LAST MEN’S PREMIER OUTDOOR FIXTURES BEFORE WINTER BREAK

by Seán Cotter 27 November 2009

This Sunday afternoon (29 November) EHL National Premier Division leaders Surbiton take on eighth-placed Hampstead & Westminster at Sugden Road in the last tranche of fixtures before the winter break, taking all ten clubs to one beyond the half-way mark with the first return meetings of the campaign.

Surbiton have already travelled to Paddington Rec where they triumphed 5-2 on Saturday 26 September in the second game of the season. Since then Hampstead & Westminster, this season with Surbiton’s last two year’s consultant coach Todd Williams back in charge, have won two and drawn one of their next seven games to hover uneasily two points above the relegation/promotion play-offspot, but a comfortable six points clear of the bottom automatic relegation position.

Missing from the contest this time round will be Surbiton’s Richard Alexander, Rob Moore and James Tindall and Hampstead’s Dan Fox, in the 18-man squad (together with four from Reading – at home to University of Exeter; three from Loughborough Students – away to Bowdon with one; two from Beeston – away to Cannock with one; and one from East Grinstead, away to Brooklands MU), all representing England at this year’s World Top Six Champions Trophy in Melbourne, who by the time the league action starts will have played their opening fixture against Germany on Saturday at 02.05am (GMT!) and the second, against Spain, at 06.05 (also GMT!) that morning. The other two England squad members are from HGC in Holland.

Surbiton’s men’s and ladies’ first XIs both consolidated their positions at the top of their respective league tables on a splendid day at Sugden Road, Long Ditton, last Saturday (21 November) amidst eight club games on its two artificial pitches as a prelude to the club’s tented dinner dance to celebrate the completion of a century playing at that ground (the club itself started in 1874 – the second oldest in the world – originally playing at Balaclava Road in Surbiton).

At 11.30am the Ladies’ first (of seven club sides) stayed four points clear of Reading 1A with a 4-0 win over eighth-placed (of ten) Harrow. Scorers were Georgie Parker, Helen Grant, Sian Craze and Emma Jones.

Reading 1A (who as a club second team are ineligible for the one promotion spot to the National Conference leagues) did Surbiton a favour by beating joint third-placed Epsom 2-1, dropping Surbiton’s Surrey rivals to nine points in arrears, with Southampton, still six points behind, left as the nearest to thwarting Surbiton’s bid to win the South Clubs’ Women’s Hockey League Division One at the first attempt.

Later on (at 4pm) there was a crowd of almost 200 despite the by then appalling conditions to see the Men’s 1st (of 11 club sides) draw their top of the elite 10-team EHL National Premier Division clash with Reading 1-1.

In driving wind and rain throughout neither side was able to put together any continuous period of controlled hockey and significantly both goals came from set pieces.

Reading’s Warren D’Souza converted a penalty stroke in the 20th minute of the first half, only for Mike Houlihan to follow-in Matt Daly’s rebounded penalty corner four minutes later.

Fortuitously for Surbiton, three of the day’s other four games also ended in draws, so, with all ten teams having played nine fixtures, they continue to lead Reading by two points and East Grinstead by seven, with only Cannock, 6-0 winners at bottom-placed University of Exeter, gaining two points on them to climb to fourth place on 14 points.

Surbiton Ladies complete the first half of their season with a visit to seventh-placed Oxford Hawks on Saturday (28 November, 11.30 am).

Preview from www.surbitonhc.com club website on 27 November plus report from “Surrey Comet” for 27 November 2009