NORTHS have claimed back to back Hockey Albury-Wodonga division one men's premierships with a 5-1 win over Magpies on Sunday afternoon.
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Led by a best on ground performance from captain Jeremy Payne, the boys in blue held a massive advantage at half time after scoring their first three goals inside the opening 10 minutes of the game.
Magpies got one on the board through Jeremy Maggs but they simply couldn't generate enough offence to reel in the whopping advantage Norths had built early.
It feels weird – it had been 15 years between drinks when we won last year, so get one back to back straight away is a pretty good feeling.
- Ian Beath
Ian Beath scored twice, while Manning Hind, Ewan Kelly and Michael Menzies also pirced the Magpies defence.
The Norths veteran said there was a rewarding feeling to winning back to back premierships.
“It feels weird – it had been 15 years between drinks when we won last year, so get one back to back straight away is a pretty good feeling,” Beath said.
“Before the game we wanted to make sure we came out hard, we felt fresh and played well.
“You get to enjoy a game when you get up early, everything gets settled, it was good.
“Magpies are a great side, they’ve taken it up to us all year so we knew it wasn't going to be an easy game at all.”
In the division one women's grand final, Falcons rode a dominant attacking performance to a convincing victory, prevailing 3-0 over Wodonga.
Two first half goals set the tone for the Falcons, while their defence held firm when Wodonga were able to push forward.
The Dogs had the run of the play for long periods of the second half, including a number of penalty corners, but simply couldn't convert them into scoreboard pressure.
Falcons defender Carly Van Kesteren was named best on ground, while Mikayla Blackshaw, Sally Borella and Tess Palubiski found the back of the net.
Team captain Kate Bardy said finally breaking through for a premiership was a terrific achievement.
“We've worked hard the last few years and it's nice to finally get the reward at the end,” she said.
“Wodonga have made a habit of making good comebacks this year, we've been ahead in previous games and they've come back, so we knew they'd come out hard in the second half.
“Our goal was to keep playing an attacking style in the second half, play like we were still at nil-all.
“Our defence was solid, we soaked up a lot of pressure towards the end there.”