New faces set to feature in LGSHA division one squad’s quest to retain women’s country championships title

The Lower Great Southern Hockey Association will feature plenty of fresh faces in its bid to win the CBH Group Women’s Country Championships for the second year running in Perth this weekend. The division one team features returning senior stars Beck Gallimore and Laura Archer, who will be joined by a stack of young players set to make their debut in the competition. The inclusions of Danielle Howson and Zali Spencer will add further experience to the LGSHA top team, while the likes of Tess Wood, Lauren Spinks and Laura Cinanni will add young talent to the mix. LGSHA coach Darren Parkes said this year’s line-up would feature a fresh and exciting crop of players as they tackled four other teams in division one: Busselton, Geraldton, Bunbury and Upper Great Southern. “We’ve got a completely different team. We’ve a few girls from last year and it’s just going to be a case of starting again but we’ll try and work through it,” he said. “It’s a much younger team. “Some people have moved away and had kids so we’ve had to get who we can get, really. “We’re giving a few younger girls a go to see if we can promote the team and get them back into it. “I think all the teams are going to be strong this year.” Parkes said it had been difficult preparing for the annual championships as maintenance on the lights at the Albany hockey turf had prevented the team from training much. The division one team will play their first game against Busselton on Friday at 11.40am, followed by a showdown with Geraldton at 6.05pm. On Saturday the LGSHA will play Bunbury at 11.40am and then clash with Upper Great Southern at 3.20pm in their final qualifying game. The four top teams will go through to the final round, with first and second facing off in the grand final at 2.45pm on Sunday. The teams in third and fourth place will clash in a playoff game at 10.55am on Sunday. The LGSHA will be represented by three teams in total. Their second team will compete in division five against Donnybrook, Ongerup, Eastern Districts, Roe Districts and Warren. The third team in masters division one will compete against Bunbury, East Avon, Eastern Districts, Mortlock and Upper Great Southern. LGSHA DIVISION ONE WOMEN’S TEAM Beck Gallimore, Danielle Howson, Laura Archer, Sarah Gallimore, Annie Judd, Bonnie Crook, Tess Wood, Casey Doak, Laura Cinnani, Bridget Tilse, Lauren Spinks, Jemma Waimaria, Jaimee Shannon, Zali Spencer