Seven Different Clubs Will Compete At The England Hockey Premier Division Finals This Weekend

Seven different clubs will compete at the England Hockey Premier Division Finals at Surbiton Hockey Club this weekend, as Finals Weekend returns for the first time since 2019, report Rod Gilmour of The Hockey Paper

Hosts Surbiton will be looking for double success at Sugden Road as the only club with two sides vying for the season-ending men's and women's double this weekend. If that's not enough, Surbiton women will also be gunning for a ninth successive league title to underline their status as one of British sport’s most successful club teams.

Earlier this season Surbiton won the bidding to host Finals Weekend. The event is the culmination of a new league format agreed by teams and a move away from finals being staged at Lee Valley Hockey and Tennis Centre. “We want to make it a celebration of club hockey at a club venue,” says Beckie Herbert, the former GB international who looks after Surbiton’s media and communications. 

Finals Weekend at Surbiton HC will see a marquee, with outside bar and catering alongside what the club hopes are hundreds watching the top-level action, and adding to their roster of hosting big events following the EuroHockey Club Cup at Sugden Road in 2018.

“We have got the experience of it,” says Andy Powdrell, Surbiton’s club president. “It’s a privilege to the club that we’ve got this.”

Surbiton women aiming high

“I’ve reflected this week on when we hosted the European Clubs,” admits Brett Garrard, coach of Surbiton’s all-conquering women’s team, who have won every title since the 2013/14 season. "The club will do a great job and with the infrastructure, the new pitches and our plans, Surbiton is in a great position to put on the finals.

“The fact that both Surbiton men and women are still in it will hopefully draw the club together. To have it at the club adds both pressure and real excitement.”

The GB Olympian says it’s been a “long and tough season” following the restructured league phase. As such, Garrard admits that he wasn’t able to focus on his side’s Finals Day tilt until the final day of Phase 3. And there will be a big obstacle in the form of Hampstead & Westminster when Surbiton kick off the women's semi-finals at 1pm on Saturday.

He says: “Hampstead have come into form at the right time, they have some dangerous players in a one-off game and we have to perform. The pressure is on and I’m really looking forward to how we go.”

Asked about the perennial champion’s title success, Garrard remains coy as to what he has achieved with Surbiton over the last decade.

“I try not to mention the word winning,” he admits. “The last few years have posed some challenges in league structures and coming out of Covid. My philosophy has been to try not to get caught up in discussion. You wait to see what the challenge and rules are in front of you and come up with a plan to do the best you can. The squad has made great progress and whatever gets afforded to us at the end of it is what we deserve.”

Surbiton’s grand Masterplan

Surbiton are also aiming to strike success off the pitch as the club grows year on year. Their ‘Masterplan 2024’ is making inroads - the club is still actively fundraising to secure around £1 million to complete the project - with two new identical water-based pitches now laid down, complete with a third half-pitch. 

“It is taking a lot of pressure off on training weekends and helps to keep the schedules running,” Powdrell says of the training space. The car park is almost completed, with landscaping and the banking by the main pitch next on the agenda before looking at the clubhouse makeover. "We have plans to hopefully extend it with more changing rooms, adding meeting rooms and a gym," he adds.

“We just want to make sure that everyone is happy with what we’ve got. We seem to be building up a good rapport with the local residents. That's important to us as a local hockey club and keeping everyone happy.”

“There is no respite in the numbers we appear to be attracting. We are maintaining the senior sides and the juniors are going from strength to strength. It’s a bit of a business now and more than a hockey club.”

Championing a title-winning club

Powdrell realises that Surbiton and the sport as a whole can also do more to promote the sport, with accessibility in both playing and also coming up close and personal with today’s stars at the heart of it.

“Hockey from top down, publicity needs to be put very high on the agenda,” he admits. “It’s not often you can go down to a local club and you can watch Olympians and rub shoulders with them in the bar afterwards. That’s something that needs to get out to the general public a lot more. They are Olympians but also very sociable.”

For Herbert, putting on a big community event can be another catalyst towards popularity. 

“We are trying to grow the club in terms of facilities, what we can offer and making it an experience that’s bigger than just rocking up and playing hockey on a Saturday afternoon,” she says. “We have a great balance and are fortunate to have top teams but we are trying to offer a good experience for people who are new to the game, those playing in club teams and expanding into the local community.

“Putting on a big event like Finals Weekend is a great way to showcase what we are all about but also there is a bigger picture of what we are working on in the next few months and beyond.

“There’s definitely a nice vibe when the clubs get together and support one another. This weekend we are representing all the clubs and trying to do a good job on behalf of everyone.”

A limited number of Premier Division Finals Day tickets for both days are on sale now, including weekend passes.