HC Melbourne make history with Liberty H1 Premiership triumph

Our HCM Men have made history over the weekend, winning the Liberty Hockey One League title for the first time! With a hattrick from Nathan Ephraums, goals from Josh Simmonds and Connar Otterbach we firmly cemented a 5-2 win against the Canberra Chill.

Proud is an understatement, and we thank the fans for all the support throughout the season! Watching on 7Plus, coming down to the State Hockey Centre or travelling to away games, every part counts. We will be enjoying this one for a while!

A hat-trick from one of Australia’s best players has helped HC Melbourne win the Liberty Hockey One League for the very first time in its history, beating Canberra 5-2 in Hobart.

Heading into the Finals second on the standings behind Canberra, the Grand Final was set to be a thriller between the two top teams in the League.

It wasn’t long before returning Kookaburras star Nathan Ephraums took charge of the final, delivering a fine field goal just after the first quarter break to put Melbourne ahead.

Back from playing overseas after the Paris Olympic Games, he quickly continued to make his mark delivering a hattrick in the third quarter to hand his side a commanding 3-0 lead.

But Canberra’s Ben Staines, who has had a stellar 2024 Liberty Hockey One League season, soon kept the League toppers in with a chance as he put away a solid penalty stroke.

In the same minute, Jesse Absolom clawed back the deficit to one with his penalty conversion before Melbourne’s big game experience carried through until the final five minutes, where Connar Otterbach and Josh Simmonds’s goal and conversion finalised the scores to claim a 5-2 win and their first-ever title.

MEN’S GRAND FINAL

HC MELBOURNE: 5 (Nathan Ephraums 16″, 33″, 33″ (FG, FG, FC), Connar Otterbach 54″ (FG), Josh Simmonds 54″ (FC))

CANBERRA CHILL: 2 (Ben Staines 38″ (PS), Jesse Absolom 38″ (FC))