MHL Premier Division Review – 3/4 October
Surbiton are the only team with a one hundred per cent record after week 3 of the Men’s Hockey League Premier Division following their 6-1 win at the University of Durham on Sunday afternoon.
Arjan Drayton Chana gave Surbiton the lead in the 14th minute, but Durham were level three minutes later as Max Borrman scored Durham’s first ever top flight goal from the penalty spot in their first ever home match in the Premier Division.
Luke Taylor restored Surbiton’s lead three minutes before half time and as at Beeston the week before, Surbiton pulled away in the second half. Ben Boon scored in the 43rd and 55th minutes with Tom Sorsby scoring Surbiton’s fifth goal in the 59th minute. Taylor converted his second penalty corner of the match with two minutes remaining, Taylor the Division’s top goalscorer with eight goals and Boon second with five.
Wimbledon went top of the table temporarily on Saturday night, coming from behind to win 2-1 at Holcombe. Nick Bandurak put Holcombe in front in the eleventh minute but Ben Arnold equalised in the 24th minute and Eddie Way scored the winning goal just before half time.
Wimbledon dropped to third on Sunday afternoon following Surbiton’s win and East Grinstead’s 2-2 draw at home to Brooklands Manchester University. Daniel Faulkner scored both goals for East Grinstead in the 21st and 64th minutes, his second goal earning a point after Peter Flanagan and Tom Lush had given Brooklands a 2-1 lead, all four goals in the game coming from penalty corners.
Hampstead & Westminster and Old Georgians battled to a 1-1 draw at Sonning Lane, Reading on Sunday as Paddington Recreation Ground is unavailable. Old Georgians led in the 27th minute through James Tindall, but Josh Kelly levelled for Hampstead in the 39th minute.
In the bottom of the table clash, Oxted beat the University of Exeter 2-0. After a goalless first half, Exeter fell behind in the 51st minute as Peter Friend scored for Oxted with Timothy Guise-Brown keeping up his record of scoring in every match so far this season, his penalty corner in the 55th minute doubling the lead and sealing the win.
Surbiton host East Grinstead next Saturday night (10 October) in a first v second top of the table clash at 6 pm immediately after the corresponding ladies’ teams do the same at 4 pm.
