W1 Given Scare Before Beating Clifton Robinsons 3-2
By Colin Pike
A day after thrashing Loughborough Students 9-1 at Sugden Road, Surbiton were made to battle at Clifton College against Clifton Robinsons before coming away with a 3-2 win to maintain their place at the top of the Women's Hockey League Premier Division.
Clifton Robinsons remain the only team in the Premier Division without a point after seven games, but after losing 2-1 at Wimbledon on Saturday and fighting to the end before going down 3-2 on Sunday, the Bristol club must wonder what they have to do to end their losing streak.
Surbiton naturally went into the game with confidence, Maddie Axford thwarted by Clifton's Ashley Mainwaring and Ellie Mackenzie combining with Sophie Hamilton in the early minutes as the visitors sought an early breakthrough.
Clifton tried to catch out the Surbiton defence with a long pass out of defence, only to lose control and allow the ball to cross Surbiton's back-line harmlessly.
Erica Sanders shot past the right post, Axford forced home goalkeeper Nicole Pollastrone to kick the ball to safety and a Giselle Ansley went past the left post.
In the second quarter, Pollastrone saved from Darcy Bourne with Hamilton firing the rebound wide of the goal before Clifton's defence was breached in the 21st minute, Alice Wills scoring her first goal of the season.
Surbiton kept up the pressure with Axford's angled shot narrowly going wide of the goal and Sanders clipping the post as Surbiton tried to double their lead. Two minutes before half time, Mackenzie scored in nonchalant fashion to give Surbiton the two goal half time advantage they wanted and Surbiton seemed to be on course for another convincing victory.
At the start of the third quarter there was no reason to question that the victory would be anything but convincing as Pollastrone saved from Martha Taylor and Mackenzie, the latter save after an excellent build up involving Taylor and Georgie Gardens and a virtual point blank save from Wills with Pollastrone successfully blocking Wills' route to goal.
Surbiton's failure to convert their chances threatened to haunt them in the 45th minute when they conceded their first goal of the season from open play, Jennifer Hughes giving Clifton hope.
With twenty minutes remaining, the game still had not seen it's first penalty corner of the match, but Surbiton managed to force seven awards in the next fifteen minutes including an award which eventually proved to be decisive.
Clifton were unfortunate when Mainwaring was hit from close range by Taylor, the hosts conceding a penalty corner in the process. Darcy Bourne's effort was saved but Amy Costello emphatically smashed the ball into the goal to apparently seal Surbiton's victory with seven minutes remaining.
But Clifton refused to give up and after Surbiton restored their two goal lead, Emilia Puddicombe converted Clifton's only penalty corner in the penultimate minute to give Surbiton a few anxious moments before the final whistle was blown.
Hampstead & Westminster stayed level with Surbiton on 19 points thanks to Jane Kilpatrick's winner which earned a 2-1 win over the University of Birmingham. Holly Hunt had put Hampstead ahead but Hannah Pearce equalised on the stroke of half time.
East Grinstead are still three points off the lead, but had to come from 2-0 down to beat Loughborough Students 3-2 at Saint Hill. Lucy Mackey and Hannah Boss made it advantage Loughborough but not for the first time, Biba Mills orchestrated the comeback, scoring twice supported by Grace Balsdon, all five goals in the match coming from penalty corners.
Wimbledon moved up into fourth thanks to Millie Holme scoring the only goal in a 1-0 home win over Bowdon. Reading are level with them as Caroline Spence scored both goals in a 2-0 home win over Durham University.
Birmingham dropped from fourth to sixth, but after losing their first six games, Barnes moved out of the relegation zone above the University of Nottingham on goal difference after beating Nottingham 2-0 at Dukes Meadow, Sarah-Jane McCann scoring her second goal of the weekend just before half time and Delia Baudena clinching the win in the third quarter.
Surbiton face Wimbledon under the Sugden Road floodlights next Saturday (1 November) push back 1800.