Warrnambool export Madi Ratcliffe is quietly confident she can contribute in a Hockey One finals double-header, after getting through her injury return unscathed.
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It's always a pretty tough game.
- Madi Ratcliffe
The 25-year-old - returning from nine-weeks out with a broken leg - scored four goals for Hockey Club Melbourne as it sealed the minor premiership with a 10-3 rout of Tasmania last week.
Melbourne now faces Brisbane in a semi-final on Saturday in Bendigo and should they prevail, a grand final the following day awaits. If the result doesn't go the side's way, it will play off for third before the decider.
Ratcliffe, who is based in Perth, said she was looking forward to the occasion.
"It should be good," she said.
"The girls beat them throughout the season.
"It was a close match and I think they're always quite strong so it's always a pretty tough game."
"I think we've got a really good group of girls, a little bit younger than what I've played with previously but that's exciting as well and (there's) plenty of confidence going in."
The 2018 Commonwealth Games silver medallist was happy to make her comeback and have an impact but confessed she was a "little bit underdone" in terms of her return from injury.
"From a soft-tissue perspective I was pretty sore," she said.
"I fractured my leg, it would have been probably nine-weeks ago when I played and they initially said 12 weeks.
"So I accelerated the rehab a little bit."
Ratcliffe said she always aimed to return in time for the Hockey One finals but knew it wasn't guaranteed.
"I don't think I would have pushed it if the doctors had said it's probably not stable or strong enough to go but I think it was the week before we played, the doctors said 'you could probably have a crack'."
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