Bulimba forward Jarrod Cutler and QUT goalkeeper leap high to contest the
ball, while Bulimba's Liam Brown and QUT's Chris Graham and Mark Agnew
await the outcome.

Bulimba's Ben Flemming takes on QUT's Matt Cody.

BRISBANE HOCKEY LEAGUE - ROUND 11

Labrador 5 (Adam Byrnes, Brad Puleosi, Tom Kavanagh, Andrew Ward, Joe Reardon) defeated University of Queensland 2 (Timbi Poon 2) at the State Hockey Centre, Colmslie.

Labrador re-affirmed its premiership credentials, and dealt University of Queensland’s playoff hopes a potentially fatal blow, after coming from behind to down the students.  After recently holding defending premiers Commercial to a draw, Labrador looked to have let that good form at the Gold Coast when they trailled University 2-0 after five minutes.  Timbi Poon gave the Redmen a dream start, beating Labrador goalkeeper Tyrone Melrose with two rocket-like shots from his side’s opening two scoring chances.  With University defender Kieran Powyer and goalkeeper Adam Dinsdale making crucial saves, and Labrador striker Brad Puleosi putting a shot over the net, the match looked destined to favour the students.  But Labrador blew University off the park in the second half.  Adam Byrnes and Puleosi scored to draw the Tigerstix level, then Tom Kavanagh gave his side the lead with 20 minutes left to play.  Andrew Ward gave his side a vital two goal buffer five minutes later, with Joe Reardon capped the comeback win with a goal two minutes before fulltime.

Pine Rivers St Andrews-Norths 3 (Craig Richards 2, Nick Bolton) defeated Redcliffe Leagues 2 (Marcus McKinnon, Ian Schulz) at Burringbar Park, Chermside.

Pine Rivers St Andrews-Norths kept alive their hopes of a first finals appearance in eight years with victory in an exciting local derby against Redcliffe Leagues.  The Saints opened the scoring after 19 minutes when fullback Nick Bolton scored a rare goal, before Marcus McKinnon equalised for Redcliffe Leagues three minutes later.  Redcliffe Leagues’ Shane Kenny and Saints’ Ryan Gibbs, both playing against their former clubs, each received yellow cards for poor tackles as the match intensified.  After Brent Garske had consecutive shots denied by the post and outstretched Redcliffe Leagues goalkeeper Daniel Pink, Saints teammate Craig Smith put a penalty stroke wide of the net.  Five minutes later Craig Richards helped Garske’s shot into the roof of the net, but the scores were again tied after Ian Schulz scored from an expertly worked penalty corner two minutes later.  Richards restored Saints’ lead with seven minutes left, before his side finished the game with nine men in a calamitous finale.  Gibbs was marched for dissent, but Cameron Richards wrongly thought he had been sent off and also left the field.

Bulimba 15 (Jarrod Cutler 4, Liam Brown 4, Luke Paine 3, Dean Butler 2, Kyle Richardson, Duncan Mahony) defeated QUT 0 at the State Hockey Centre, Colmslie.

Bulimba strikers Jarrod Cutler and Liam Brown both scored four goals as the Bulls gave their for and against record a massive boost, while handing QUT a humiliating defeat - the worst of the club’s brief existence in the top grade.  QUT looked sharp in patches of the first half, making a good fist of the game after conceding an early goal.  But a flurry of four Bulimba goals scored within seven minutes - to Brown, Kyle Richardson, Dean Butler and Luke Paine - put the match out of QUT’s reach by halftime.  Two weekends without a game didn’t help QUT fix their defensive deficiencies, with the ease of many of Bulimba’s 10 second half goals embarrassing the Ibis tacklers.  The Bulls’ relentless onslaught saw them score a goal every two minutes between the 39th and 53rd minutes of the lop-sided contest.  Despite having conceded 85 goals this year, QUT aren’t as defensively brittle as the winless City United team from 1989-90.  In 1990 they conceded 147 goals from 18 matches, a season after letting in 197 goals from 27 games.

Easts 9 (Brad Mathers 3, Jarrod Black 2, Treva Mills 2, Todd Watson, Darran Bisley) defeated Valley 1 (Matthew Denning) at the State Hockey Centre, Colmslie.

An understrength Easts side demonstrated why the Tigers’ player depth is the envy of rival clubs as they humbled Valley.  Despite six young stars - Tim Bates, Jason Wilson, Jacob Webber, Matt Gohdes, Ben McCarthy and Jacob Whetton - playing in Darwin with the Queensland Under-21 team, and George Clutton, Michael Bates and Simon Mills also unavailable, Easts won easily to make their upset 4-3 loss to Valley last August a distant memory.  The Tigers’ reliable back-up players helped their team to a 4-0 halftime lead, with eight of Easts’ eventual nine goals coming from open field play.  Jarrod Black and Treva Mills both had two goals each by the 43 minute mark, while Brad Mathers registered his second hat-trick of the season with six minutes left to play.  Easts have now scored 74 goals from 11 premiership matches this season, which has them on track to top their club record 107 goals in a season set in 2006.  However, they are some way from eclipsing South West United’s massive total of 135 goals from 18 games, set in 1993.

Commercial 6 (David Brain 2, Adam Barry 2, Daniel McInally, Kye Hawgood) defeated United 2 (Matt Freeman, Adam McClelland) at Burringbar Park, Chermside.

United’s growing reputation was further enhanced when the Kedron Wavell-South West United joint venture side made reigning champions Commercial work extra hard for victory in front of a healthy crowd.  United stunned the Cobras early when Matt Freeman found the back of the net after just five minutes.  Commercial rookie Daniel McInally came off the bench to score his first top-grade goal, a classy deflection, to tie up the game 1-1 after 20 minutes.  A perfect performance from set plays saw the Cobras score four goals from as many penalty corner attempts in the second half.  Fullback Adam Barry scored the first of his two goals four minutes after halftime, before a field goal to Kye Hawgood with 20 minutes left gave Commercial a 3-1 lead.  The Cobras extinguished United’s fighting spirit when David Brain scored twice in four minutes, from the same penalty corner variation, to give his side a four-goal lead with 12 minutes remaining.  United’s Adam McClelland scored a late goal, after good lead-up work by Belema Dede, before Barry scored again on fulltime.

POINTS:

Easts 33, Commercial 25 *, Bulimba 22, Labrador 20, Redcliffe Leagues 16, Pine Rivers St Andrews-Norths 15, United 11, University of Queensland 8, Valley 6 *, QUT 1.

* Denotes game in hand

LEADING GOAL SCORERS:

14  -  Jason Wilson (Easts)
12  -  David Brain (Commercial)
      -  Tobias Figura (Valley)
      -  James McAlpine (Redcliffe Leagues)
11  -  Brad Puleosi (Labrador)
10  -  Darran Bisley (Easts)
  9  -  Cale Kramer (Commercial)
      -  Duncan Mahony (Bulimba)
      -  Adam McClelland (United)
      -  Ian Schulz (Redcliffe Leagues)
  8  -  Hamish Baron (University of Queensland)
      -  Tim Bates (Easts)
      -  Liam Brown (Bulimba)
      -  Mark Harris (Labrador)
      -  Luke Paine (Bulimba)

University's Sam Burns hits through the Labrador defence.

University's Anthony Kirk prepares to tackle Labrador's Tom Kavanagh.

United's Adam McClelland puts pressure on Commercial's Paul Nichols.

United's Belema Dede setting up a goal for teammate Adam McClelland.

Compiled by Lee Oliver.