an already bombarded Suns defence.

With both sides tussling and turn the ball over through the midfield, it looked as though either team had the chance to easily reap the rewards through scoring.

The Suns were finally rewarded for their efforts, with a great goal to Anni Gibbs in the 41st minute drawing the sides level, and giving life to a now rampaging Suns team.

Good defence from the Outbacks showed that they were able to compete on both ends, with multiple chances and running plays by Roos Swann ending in a nil result.

A full-time socre of 1-1 sees the Suns get a score on the board, with a disappointed Outbacks team looking to add to a building dominance.

Next up, the men's, with both teams coming off solid wins in round one, both teams came into the match looking to assert their dominance on the competition.

It was tussle in the first, with neither side able to break away from one-another; plenty of opportunities, but unable to capitalise.

The drought was broken in the second with a cracking goal to Matt Bird in the 16th minute giving the Suns the bragging rights over the competition.

The Breakers had other ideas, a 19th minute goal to Declan Spencer showed that the Breakers mean business.

Spencer's goal gave the Breakers a new sense of life, commanding the play over the Suns

The Breakers looked to pile on the pressure, and they did through an amazing run by Aaron Kleinschmidt who rocketed the ball past the keeper in simply stunning fashion.

With the Suns on the back foot it looked to be the Breakers who were going to be the team to beat in the men's competition.

With the Suns looking to crumble, they looked for a hero, enter Jason Gabriel, who off the end of a stunning pass from Tim Geers, absolutely cracked it in stunning fashion straight past the keeper.

Gabriel added to his score in the 52nd minute and looked to bring the Suns back from the dead.

The flood gates opened for the suns, whole piled on another two goals in the 56th and 59th minute through Matt Bird and Cam Geddes respectively.

The Suns 5-2 win over the Breakers sees them dominating the competition, and stamping their place as the front-runners to win the inaugural Ric Charlesworth Classic.