THE Peel Rebels went down by only one goal in a tightly contested match against Fremantle on the weekend.
Under the guidance of new coach Adam Williamson, the Rebels held on with a solid first half but paid for some minor lapses in defence to finish by the end of the second term with 4-3.
The second half was dominated by Fremantle who were in the Rebel’s attacking half for most of the 35 minutes.
The defence was under constant pressure however the effort by goalkeeper Jarrod Jones and the desperate play by the team over the ground saw them rally two goals scored in the final five minutes to almost even the score.
Ben Stam, Liam Smith and Paul Morrissy each scored goals for the Rebels.
The Rebels Provisional ones side had more luck to continue their successful season with a 3-1 win against the Joondalup Lakers.
The team started quietly while backline player Nathan Germano held off the opposition by half time.
Coach Jeff Morrissy reworked the midfield after the break as Thorben Burmeister and Mark Sergi controlled the midfield transition.
Despite numerous missed shots on goal the Rebels pulled together to take another comfortable win.
The Willowbridge women’s team celebrated their first win for the season with a 2-0 score over Suburban Riverside.
In an unusual game, most of both halves were played in the Rebel’s defence.
However Peel broke clear several times as Kim Nicholson worked hard in the forward line and helped the team to make the most of their opportunities to get two goals in the first half.
Roxanne Webb was solid in defence while Jess Watts and Katy Vipond continued to serve the team well.
The Rebels Alliance men’s team fielded its youngest side for the season and despite a valiant effort the team went down 4-1 to Fremantle.
With a uneven mix of younger recruits and more experienced players, coach Dave Long said that the team was still able to perform well under the conditions offered.
Best players on the day were Nathan and Darryl Squibb and Ben Day.
The junior Rebels girls played on Friday night at the Perth Stadium and were part of a special effort put on by Hockey WA in memory for hockey player Lizzy Watkins, who died the previous weekend in a bizarre and tragic accident on field.
All Hockey fixtures in the week held a minutes silence as a mark of respect for the Watkins family and their sad loss.
The girls played a top team in Victoria Park and although going down 3-2 , they showed they can match it with the best young under 17 sides in Perth.
The game started at a furious pace and it took until the 22 minute mark of the first half before Jordan Watts broke through and scored their first goal.
Victoria Park who had a few state squad members in their side did not take too kindly to the upstart from the Peel side and came out after half time with more determination.
Within a few minutes three goals were slammed on the board before the Peel girls knew what was going on.
The Rebels were just able to regain composure and under the leadership of Brit McNabb in the goals and Tessa Drew, Bree Johnson, Zoe Stewart-Yates and Tiffany Mullins, the Victoria Park side onslaught was slowed.
The Rebels boys continued their solid start to the season with a tight 2-1 win over Westside Wolves. Many players made a contribution to the win.
Tristen Pateman made a desperate save on the line while Jacob Fisher was another strong player who tackled hard and passed early.
The first goal was set up by Marshall Pusey whose great pass to enabled Hamish Puttman to put the ball in the net.
The second goal was less perfect but out of a goal circle scramble Luke Abbott got hold of a loose ball to tomahawk another goal.
