Perth’s Perfect Women Face Their Toughest Test Yet as Brisbane Blaze Come to Town

Nobody has beaten Perth’s women yet. Four games, four wins, three goals conceded. On Saturday afternoon, Brisbane Blaze get their shot at ending that run.

The double-header at Perth Hockey Stadium starts with the women at 2:30pm AWST (11:30am PKT), and the men follow at 4:15pm AWST (1:15pm PKT). It’s a second straight home weekend for the Thundersticks, and they made the first one count. Liné Malan and Sarah Byrnes scored twice each in a 4-0 win over the Melbourne Cobras, and the defence barely gave anything away. Courtney Schonell leads the line with five goals this season, joint top of the scoring charts.

Brisbane won’t be overawed. The Blaze came out of Hobart last week with a shootout win after a 3-3 draw with the Tassie Tigers, Rosie Malone scoring twice and goalkeeper Jordan Bliss saving all four Tigers attempts in the shootout. That’s the kind of resilience that travels. Malone, Steph Kershaw and Tatum Stewart give them goals, and Bliss is in the form of her life. If they can drag Perth into a shootout, they’ve already shown they know how to win one.

For our money, Perth are still favourites. Their defence is the best in the league by a distance, and the Blaze are sixth for a reason. But this is the first time the Thundersticks have faced a side with real momentum since the season started, and a first defeat has to come somewhere.

The men’s game looks just as interesting. Perth have won two straight, coming from 3-3 to beat the Cobras 6-3 last week, with Cambell Geddes and Daykin Stanger scoring twice each. The Blaze led the Tigers until the final quarter last week, and Joel Rintala scored on his first appearance of the season. Brisbane won this fixture 3-1 last year, so there’s a score to settle for the home side. Perth sit fifth, Brisbane sixth, and both need the points with the finals race tightening up.

Earlier on Saturday, NSW Pride’s women beat Canberra Chill 2-0 in Sydney, so the women’s ladder is already moving before Perth even start. Round 5 wraps up on Sunday in Bendigo, where the Melbourne Cobras host Adelaide Fire and both men’s sides are still chasing their first win.

Watch both games live and free on 7plus in Australia, or on the Hockey One Global Pass overseas.