Two goals from Claire Thomas helped Clifton Robinsons battle to a 3-0 win over Bowdon Hightown and boost their campaign in the Investec Women’s Hockey League Premier Division.
A 22nd minute field goal was followed just before half time by a second goal from Thomas from a penalty corner, and they wrapped up the points with Jo Leigh scoring from a 68th minute penalty corner to move to fourth in the league table.
Leaders Surbiton had to fight back from behind to take a 3-1 win at Holcombe in a repeat of last season’s League Final.
The hosts took an early lead with Emma Tonks scoring from a seventh minute penalty corner, but the sides were level at the break with Alice Sharp scoring on 27 minutes.
Giselle Ansley gave Surbiton the lead for the first time from a penalty corner on 53 minutes, and Sarah Haycroft added a third from open play four minutes later.
Slough are second in the table and level on points with Surbiton after beating Leicester 2-1.
Early goals from Mel Ball and Emma Onien on nine and 12 minutes put them ahead. Maeve Macdonald scored in the 32nd minute for Leicester, but it wasn’t enough as there was no further score in a hard-fought second half.
East Grinstead are third after a 2-0 win over bottom of the table Canterbury. Zoe Burrell and Ellie Rayer scored their goals.
Buckingham opened up a two-nil lead over the University of Birmingham with Lauren Thomas and Phoebe Richards scoring. But Alice Wills and Amelia Andrews bagged second half strikes to ensure a share of the spoils for the University of Birmingham.
Investec Conference East
A hat-trick from Annabel Driver helped Hampstead and Westminster retain their 100% record at the top of the Investec Women’s Conference East.
Amy Askew scored two and Joyce Esser one as Hampstead overcame St Albans 6-3.
Elsewhere, Wimbledon were 6-0 winners over Bedford. Crista Cullen scored a hat-trick, while other goals came from Anna Tomas, Libby Sherriff and Nicky Lloyd.
Sevenoaks are second following their 2-0 home win over Cambridge City, with Sophie Crosley and Samantha Danckert scoring their goals.
Katherine Ridley’s 31st minute penalty corner goal was the only score as Harleston Magpies won 1-0 at Chelmsford, while Southgate and Barnes battled out a tense 0-0 draw.
Investec Conference North
Brooklands Poynton beat title rivals Sutton Coldfield 2-1 as their Investec Women’s Conference North campaign continued.
Helen Turner gave Brooklands the lead after eight minutes and Tilly Dyos-Szolkowska doubled their advantage on 55 minutes. Beth Merriman pulled one back for Sutton Coldfield, but they still lost out.
Elsewhere, the University of Durham were 7-1 winners over Loughborough Students. Tess Howard scored a hat-trick, while others came from Penny Joyce, Anna Baker, Lorna Jane Cruickshank and Nat Konerth.
Wakefield were 2-1 winners over Ben Rhydding with Abi Rawlins and Lauren Brooke scoring their goals, Kelly Baxter had levelled for the visitors.
Investec Conference West
Two goals from Cat Horn and one from Emma Teague helped Trojans open up a four-point lead at the top of the Investec Women’s Conference West, beating Cannock 3-1.
Reading are second after a 1-1 draw with Gloucester, Keelie Perham scoring for the hosts and Danielle Gibson for Gloucester City.
Two goals in the final ten minutes helped Oxford Hawks secure a 2-2 draw with Olton and West Warwicks.
Sally Walton and Harriet Payne scored for the visitors, while Annabelle Denly and Catherine Reaney were on target from penalty corners in a three-minute purple patch for the Hawks.
Elsewhere, Annie Dalton and Katherine Holdgate scored for Isca who beat Team Bath Buccaneers 2-1, while Swansea City overcame Stourport 2-0 with Kat Budd and Katherine Mee on target.
The lead photo shows Claire Thomas celebrating a goal for Clifton Robinsons against Bowdon Hightown.
Investec Women’s Hockey League Premier Division
Results, Saturday 21 October 2017
| Home Team | HT | FT | HT | Away Team | ||
| East Grinstead
Zoe Burrell (FG16), Ellie Rayer (PC55) |
(1) | 2 | – | 0 | (0) | Canterbury |
| Holcombe
Emma Tonks (PC7) |
(1) | 1 | – | 3 | (1) | Surbiton
Alice Sharp (PC27), Giselle Ansley (PC53), Sarah Haycroft (FG57) |
| Buckingham
Lauren Thomas (PC35), Phoebe Richards (FG41) |
(1) | 2 | – | 2 | (0) | University of Birmingham
Alice Wills (PC53), Amelia Andrew (FG59) |
| Clifton Robinsons
Claire Thomas (FG22) (PC35), Joanna Leigh (PC68) |
(2) | 3 | – | 0 | (0) | Bowdon |
| Slough
Melissa Ball (FG9), Emma Onien (FG12) |
(2) | 2 | – | 1 | (1) | Leicester
Maeve Macdonald (PC32) |
League table
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Surbiton | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 10 | 7 | 3 | 10 |
| 2 | Slough | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 10 |
| 3 | East Grinstead | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 5 | 2 | 3 | 10 |
| 4 | Clifton Robinsons | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 9 | 8 | 1 | 9 |
| 5 | Holcombe | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 8 |
| 6 | University of Birmingham | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 11 | 10 | 1 | 7 |
| 7 | Buckingham | 5 | 1 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 7 | 0 | 6 |
| 8 | Leicester | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 5 | -2 | 4 |
| 9 | Bowdon | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 3 | 7 | -4 | 4 |
| 10 | Canterbury | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 5 | 11 | -6 | 1 |
Investec Women’s Hockey League Conference East
Results, Saturday 21 October 2017
| Home Team | HT | FT | HT | Away Team | ||
| Chelmsford | (0) | 0 | – | 1 | (1) | Harleston Magpies
Katherine Ridley (PC31) |
| Hampstead & Westminster
Amy Askew (FG9) (FG26), Annabel Driver (PC47) (PC58) (PC66), Joyce Esser (PS69) |
(2) | 6 | – | 3 | (1) | St. Albans
Adele Salmons (FG16), Briony Anyon (PC44), Theresa Sigalo (PC60) |
| Sevenoaks
Sophie Crosley (PC34), Samantha Danckert (FG57) |
(1) | 2 | – | 0 | (0) | Cambridge City |
| Southgate | (0) | 0 | – | 0 | (0) | Barnes |
| Wimbledon
Crista Cullen (PC13, PC46, PC55), Anna Tomas (PC21), Libby Sherriff (PC23), Nicky Lloyd (PS58) |
(3) | 6 | – | 0 | (0) | Bedford |
League table
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Hampstead & Westminster | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 26 | 4 | 22 | 15 |
| 2 | Sevenoaks | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 0 | 13 | 15 |
| 3 | Wimbledon | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 20 | 2 | 18 | 12 |
| 4 | Cambridge City | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 10 | 6 | 4 | 9 |
| 5 | Barnes | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 7 | 9 | -2 | 7 |
| 6 | Harleston Magpies | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 2 | 6 | -4 | 6 |
| 7 | Bedford | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 7 | 14 | -7 | 4 |
| 8 | Southgate | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 4 | 21 | -17 | 4 |
| 9 | Chelmsford | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 18 | -16 | 1 |
| 10 | St. Albans | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 6 | 17 | -11 | 0 |
Investec Women’s Hockey League Conference North
Results, Saturday 21 October 2017
| Home Team | HT | FT | HT | Away Team | ||
| University of Durham
Penny Joyce (FG3), Tess Howard (PC13) (PC32) (PC69), Anna Baker (FG41), Lorna Jane Cruickshank (FG61), Natalie Konerth (FG66) |
(3) | 7 | – | 1 | (0) | Loughborough Students’
Lizzy Neal (PC38) |
| Sutton Coldfield
Bethan Merriman (PC62) |
(0) | 1 | – | 2 | (1) | Brooklands-Poynton
Helen Turner (PC8), Tilly Dyos-Szolkowska (FG55) |
| Wakefield
Abi Rawlins (PC35), Lauren Brooke (PC54) |
(1) | 2 | – | 1 | (0) | Ben Rhydding
Kelly Baxter (FG42) |
League table
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Sutton Coldfield | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 17 | 5 | 12 | 12 |
| 2 | Beeston | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 14 | 2 | 12 | 12 |
| 3 | Brooklands-Poynton | 5 | 4 | 0 | 1 | 15 | 5 | 10 | 12 |
| 4 | University of Durham | 5 | 3 | 0 | 2 | 13 | 8 | 5 | 9 |
| 5 | Ben Rhydding | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 8 | 4 | 4 | 7 |
| 6 | Fylde | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 7 | 1 | 7 |
| 7 | Wakefield | 5 | 2 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 17 | -13 | 6 |
| 8 | Liverpool Sefton | 4 | 1 | 0 | 3 | 4 | 14 | -10 | 3 |
| 9 | Timperley | 4 | 0 | 0 | 4 | 4 | 12 | -8 | 0 |
| 10 | Loughborough Students’ | 5 | 0 | 0 | 5 | 5 | 18 | -13 | 0 |
Investec Women’s Hockey League Conference West
Results, Saturday 21 October 2017
| Home Team | HT | FT | HT | Away Team | ||
| Isca
Annie Dalton (FG19), Katherine Holdgate (FG47) |
(1) | 2 | – | 1 | (0) | Team Bath Buccaneers
Lara Williamson (FG48) |
| Oxford Hawks
Annabelle Denly (PC60), Catherine Reaney (PC63) |
(0) | 2 | – | 2 | (1) | Olton & West Warwicks
Sally Walton (PC19), Harriet Payne (FG64) |
| Reading
Keelie Perham (PC46) |
(0) | 1 | – | 1 | (0) | Gloucester City
Danielle Gibson (FG58) |
| Swansea City
Kat Budd (PC6), Katherine Mee (PC56) |
(1) | 2 | – | 0 | (0) | Stourport |
| Trojans
Cat Horn (FG34) (FG41), Emma Teague (PC59) |
(1) | 3 | – | 1 | (0) | Cannock
Jodie Beddow (PC36) |
League table
| Pos | Team | P | W | D | L | GF | GA | GD | Pts |
| 1 | Trojans | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 15 | 1 | 14 | 15 |
| 2 | Reading | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 9 | 2 | 7 | 11 |
| 3 | Stourport | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 15 | 4 | 11 | 10 |
| 4 | Swansea City | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 8 |
| 5 | Gloucester City | 5 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 8 |
| 6 | Olton & West Warwicks | 5 | 1 | 2 | 2 | 8 | 11 | -3 | 5 |
| 7 | Isca | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 5 | 8 | -3 | 4 |
| 8 | Oxford Hawks | 5 | 1 | 1 | 3 | 6 | 15 | -9 | 4 |
| 9 | Cannock | 5 | 1 | 0 | 4 | 5 | 14 | -9 | 3 |
| 10 | Team Bath Buccaneers | 5 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 2 | 13 | -11 | 1 |
Report courtesy of England Hockey via Snowdon Sports
