COURTESY NEWCASTLE HERALD

MAITLAND defeated Hunter Coast Men's Premier League hockey leaders Norths 4-3 at Broadmeadow on Sunday.

While the win was not enough to see second-placed Maitland move into top spot, the Rams closed the gap on Norths and remain just one point behind.

The game gave Maitland a chance to prove their depth as they were without key players Peter and Ben Urquhart, who suited up for their Sydney club, Norwest Strikers, in the annual Alan Yates Shield.

In other games on Sunday, The Entrance downed the Tigers 2-1 at Wyong, Souths defeated Wests 4-1 and University beat Gosford 3-1.

Just four points separate the top-four sides with the league's biggest improvers, third-placed The Entrance having recorded wins over each of the teams above them and drawing with fourth-placed Souths.

 v  This weeks match of the round is a mouthwatering one and a top of the table clash. Norths will host Maitland from midday at the NIHC. This match is expected to be a firey one considering events that transpired during the week, and definately worth the effort to get down and witness it. A potential Grand Final preview.

Norths are top of the ladder for good reason: they are simply the most complete side in the competition. They have the best offence, the best defence. The team is into the 3rd game of a 3 match run against the teams running 2nd to 4th, and they are coming off a hard fought victory over The Entrance last weekend. The key for the team is in its youth, with Matt Dawson and Mitchell Allen-Waters banging in goals on a regular basis. Match this with the ever present Silas Moss, Theo Grushka, Josh Willott and in goals Sean Obrien you have a team that is the envy of the other 7 clubs. No team news as yet.

The Rams are having thier ebst season in the HCPHL, and with a convincing 8-4 victory over Souths last week come into this game on the back of some fine form. The Rams offence and defence isnt far off that of Norths, with Peter Urquart in the thick of both. His PC conversion rates are excellent, and defensively he helps turn the Rams from defence to attack better the anyone else. The main strike weapons up front are Nathan Baker and Matt Brown, both contributing plenty on the For column. The rest of the team is finding some of their best form under the coaching of Baker.
He took time out this week to give his view on the upcoming clash: "This week will be our toughest test of the season so far and the result will give a good indicator of whether or not we are true title contenders for 2010. Norths have been going along nicely with a loss to the Entrance with a largely understrengthed team the only real blip so far. I watched them play last week, again with an understrengthed lineup, but this time they were able to sneak the win against The Entrance in the dying stages. We will be missing Peter and Ben Urquhart for this clash as both of them suit up for their Sydney club in the annual Alan Yates Shield, this is a major blow to our chances with these two undoubtedly being two of our best players so far. The absence of Pete and Ben will give us a chance to test our depth and I'm still confident we have the players and the game to match it with Norths".

v  From 11:50am at Wyong, The Entrance will be looking to bounce back from thier narrow loss last week when they host the Tigers club. Both teams like to attack so this should be a game with plenty of scoring opportunities on offer and excitement for the fans.

The Entrance have been the big improvers of the season. They have recorded wins over fellow top 4 aspirants Norths and Maitland, and secured a draw with Souths. The main area of improvement has come in defence where the team has proved difficult to break down, considering in 2009 they leaked way to many goals. Daniel Carter leads the way for goals in the HCPHL and his form is so good that he had been named in the NSW Country side. Definately the main strike weapon of the club. Brad Smith and the Coonan boys are supporting him well. Coach Ray Winwood-Smith has done a great job with the team. The team will be looking for a win after a narrow defeat to Norths last week. The team fought hard to secure a 4-4 draw but then conceeded a very late PC to go down by the 1 goal.

Tigers have been below par in terms of results, but the side is more then competitive on the park. They make the trip south sitting in 7th spot, and would be dissapointed with thier big loss last weekend to University. They do however have plenty to be positive about. The imports from Brisbane are playing well, and Jason Princehorn has discovered his abilities in this league with a number of quality goals already creditted to him this season. The team hasnt had a win since round 4, but have played a number of good games and could easily be sitting further up the ladder if they had convertted a few draws into wins. The problem for Tigers is thier defence, where they simply conceed too many goals. The Entrance will exploit this unless Tigers can work as a team and plug those gaps that open up during the game.

v The 1:30pm game at the NIHC sees Wests and Souths combat each other. Only 4 points seperates the 2 teams and back in round 3 Wests led Souths going into half time but fell apart in the second stanza to finish well beaten 6-3.

Wests will fancy themselves after some good results thier past 3 games. Draws with Norths and Tigers followed by a win over Gosford last week sees the team in some good form. With Goalkeeper Mark Ross making the ADF team he will be keen to improve and impress. Mitchell Mcglashans return to Wests this season is proving to be  a good decision, he is near the top of the goal scoring charts with 10 strikes to his credit. Joel Markwell and Mitchell Gibbons are also having good seasons and Steve Mina has been contributing well since his return from suspension. A win for wests is crucial as it keeps thier top 4 chances alive, a loss would almost certainly mean they wont make the top 4.

The Lions will be dissapointed with thier efforts last weekend. Rumours suggest they will be looking to bounce back in a big way against Wests, so it could be a very big scoreline on offer this game. The proud club demands better from its HCPHL side and no doubt Coach Vimpani will be looking to restart the seasons campaign. With a squad chock full of State Championship winners, and a number of NSW Country representatives they should prove too strong for Wests. John Fernance and Kyle Bosworth will be the danger men up front as usual and if they fire it could be a spectators treat. If Wests can contain these guys, they will still have to contend with a supporting midfield and a defence that whilst not as strong as it has been in recent years can still punish a side if they turn over thier attack easily. Souths will want to win as they do every game, but know anything less then a win here could see thier top 2 chances evaporate.
Club stalwart john Fernance filed this preview: "After last week’s embarrassing loss to Maitland, South’s will be looking to get their season back on track. South’s had enough early chances to put Maitland away before halftime but were again unable to make the most of their chances. Maitland capitalised on some very sloppy defence and ‘put the game to bed’ in the opening 10 minutes of the second half. Although South’s then sprung into action it was all too little too late.
South’s coach Simon Vimpani was disappointed with the result (to say the least) and has indicated that there will definitely be changes to the line up for this weekend’s matchup with West’s. West’s are a very inconsistent side, but when they are on their game, have shown they are capable of major upsets. Dean Farrow at centre half holds the key to West’s chances. Dean has been playing outstandingly this season and his involvement will need to be limited by Vimpani if South’s are to win. John Mayers and Mitchell McGlashan have also been great for the Rosella’s this year and will be marked tightly by their opposing numbers. South’s welcome back from injury, Australian Country fullback, Tristan Hunt. His combination with Ryan Coulin at the back will be of vital importance for South’s end of season aspirations. Also back in the selection fold this week will be Warwick Smith. Stuart Fletcher and Daniel Edge will be missing from the line up due to injury and Yates Cup commitments in Sydney. South’s line up will remain a mystery, even to the player’s, as selectors attempt to find the right combinations after last week’s dismal performance. One thing is for certain though, whoever the 11 players are that take the field on Sunday, they will be hungry for a win and to make amends for the last two rounds."

v At 3pm University will host struggling Gosford at the NIHC. It could be a tricky game for the students who ware starting thier annual mid season dramas due to Uni holidays and so Gosford could sneak a victory here.

The students have been playing well, with 3 solid victories in thier last 4 games, including a 3-1 win over The Entrance. goalkeeper Nik Sharpe has been inspirational whilst Taylor Jordan and Andrew Nash have been contributing well. The problem however is University Semester break, which has begun. Every year the club suffers at this time of the year across all grades, and the HCPHL is not immune to it. The club has reported that Quentin Pursey, Simon Massey, Matt Barton, nick Croker, Drew cooper and Andrew Nash are all missing from this weekends clash. It means the club gets a chance to test its depth, but with so many 2nd graders also unavailable it remains to be seen how effective they can be. Will be a real shame if the clubs season is derailed because of the holidays.

Uni's problems could be a big bonus for Gosford who are still chasing thier first win this season. The team is playing its first away game since round 7, when they managed a surprise 2-2 draw with the Rams in Maitland. The teams goal scoring abilities are well behind the rest of the competition and they certainly need to find some form in front of goal if they want to improve thier campaign. This game might just be the opportunity they need to build some confidence and push on to finish the season strongly.

Get out and support your club this weekend!