The Wolves led 3-0 at halftime after opening the scoring within the first five minutes. Chatham are now at short odds to retain the Manning premiership when the domestic grand final is played in September.

Jayden Ryan laid on the goal for Luke Hough to give Chatham a 1-0 lead and the Wolves continued to apply pressure for the remainder of the first half. The Wolves led 3-0 at the break.

Tigers fought back hard in the second half, but the gulf between the teams was obvious.

Sam Ferguson finished with two goals for Chatham while Reid Bourke added the other.

Both goal keepers – Eamon Smith (Chatham) and Marcelo Castro (Tigers) were outstanding – Smith producing some quality reflex saves. Castro’s performance drew praise from Chatham’s coach Frank Birkefeld.

“He pulled off some fantastic saves – really the score could have blown out if it wasn’t for Marcelo. He had a great game,’’ Birkefeld said.

Ferguson was also also strong for the Wolves, although there were no failures in the side.

Brad Mitchell tried hard for Tigers as did Mark Atkins tried hard, but he was struggling with a knee injury that almost stopped him from playing.

Chatham has dominated Manning hockey for the past five years and Birkefeld said the club has to depth to continue this into the future.

Six teams – including two from the Hastings – contested the premier league which returned this year following a two year absence when the northern clubs withdrew.