Thomas' strike came with just over eight minutes remaining and it meant Souths has started the season with back-to-back wins for the first time since 2014.

"She's good, she'll really attack the ball. We lost Shannon Fisher in the off-season and she's sort of replaced her in a way - not the experience, but she's got the mongrel in her to have a crack when she's up in the circle," Souths coach Chris Stafford said.

Ex-Services had four key players missing for the clash - Ali and Lilly Baker plus Sarah and Chloe Barrett - and made the trip to Bathurst with no reserves.

It meant that in the main they played a defensive brand of hockey and while they were guilty of turning over possession too easily at times, coach Darryl Kennewell saw improvement in the second half.

"Souths put them under the pump at the start, they kept pressing up on them and the girls just didn't hold their head right and they kept trying to go the long ball," Kennewell said.

"We talked about it after the first quarter and it didn't seem to sink in, but once they had that break at half-time I really stressed to them to just do your own job and make sure you are in the game right until the 15 minutes, which we did.

"We are really working on controlling that middle third and our 25. If we can do that, then we stay in games and get a breakaway - that's what we did today."

Sam Porter, who scored the winner against Bathurst City in the opening round, helped Souths to have some reward for a dominant first half.

While the two blues controlled possession and played much of the first two quarters in their attacking zone, Ex-Services got bodies behind the ball and scrambled in defence to prevent that from reflecting on the scoreboard.

Finally, a minute out from half-time, a well-positioned Porter slotted one in for Souths.

Ex-Services came close to drawing level in the opening minute of the third quarter - Souths goalkeeper Kate Brown making a brilliant sliding save.

But two minutes out from three-quarter-time as Ex-Services again launched an attacking raid, they got the equaliser they were hoping for.

Eilysh Wellham got her stick to a cross which was blasted into the circle and the ball deflected over the head of Brown.

With the game locked at 1-all Souths renewed their efforts, earning two short corners in the first five minutes.

But it was following a long corner as the ball spilled to Thomas on the right post that the match winner came.

Stafford knows there is still room for his side to improve, but was happy with how players adjusted throughout the contest.

"We had four players there today who didn't play they first game then another couple of players who were there that first game but played different positions .... so really was like another first game for us," he said.

"We stuck to our structures in the first half, we probably pushed up a little bit too high once we started dominating. It was just a matter of adjusting again.

"Two get two wins up against City and Servies is obviously a good way to start the year."

In the weekend's other results CYMS produced an inspired performance to take down Bathurst City in a rematch of last year's minor semi-final. The green and golds won that elimination final 4-3 and maintained bragging rights over the competition heavyweights, this time winning 4-nil.

Confederates produced a promising effort at Lithgow in the toughest women's Premier League Hockey trip of all, going down 1-nil to Panthers.