All or nothing in Poverty Bay club hockey semifinals

Paikea’s Jo Cumming (left) and GMC Kowhai’s Arna Searle battle for the ball in a Poverty Bay women’s club hockey game. Both teams are in semifinal action, which starts tonight with Kowhai taking on Te Aowera in a Prem 2 women’s knockout game. Picture by Liam Clayton

Sudden-death semifinals in the Poverty Bay club hockey competition offer some juicy prospects this weekend and it all starts tonight with GMC Kowhai playing Te Aowera on the turf at Harry Barker Reserve.

The winners of that game go through to the Prem  2 women’s final. For the losers, it’s season over.

“Kowhai have all the momentum going into this game,” hockey commentator Tony Scragg said. “It would be hard not to back them to make the final.

“On the other hand, TA have shown in previous years that when their backs are against the wall, in sudden-death they can find something special.”

PGG Wrightson Ngatapa and YMP B follow them at 7.30pm in the other Prem 2 women’s knockout semifinal.

The sides had a hard-fought draw last weekend so losing would be a bitter pill for either to swallow.

“That’s one of the games of the weekend,” Scragg said. “Ngatapa might go in as slight favourites on previous performances but YMP B will be looking to be the first of two YMP women’s to make finals.”

Tomorrow’s action begins at 12.30pm with a Prem 1 women’s semifinal between defending champions YMP A and Paikea.

“YMP would be heavily favoured,” Scragg said.“They have beaten Paikea on every occasion this year and they are normally a side we see in the final.

“Finals day without them in the club’s 100th year of hockey is hard to imagine.”

The second Prem 1 women’s -all-or-nothing semi  between top qualifiers GMC Green and Gisborne Girls’ High Senior A follows at 2pm.

“The Green Machine have not tasted defeat so far this season and its hard to see that changing tomorrow,” Scragg said.

“The students should give them a good run, though, and GMC will need to be careful on defence.”

Semis for the men dominate the rest of the afternoon, with Lytton Old Boys Traktion up first at 3.30pm against Waituhi in a Prem 1 men’s do-or-die duel.

They will be fighting for the right to join YMP A in the final.

Waituhi took the honours by a goal last time these sides met. Can they do it again?

“I think redemption would be on the minds of the Traktion players,” Scragg said.

“They’ve had  a great season and while there have been stumbling blocks, like last week’s loss to Waituhi and last weekend’s heavy loss to YMP A, I think they will rise to the occasion tomorrow.

“Waituhi will have massive support from the sideline and it will be historic if they make the final.”

The Prem 2 men’s semifinal between Lytton Old Boys Resene Masters and YMP B follows at 5pm.

The winners play Gisborne Boys’ High School first in the final.

“Masters and YMP B have had a win each and a draw against each other this season,” Scragg said.

“If there is one game that could go to extra time, and even to a penalty shootout,  this is it.

“Both sides will be calling on their experienced players to win it, and to win in normal time.”