The 2021 West Central West HART Regional League took place over three weekends at PCYC Orange with fourteen teams from around the West Central West region competing within three divisions.
In Division 3, Group 14 held top of the table followed by Warren, Parkes & District and Cowra completing the top 4.
In the first semi-final match Group 14 powered away with a strong start and did not let up, defeating Cowra 53-20. The second semi-final between Warren and Parkes & District was a well fought game amongst both teams. Warren pulled away with a 35-24 win, leading them into the Grand Final against Group 14.
The third place play-off for Division 3 was between Parkes & District and Cowra. Parkes pulled out a big lead in the second quarter, Cowra fought back hard scoring 10 to Parkes 5 in the last quarter but it wasn’t enough with Parkes taking third place 44-38.
In the Division 3 Grand Final, Group 14 took on Warren. The first half of the game was neck and neck with Group 14 heading into half time with a one goal lead. The third quarter seemed to be Warren’s demise, Group 14 leading 27-19. Though Warren fought back hard, winning the last quarter 12-10, Group 14 took out Division 3 with a 37-31 win.
Division 2 saw Orange remain undefeated throughout the minor rounds placing them on top of the ladder. Warren followed close behind losing only two matches in the minor rounds, followed by Bathurst and Mudgee rounding out the top four teams headed into the finals series.
The first semi-final match up was between Orange and Mudgee. Although Mudgee put up a good fight, Orange drew a little further away each quarter leading them to a win of 68-46. The second semi-final match saw Warren and Bathurst go head-to-head, fighting for their spot in the Grand Final. Only one team could come out victorious with Warren taking the win by just 3 goals.
In the third place play-off for Division 2, Bathurst took the lead early on and held strong leading to a 65-54 win over Mudgee.
The Division 2 Grand Final was a nail biter as Warren took the lead against the undefeated Orange in the first quarter. While Warren held a strong lead, the undefeated Orange brought it back to within three goals at times and a 15-12 win in the last quarter. However, Warren fought hard to hold onto their lead, winning 49-42.
Division 1 saw some well-fought battles and great matches with Orange managing to remain undefeated through two days of minor rounds, leaving them sitting on top of the table followed by Bathurst, Forbes and Dubbo closely rounding out the top four.
The first semi-final match was Orange against Dubbo. Orange proved why they went through undefeated with a big lead from the first quarter and winning the match 61-32. The second semi final match saw Bathurst and Forbes go head-to-head striving for their place in the Division 1 Grand Final. It was a close battle with the lead going back and forth between both teams and Bathurst leading 48-46 going into the final quarter. Forbes fought hard but Bathurst held strong, edging out to win the match 63-58.
The first half of the Division 1 Grand Final was tightly contested between Orange and Bathurst. It was quarter three where Orange truly proved they are the team to beat, stretching to a 17-goal lead. The final result saw Orange remain undefeated and walk away the West Central West HART Regional League Champions with a final score of 60-37.
View full results here
HART Regional League is not possible without the team of dedicated umpires officiating matches over the thee weekends. Thank you to all the team in white and a special thank you to the Umpire Allocators Michael Rudd, Shelly Hutchinson and Michelle Ensor who worked with the umpires throughout the competition.
West Central West HART Regional League Coaches also had the opportunity to access invaluable mentoring during the first week, thank you to Jill McIntosh, an ex-Australian Diamond Head Coach, who was on hand to offer assistance to Coaches.
