Rovers upset Casuals in the grand final for a second straight year while Cardinals win eight straight

Rovers stunned Casuals in the grand final for a second straight year while Cardinals won an eighth straight title as the Geraldton Hockey Association season came to an end at the weekend. Rovers claimed an upset men’s A-grade grand final victory for a second straight year after they won last year when coming in as underdogs against a dominant Casuals side — and they managed to do it again, winning 2-0. Casuals finished the season 17-2-1 while Rovers ended as the second-placed team with a 9-6-5 record, but they again proved that what happens in the regular season doesn’t matter in finals. While it was Casuals who opened up the game, it was Rovers who hit the scoreboard early in the first quarter, putting them in control of the game. Casuals had a chance to respond with a goal of their own but failed to come up with anything and as the first half continued, they struggled to get meaningful entries in their attacking half. Throughout the game, it was goalie Kyle Avery who continued to show up for Rovers, stopping Casuals from taking advantage of any scoring shots. In the second quarter, a penalty corner from Casuals looked hopeful, but Avery showed up again and blocked the fast attempt. At the half, Rovers had back-to-back penalty corners to try to extend their lead but came up short, going into the break up 1-0. The second half had Casuals take control of the ball for a big stretch of the game, but they failed to convert, while Rovers brought the ball in-bound late and chipped it up for a second score, just about sealing the game. Rovers walked away with their second win in two years, after previously going 25 straight without a premiership, and the grand final MVP was presented to Kye McVee, who score one of the two goals in the game, along with Dave Chapman. In the women’s A-grade grand final, the Cardinals once again claimed victory and have now won a historic eight premierships in a row. They got the win over Murchison in the 3-0 clash, capping off another sensational season for the side. Led by star players all season in Gemma Dix, Regan Fitzsimmons and Sharnee Williamson, the side had no trouble scoring in the grand final match. As the game kicked off, the Cardinals looked a chance to score immediately but Murchison managed to hold on defensively for the first quarter. The flood gates opened after the first and Cardinals ran away with the win, with goals coming from Williamson, Dix and Renae Brown. The Lucy Johnson Memorial Trophy for the match’s MVP was awarded to Dayna Cooper for her efforts in the win. In the men’s A-Reserve it was again Rovers who got the win as they took down last year’s premiers Yacht Club in a 6-4 clash, with the game ending as a 3-3 draw, so the game was sent into two periods of extra time and no goals were scored. So the clash moved into penalties where Rovers outscored Yacht Club 3-1, Mac Hoefhamer was awarded MVP for the match. In regulation, Rovers goal scorers were Jordan Cox, Nathan Kietzmann and Jesse Miller, and the penalties came from Hoefhamer, Kietzmann and Joe Kennedy. In the women’s A-Reserve Saints Gold got revenge over their loss in last year’s grand final as they took down Saints Black 5-1, with goals coming from Alana Miles, Pam Smeed, Darcie Parker and two from Jaimee Murrary in the win, while Lisa Norris had the lone score for Saints Black. Lyndsay Daw was selected as the MVP in the win.