Lett puts Dalefield in final

ON TARGET: Rowan Yeo, scored one of three late goals that gave Dalefield a place in the grand final. PHOTO/FILE

Dalefield coach Willie Schaefer is lauding the character and resolve shown by his side after the 3-2 victory over Harbour City in their Wellington premier division men's hockey match at the National Hockey Stadium on Saturday.

It was by no means the best performance by Dalefield, who finished 13 points ahead of their nearest rivals at the end of the three preliminary rounds, but for sheer guts and tenacity it measured up to anything they had produced before.

The game was clearly Harbour City's to lose when after leading by1-0 at half-time they doubled that advantage in the second half with just 12 minutes left on the clock.

The odds against teams coming back from there at this level are always slight, and the omens were made to look even bleaker for Dalefield when they had a shot rebound off the posts.

"I must admit then to thinking, well maybe this isn't going to be our day," Schaefer said. "It was right at the stage when we needed something to go our way and to see the ball bounce off the posts ... yes, there was a bit of a sinking feeling there."

As history will show, however, that missed opportunity was simply a prelude to a remarkable period of play that saw Dalefield score three goals in the space of eight minutes, two of them by skipper Dane Lett from penalty corners and the other by Rowan Yeo.

"Once that first goal went in we got on a bit of a roll, and we've always been hard to contain when that happens," Schaefer said. "The boys really lifted, that last part; it was great to watch."

There was a nervous edge to Dalefield's play throughout most of the first half, with many of their attacking movements breaking down through passes either being intercepted or at least deflected away by the Harbour City defence.

"We seemed a bit tight and things just didn't flow like we were wanting them to," Schaefer said.

"It was a new experience for a lot of the guys and I think they took a while to get the nerves settled. They were certainly trying hard enough, probably too hard if anything."

The second half saw Dalefield get more rhythm into their game and play often switched quickly from one end of the field to the other as the two teams sought to gain the ascendancy.

The second Harbour City goal would have been the killer blow for most opposition, but not Dalefield. They rose to the occasion magnificently and, in the end, won in style.

Individually it was skipper Dane Lett and Ben van Woerkom who were the standouts for Dalefield.

Lett was an inspirational leader, staying cool and composed no matter what was unfolding around him.

Van Woerkom, meanwhile, showed that all his injury hassles are now behind him with a busy game on attack and defence.

Saturday's fixture was also marked by the big number of Dalefield supporters in the crowd and coach Schaefer said their presence certainly helped over the closing stanzas when Dalefield was on a late sail.

"It was like we were playing at home, the crowd seemed right behind us, hats off to them too."

The other premier division semi-final was an absolute thriller, with Indians and Hutt level at 3-3 after ordinary time and extra time. That took the teams into a shootoff where it was the Indians who prevailed.

The grand final between Dalefield and Indians will be played at the National Hockey Stadium in Wellington next Saturday, at noon. The two sides have met three times this season for a win apiece and a draw.