Hockey: Semifinal hope 'pretty slim'

Northland men's chances of making the semifinals of this year's NHL competition are hanging by a thread after a narrow 2-3 defeat by Central at Lloyd Elsmere Park in Auckland.

After taking a 1-6 hammering at the hands of Canterbury on Saturday, Northland needed a win against Central yesterday to promote their chances of making the top four but they surrendered an early lead after Dion Watt had put them ahead with a field goal.

A defensive lapse saw them punished with a goal just before the break before Central hit them twice in the third quarter until a drag flick by Aussie import Tom Ryan sparked a late comeback.

"Unless we can beat Capital, Midlands and Southern in our next three games then our chances are pretty slim of making the semis now," assistant coach Vicki Gribble said.

"They always were pretty slim to be fair," she added. "But having pulled out a great game against North Harbour last week, we allowed ourselves great expectations."

Unfortunately the win gave the side the chance to think about outcomes rather than processes and she believed that was why they put in a below par performance against Canterbury.

"We were pretty close yesterday but if you make mistakes at this level you're punished pretty quickly," she said.

Unfortunately for Northland they failed to take the few chances that they were given to close up the scores. Northland goalkeeper James Bailey was once again in the thick of the action at the heart of the defence and made a number of fine saves to keep his side in the match.

Mark Cromie Holden Northland Women also struggled to make up for lapses in their game and recorded two losses over the weekend. They were defeated 3-0 by Central on Saturday and 6-2 by Canterbury on Sunday.

The tournament continues for both teams today, with tough matches against heavily favoured Capital sides.