BATHURST City have a chance to go a full game clear of local rivals Souths when they meet for their second women’s Premier League Hockey clash of the season this afternoon at Bob Roach Field.

Last year’s grand finalists were too strong for Souths in their first derby this year, winning 4-1.

A 7-1 thrashing at the hands of Lithgow Panthers last Saturday means Souths go into today’s match in questionable form.

The same can’t be said for City, who have dropped just one game to date.

According to experienced star Jess Hotham, speed will be an important factor in trying to inflict some more pain on Souths’ defence.

“We have a lot of pace up front in our squad, that’s something that comes with a young squad and we are going to have to use that more than anything else,” Hotham said.

“It was a big surprise to see the score in their game last week, they were in second going into that game and to see them let in seven goals, I thought they must have had some players missing, but I don’t think that was the case.

“We had a good win against Souths earlier in the year, but I don’t think that matters too much. They are a good team and they’ve shown that by only losing a few games this year and being a local derby, I don’t think the result against Lithgow will effect them.”

When Hotham joined City from Souths almost a decade ago, she was part of the younger group in a team made strong by experienced players.

Now she is one of just a handful of City stars who could be considered veterans. Throughout that transition her side have been at or close to the top of the competition.

And they aren’t going anywhere just yet.

“Back when I first came here, it was a very mature team, two local clubs had just come together and there was a lot of experience across the entire group,” she said.

“Now it is totally different and we have this huge group of young girls who all want to win, who want to learn, and who are doing it very quickly.

“There is almost a certain sort of drive that kind of gets bred into players once they’ve spent some time with us, they get into the same training habits as the older players and have that desire to win.”

Hotham also gave a valuable insight into the contribution new coach Lisa Quinn has made since she came onboard in the role at the start of the season.

“Lisa has been in and around hockey for a long time, she was my coach in the NSW under 21s going back a while, so I’ve had a good relationship with her for a long time,” Hotham said.

“Being a teacher, she knows exactly how to communicate her message to the younger girls and that is a major asset. 

“The other coaches we’ve had at City have all brought a lot with them and their knowledge was fantastic, but having someone who can communicate it the way Lisa does is a real luxury.”

City meet Souths at 1.50pm today.