An early strike from Katelyn Aitchinson proved enough for the University of Birmingham to beat hosts Buckingham and maintain top spot in the Investec Women’s Hockey League Premier Division on Saturday.
Strong defence from the home side ensured the league leaders – who have averaged more than three goals a game so far – did not score further, but equally Buckingham couldn’t break through a tight visiting defence.
Second-placed East Grinstead kept pace with the leaders as they won 5-0 at Bowdon Hightown, Pippa Chapman scoring in each half, while others came from Laura Unsworth, Lucy Bairner and Courtney Hansford.
And Surbiton remain unbeaten after beating hosts Clifton 4-1, Jenna Woolven, Jo Hunter, Sandra Roche and Abi Robinson getting on the scoresheet.
Emily Maguire scored the only goal of the game as Holcombe won at Reading to secure their first victory of the season.
And Susie Rowe scored from a penalty corner four minutes from the end to beat Leicester 2-1. Dirkie Chamberlain had given the home side a first half lead, while Kerry Whitehead scored Leicester’s goal just before the hour mark.
Investec Conference North
Suzy Petty hit a hat-trick as Beeston beat Springfields 7-0 in the Investec Conference North, condemning them their fourth defeat of the season.
The top two teams, Wakefield and Loughborough Students met and it was leaders Wakefield who came out on top, winning 3-1. Goals from Heather Stafford, Sophie Davies and Rosie Tootell saw them keep first place.
Ben Rhydding were also 3-1 winners, beating the University of Durham. Belper took their first win of the season with a 2-0 defeat of hosts Brooklands Poynton and the game between Liverpool Sefton and Whitley Bay and Tynemouth ended in a 1-1 draw.
Investec Conference East
Slough are still unbeaten in the Investec Conference East after beating Hampstead and Westminster 1-0. Philipa Newton’s second half strike was enough to give them three points. They lead the table by five points already.
Cambridge City moved up to second place with a 4-2 win over Maidenhead. Lucy Holder was on target twice.
St Albans were in fine form, beating Ipswich 5-1. Eleanor Watton hit a brace and other goals came through Natasha Humphris, Emily Panniers and Sarah Embrey.
Chelmsford were also winners with goals from Kate Taylor and Kate Robinson helping them to a 2-0 victory at home to Harleston Magpies.
Investec Conference West
Swansea City maintained their 100 per cent start to the season and stayed top of the Investec Conference West after a 2-0 victory at home to Oxford Hawks.
Katrin Budd and Lisa Daley both scored in the first half for the home side to give them a three point cushion on the chasing pack.
Sutton Coldfield kept up the pressure in second with a 2-1 win away at Trojans thanks to two goals from Emma McCabe, whilst Stourport stay third after they beat Isca 2-0.
Bristol Firebrands stay bottom after they were beaten 2-1 at home by Gloucester City, and the University of Bristol were 2-1 winners at Olton and West Warwicks.
* The above photo shows the University of Birmingham’s Vanessa Hawkins, right, in action against Buckingham’s Amie Hone.
Investec Women’s Hockey League (Saturday, October 10 2015):
Investec Women’s Premier Division: Buckingham 0, University of Birmingham 1; Clifton 1, Surbiton 4; Bowdon Hightown 0, East Grinstead 5; Reading 0, Holcombe 1; Canterbury 2, Leicester 1.
Investec Women’s Conference East: Chelmsford 2, Harleston Magpies 0; Cambridge City 4, Maidenhead 2; St Albans 5, Ipswich 1; Slough 1, Hampstead and Westminster 0; Sevenoaks 2, Wimbledon 1.
Investec Women’s Conference North: Brooklands Poynton 0, Belper 2; Beeston 7, Springfields 0; Liverpool Sefton 1, Whitley Bay and Tynemouth 1; Ben Rhydding 3, University of Durham 1; Wakefield 3, Loughborough Students 1.
Investec Women’s Conference West: Bristol Firebrands 1, Gloucester City 2; Olton and West Warwicks 1, University of Bristol 2; Trojans 1, Sutton Coldfield 2; Swansea City 2, Oxford Hawks 0; Stourport 2, Isca 0.
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| Women’s Premier Division |
| Clifton | (1) | 1 | – | 4 | (3) | Surbiton | ||||
| Els Mansell 17 – F | Jenna Woolven 5 – F Jo Hunter 23 – PC Sandra Roche 25 – F Abi Robinson 40 – F |
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| Bowdon Hightown | (0) | 0 | – | 5 | (4) | East Grinstead | ||||
| Laura Unsworth 6 – PC Lucy Bairner 13 – F Courtney Hansford 21 – F Pippa Chapman 28 60 – F F |
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| Reading | (0) | 0 | – | 1 | (0) | Holcombe | ||||
| Emily Maguire 51 – PC | ||||||||||
| Buckingham | (0) | 0 | – | 1 | (1) | University of Birmingham | ||||
| Katelyn Aitchinson 9 – F | ||||||||||
| Canterbury | (1) | 2 | – | 1 | (0) | Leicester | ||||
| Dirkie Chamberlain 31 – PC Susie Rowe 66 – PC |
Kerry Whitehead 59 – PC | |||||||||
| P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | ||
| 1 | University of Birmingham | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 2 | 14 | 15 |
| 2 | East Grinstead | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 16 | 4 | 12 | 13 |
| 3 | Surbiton | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 15 | 6 | 9 | 11 |
| 4 | Canterbury | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 14 | 5 | 9 | 10 |
| 5 | Leicester | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 12 | -6 | 6 |
| 6 | Holcombe | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 4 | 5 | -1 | 5 |
| 7 | Clifton | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 8 | 15 | -7 | 4 |
| 8 | Bowdon Hightown | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 13 | -9 | 4 |
| 9 | Buckingham | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 11 | -9 | 1 |
| 10 | Reading | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 15 | -12 | 1 |
| Women’s Conference East |
| Chelmsford | (0) | 2 | – | 0 | (0) | Harleston Magpies | ||||
| Kate Taylor 54 – F Kate Robinson 67 – F |
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| St. Albans | (2) | 5 | – | 1 | (0) | Ipswich | ||||
| Natasha Humphris 5 – PC Eleanor Watton 14 49 – F F Emily Panniers 60 – F Sarah Embrey 62 – F |
Chloe Williams 54 – F | |||||||||
| Cambridge City | (3) | 4 | – | 2 | (1) | Maidenhead | ||||
| Lucy Holder 9 26 – F F Heidi Baber 14 – F Jo Ellis 46 – F |
Alison Lubbock 11 – F Holly Cram 41 – F |
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| Sevenoaks | (1) | 2 | – | 1 | (1) | Wimbledon | ||||
| Cathy Gilliat-Smith 4 – F Katy Warrington 66 – PC |
Nicola Lloyd 5 – F | |||||||||
| Slough | (0) | 1 | – | 0 | (0) | Hampstead and Westminster | ||||
| Philipa Newton 50 – PC | ||||||||||
| P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | ||
| 1 | Slough | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 21 | 4 | 17 | 15 |
| 2 | Cambridge City | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 11 | 7 | 4 | 10 |
| 3 | St. Albans | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 12 | 3 | 10 |
| 4 | Hampstead and Westminster | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 8 | 2 | 9 |
| 5 | Chelmsford | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 7 | 6 | 1 | 8 |
| 6 | Wimbledon | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 6 |
| 7 | Harleston Magpies | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 5 |
| 8 | Sevenoaks | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 13 | -7 | 4 |
| 9 | Ipswich | 5 | 0 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 10 | -6 | 2 |
| 10 | Maidenhead | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 10 | 22 | -12 | 0 |
| Women’s Conference North |
| Brooklands Poynton | (0) | 0 | – | 2 | (0) | Belper | ||||
| Louisa Boddy 47 – PC Sarah Glenn 60 – PC |
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| Wakefield | (1) | 3 | – | 1 | (1) | Loughborough Students | ||||
| Heather Stafford 4 – F Sophie Davies 40 – F Rosie Tootell 55 – PC |
Lauren Grundy 27 – PC | |||||||||
| Beeston | (4) | 7 | – | 0 | (0) | Springfields | ||||
| Rosy Stephens 8 – F Tori Wensley 13 – F Suzy Petty 18 60 69 – PC PC PC Sophie Robinson 24 – F Isabella Davison 62 – F |
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| Ben Rhydding | (0) | 3 | – | 1 | (0) | University of Durham | ||||
| Amy Cordukes 54 – PC Jodie Bridger 57 – F Beth Cordukes 59 – F |
Anna Baker 67 – F | |||||||||
| Liverpool Sefton | (0) | 1 | – | 1 | (0) | Whitley Bay and Tynemouth | ||||
| Sophie Oliver 37 – PC | Ali Gordon 52 – PC | |||||||||
| P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | ||
| 1 | Wakefield | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 15 |
| 2 | Loughborough Students | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 9 | 7 | 2 | 10 |
| 3 | Ben Rhydding | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 12 | 6 | 6 | 8 |
| 4 | Beeston | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 16 | 7 | 9 | 7 |
| 5 | University of Durham | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 10 | 12 | -2 | 7 |
| 6 | Whitley Bay and Tynemouth | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 6 |
| 7 | Liverpool Sefton | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 6 | 11 | -5 | 5 |
| 8 | Brooklands Poynton | 5 | 0 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 4 |
| 9 | Belper | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 11 | -5 | 4 |
| 10 | Springfields | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 15 | -13 | 1 |
| Women’s Conference West |
| Swansea City | (2) | 2 | – | 0 | (0) | Oxford Hawks | ||||
| Katrin Budd 19 – PC Lisa Daley 28 – PC |
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| Trojans | (0) | 1 | – | 2 | (0) | Sutton Coldfield | ||||
| Sally Gibson 68 – PC | Emma Mccabe 53 55 – F F | |||||||||
| Stourport | (1) | 2 | – | 0 | (0) | Isca University | ||||
| Sarah Cavendish 10 – PS Hannah Corcoran 70 – PC |
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| Bristol Firebrands | (0) | 1 | – | 2 | (1) | Gloucester City | ||||
| Holly Savage 55 – PC | Zoe Burford 11 – PC Samantha Roberts 47 – F |
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| Olton & West Warwicks | (1) | 1 | – | 2 | (2) | University of Bristol | ||||
| Jane Wackett 7 – F | Emily Caldwell 28 – PS Katherine Round 34 – F |
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| P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | ||
| 1 | Swansea City | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 16 | 3 | 13 | 15 |
| 2 | Sutton Coldfield | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 24 | 4 | 20 | 12 |
| 3 | Stourport | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 10 | 3 | 7 | 11 |
| 4 | Gloucester City | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 10 | 5 | 5 | 8 |
| 5 | Oxford Hawks | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 8 |
| 6 | Isca University | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 6 | 8 | -2 | 6 |
| 7 | Olton & West Warwicks | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 9 | -5 | 4 |
| 8 | Trojans | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 12 | -7 | 3 |
| 9 | University of Bristol | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 25 | -21 | 3 |
| 10 | Bristol Firebrands | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 7 | 19 | -12 | 1 |
Report courtesy of England Hockey via Snowdon Sports
