Thundersticks women's finals berth sets base for bright future

A hard-earned result worth waiting for.

The Perth Thundersticks women made their stamp at this year’s Sultana Bran Hockey One League - a shiny bronze medallion to reward them for their efforts.

Coach Phil Hulbert with nothing but praise for his side’s hard work.

“Well the Thundersticks have not been in the finals for a number of years now,” he says.

“I think the last one was around 2013.

“So lots of the girls have not even played in a finals, most of them have not to be honest.

“But we were pleased to get there and I think they played really well.”

A strong season set the preface for what looked to be a successful finals series in Bendigo.

Starting the year with a scintillating 3-1 victory over Adelaide Fire and following that with another three, the side was in an ideal position heading into the decider weekend.

Saturday’s semi-final saw the side unable to find the back of the net - going down 1-0 in heartbreaking fashion to the New South Wales Pride.

“I was extremely happy with how they played in both those games in this finals series,” Hulbert says.

“It’s just that Jos (Jocelyn Bartram), the goalkeeper from the other team, played really well and we just couldn’t get a goal past her.”

But Sunday was a different tale, a resilient bounce-back effort claiming the bronze medal with a dominant 3-0 win over HC Melbourne.

“It can be bittersweet that you played well but couldn’t get the win,” Hulbert says.

“But they were all pretty impressed with it all I think.”

An effort built on a long foundation.

11 months of training for a lot of the side, from club pre-season, to club season, to finals, to eventually landing at the Sultana Bran Hockey One League.

Hulbert described the experience as fulfilling, but also a challenge to fit the day-to-day life in with the full-time training schedule of an elite team.

“I am acting principal at the moment and I’ve got three kids,” he says.

“I am also renovating a house and coaching the women's [Premier League] side as well, so lots of things to try and juggle, but still very rewarding.

“It’s a challenge for the girls, it’s a challenge for the off-field to get their balance right between training and not getting fatigued, and mentally fatigued as well.

“So to try and remain up and about week-in, week-out, playing club finals but knowing they’ve got to prepare to play a competition that is obviously a higher standard than what their first grade is; it’s a challenge to get that balance right and I think we did that pretty well.

“But the fact that the girls put in so much and so did the off-field team as well, when you put in that much effort you sometimes get rewarded for it and they did in this case.”

The length and nature of the tournament highlights the importance of a strong team bond, and a side who can work together.

“I think we did a lot on playing as a team and culture,” Hulbert says.

“I think that came to fruition at the back end of the year, and I think that’s the thing I’m most proud about with the girls.

“I think every one of them said this is one of the best teams they’ve been a part of in that sense.

“I think that’s what gets you over the line and that’s why they enjoyed it so much.”

A side with an almost-perfect blend of knowledge and youth provided different areas of strength both on and off the field.

Hard to ignore, the rising talent coming through such as Jolie Sertorio and Neasa Flynn, both of which are due to don the green and gold at this month’s Junior World Cup Qualifiers in Canberra.

“I think [the younger players] did really well and you can see some future stars there without a shadow of a doubt,” Hulbert says.

“We have got a really good mix of experience versus youth.

“Those young players I think really grew and developed through this tournament and I think it’s really exciting times for Thundersticks in the future.”