BACK TO “SUNDAY AT SUGDEN ROAD” FOR SURBITON SUPPORTERS

by Seán Cotter 16 October 2009

This Sunday (18 October), despite having reached their fifth England Hockey League National Premier Division game of the season, Surbiton men’s 1st XI play only their second home fixture and the first on the club’s traditional “after church and lunch” second day of the weekend (push off 2pm).

The squad returned from last Saturday evening’s fixture (5.30pm, 10 October) in deepest Sussex against reigning champions East Grinstead still “top of the league” after a pulsating 5-5 draw thanks to James Tindall’s two point-saving strikes in the 61st and 69th of the game’s 70 minutes which left them one point above last season’s league runners-up Reading, whose fixture was postponed so they could make the trip to Barcelona to play in the first round of this season’s EuroLeague competition (9 to 11 October).

This Sunday’s visitors to Sugden Road are Beeston, the club scheduled to be hosting Reading last Saturday, who, as a result, also have a game in hand on Surbiton, and currently lie seventh on four points.

Last season the Nottinghamshire club finished third in England’s elite ten-team league (to Surbiton’s fifth), so gaining the last qualification place for this season’s EuroLeague, in which they and East Grinstead travel to Paris to play in the second weekend of pool matches from 23 to 25 October.

Honours were shared last season with Surbiton first beating the Bees 4-0 at Sugden Road on 22 November (2008) but then losing 1-2 at Highfields in the league’s penultimate fixture (21 March), a result that finally ended Surbiton’s dreams of returning to Europe after a six years’ absence.

Tallking after his two dramatic late goals, Surbiton’s 26-year-old England and Great Britain striker Tindall was not happy his team had got themselves into the position of needing them.

“We made really hard work of it. But at least we kept going right to the end and at last started to get round the back of them which gave me the goalscoring opportunities."

“On balance, however, we’re delighted with this result away to last season’s league champions.”

But it was his fellow international Matt Daly’s brace that kept Surbiton in the hunt in the first half. First he gave them the lead and then evened up the interval score at 2-2 with penalty corner conversions in the 4th and 29th minutes.

In between East Grinstead’s player/coach Mark Pearn and Ben Payne had first equalised and then put their side ahead with open-play goals in the 23rd and 26th minutes.

Unfortunately for Surbiton, Day had to go off injured just before the interval. Even so captain Tim Pinnock put them back in front four minutes into the second half, reverse-sticking into goal from a prone position in the circle after good approach work from Richard Alexander.

But South African international Gareth Carr first brought the score level again with a 52nd-minute penalty corner conversion and then the home side surged ahead with open-play goals in the 56th and 60th minutes from Pearn and Payne.

That seemed to have won the game. However, with the home side attempting to run out time, first Ben Tibble and then Rob Moore made attacks down the right to set up Tindall’s two point-saving strikes.

Preview for www.surbitonhc.com plus report for “Surrey Comet” and “Surrey Advertiser Elmbridge Edition” 16 October 2009