Men's Hockey League Week 7 2022 Review

The Men's Hockey League saw plenty of action in week seven as Holcombe ended Wimbledon's 100% record, Belper picked up their first points of the season in Division 1 North, and Southgate edged Team Bath Buccaneers in a Div 1 South top of the table clash.

In the Conferences, Richmond hit seven past Bromley & Beckenham, Harleston Magpies earned their first win of the season, Leeds opened a 4-point lead at the top of Conference North and Plymouth Marjons and Cardiff University produced an 8-goal thriller.

Jade Bloomfield of Hockey World News looks over the weekend's action.

Old Georgians travelled to East Sussex on Saturday evening, beating East Grinstead 5-0 for the third consecutive time at Saint Hill. Matt Brown opened the scoring from the penalty spot in the 26th minute before Alexander Fraser doubled the lead 8 minutes later. Sam ward (38) and Matt Brown (43) extended the lead further, both scoring penalty corners in the third quarter before Lee Morton (49) wrapped up the goals in the fourth.

Surbiton and the University of Nottingham met on Saturday evening in a one-sided affair as Surbiton ran out 4-0 victors. Rob Farrington (28, 42) scored a brace from open play before Tom Sorsby made it three in the 52nd minute. With six minutes left to play, Gareth Furlong scored a trademark penalty corner to give the home side their sixth consecutive win.

An exciting start to the match at Holcombe Park saw Holcombe take a two-goal lead versus the only side with a 100% record at the beginning of the day, Wimbledon. Nick Bandurak was the star of the show, putting his side ahead in the 6th minute before doubling his tally and the lead in the 18th. Wimbledon responded immediately after the second goal, with Peter Scott (20) pulling Wimbledon back into the game. An exciting end-to-end match was levelled in the 57th minute when Noah Darlington ensured the South West London club would maintain their unbeaten status and secure a share of the points.

Hampstead & Westminster move to within one point of Holcombe after beating the University of Exeter to maintain their perfect win rate in Devon. Sam French was the first on the scoresheet in the 2nd minute before Kei Kaeppeler (10), Hywel Jones (37) and James Oates (57) all added to the scoresheet for Hampstead.

Beeston were the big movers in the division this week. Welcoming Brooklands Manchester University to the Nottingham Hockey Centre for a bottom-of-the-table clash, Jamie Golden left things until after the final whistle to score from a penalty corner to break the deadlock. With the game's last play, Golden fired home to give Beeston the all-important three points that saw them avoid their first goalless draw since March 2017.

Oxted met Reading for the first time in the Premier Division in a vital match that both sides avoid defeat to stay in contention for the top six for Phase Two of the league. Matt Barnett (36) opened the scoring straight after the halftime break, catching Reading off guard to give Oxted the lead. With the match looking like it would end in a home win, Reading won a penalty corner with seconds to spare. Fred Newbold, fresh from the Sultan of Johor Cup in Malaysia, immediately returned to goal-scoring ways for Reading, firing past the Oxted defence to secure a share of the points.

Belper picked up their first win of the season versus the Deeside Ramblers, moving them off the foot of the table. At the opposite end of the table in Division 1 South, Southgate lined up against Team Bath Buccaneers in a top-of-the-table clash. Southgate, winning by the narrowest of margins, took a six-point lead in the division while their visitors Team Bath, fell to fifth.

Richmond was in great scoring form, hitting seven past Bromley & Beckenham in Conference East. Harleston Magpies earned their first win of the season in the Midlands, beating the University of Birmingham 2's 2-1. The Conference North saw Leeds open a four-point advantage at the top, while in the West, bottom side Cardiff University produced a great performance to force a 4-4 draw with Plymouth Marjons.