Seán Cotter previews Surbiton’s trip to Nottingham to play Beeston on Saturday 21 March:

SURBITON’S championship and EuroLeague top-three qualifying ambitions will be at stake this Saturday in Nottingham.

With just four points between the top five clubs, fifth-placed Surbiton travel to second-placed Beeston, who they trail by three points, for their penultimate Slazenger National Premier Division fixture of the season.

The other three clubs in contention - leaders East Grinstead, four points ahead of Surbiton, third-placed Reading and fourth-placed Cannock, ahead by one point and a goals difference of three respectively – are all playing teams in the lower reaches of England’s elite 10-team league, so Surbiton’s clash will be the most critical: especially so since they host East Grinstead in the final round of fixtures on Sunday the next week.

Although the Long Ditton-based club has lost only one game all season, seven draws from its other first 12 fixtures had blunted its aspirations.

But a run of four wins has now fuelled a late charge for honours, the latest a disciplined 4-1 victory over seventh-placed Bowdon from a potential “banana skin” clash in Cheshire on Sunday.

Olympic dragflicker Matt Daly was Surbiton’s hero of the hour, with the phenomenally high penalty corner conversion rate of four goals from five attempts.

The home side, who trailed 3-0 at the interval, scored their only goal, also from a penalty corner, two minutes from time.

(submitted for “Kingston Informer” Friday 20 March, 2009)