EUROPEAN CUP AND EXETER UNI VISIT SURBITON THIS SATURDAY

by Seán Cotter 2 October 2009

Local youngsters – and older enthusiasts - will be able to get their photographs taken with the European Cup at the Long Ditton home of Surbiton Hockey Club tomorrow (Saturday) afternoon.

They will also be able to watch the Long Ditton-based club’s five England internationals who helped win it in action against visiting University of Exeter in their team’s first home EHL National Premier Division fixture of the season, starting at 4pm.

The newly-promoted Conference West champions have lost both their league openers, as well as a pre-season friendly 2-5 to their hosts at Sugden Road at the beginning of the month.

Afterwards the youngsters – some of whom will be taking part in an under-10 tournament on the adjacent pitch - will have the chance to meet their heroes, see their medals and get their autographs.

It is all part of a special Fun Day for a club that fields eleven men’s and seven women’s sides each weekend as well as catering for some 450 young colts’ players on Sundays.

Its flagship side, the men’s 1st XI who play in England’s elite 10-team National Premier Division, made it two wins out of two with a 5-2 win at Paddington Rec against north London rivals Hampstead & Westminster the previous Saturday.

But the club’s Director of Coaching, Brett Garrard, who plays at centre back, was not happy with his team conceding twice from 5-0 up with nine minutes to play amidst a helter-skelter of five goals in eleven minutes.

Said Brett, who has also been part-time hockey coach at St John’s School in Leatherhead since 2005: “We had a good first half to lead 2-0 at the break on an excellent new pitch, but made it difficult for ourselves with some indifferent play after the interval.”

Surbiton’s European gold medallists James Tindall and Matt Daly notched a penalty corner apiece in the 7th and 14th minutes from six first-half attempts.

But the change in momentum was emphasised in the second half when the home team, after none in the first period, forced 6-to-1 set-piece awards, the fourth converted by former Surbiton player Andy Cornick on 61 minutes and the last by David Eakins three minutes later.

Luckily for Surbiton, Daly had already scored from their only such award of the half, two minutes after Mike Houlihan’s 54th-minute tap in and one before Tindall’s crashing cross-shot open-play strike made it three goals in four minutes for the visitors.

Copy for “Surrey Comet” and “Surrey Advertiser Elmbridge Edition” 2 October 2009