It wasn’t terribly long ago that Shepparton Strikers looked, by far, the pre-eminent force across local hockey.
Following another defeat to cross-town rival SYC in round 10 A-grade action on Saturday, though, a changing of the guard appears well and truly in progress.
Goals from Alex Dowe and Matthew Irwin — his league-best 13th for the season, more than doubling the next best tally — secured a comfortable 2-0 triumph for SYC, its eighth of season 2024.
Now eight points clear of second-placed Echuca Moama, SYC’s Ryan Mackenzie beamed with pride in outlining the atmosphere coming to the fore at his club.
“We’ve certainly had a couple of good results, but in saying that, Strikers have had a forfeit or two in that time,” Mackenzie said.
“We’ve been lucky enough to have an exceptional club culture in terms of having full teams available, and that’s led us to have several wins on the trot.
“It’s been awesome in terms of dedication from all members of the SYC team. It’s been amazing having everyone front up week in and week out.
“It’s showing at the pointy end of the season with wanting to clear ourselves on top of the ladder.”
Mackenzie stopped short of asserting his side’s top premiership credentials despite the sizeable gap on the table, with Strikers now stuck third at 15 points following a pair of recent forfeits.
One thing is noted without question, though — his desire to put an end to the local rivals’ stranglehold on the pennant.
“With finals just around the corner, I wouldn’t be able to put us as favourites,” Mackenzie said.
“Come grand final day, I could see it being an extremely tight contest and it’ll come down to who makes a better day of it.
“In previous years, we had a lot of players doubling up between B-grade and A-grade, but we’ve been able to field full teams in both of our grades, which just goes to show the cohesion.
“We’re seeing the rise in attendance at training; I know the B-grade side wants to defend that premiership this year as well.
“We’re looking forward to hopefully being able to break the hearts of Strikers and break that premiership win streak.”
Echuca Moama was able to overtake Strikers in second spot following a resounding 5-1 win over bottom side Mooroopna on Saturday, led by a brace from Ashley Phipps.
In the women’s draw, Echuca Moama stayed perfect with 12 wins from 12 after a hard-fought 3-2 triumph over Strikers, while Benalla was able to move off the bottom courtesy of goals to Heidi Perry and Ebony Jennings in a 2-1 victory over Euroa.
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