W1 Aim For Super 6s Glory On Sunday
By Colin Pike
Surbiton Women will aim to win the Super 6s Championships for the first time in their history when they take part in Finals Day at Derby Arena on Sunday.
Surbiton qualified for Finals Day for the first time in 2024 and after beating Buckingham 4-1 in the semi-finals, lost 6-1 to East Grinstead in the final.
Twelve months later, Surbiton face a semi-final rematch with Buckingham at 1145 on Sunday, having finished second in the Premier Division qualifiers, a point behind East Grinstead. Buckingham finished third to earn the last four encounter with Surbiton.
East Grinstead take on Sutton Coldfield in the first semi-final at 1030, Sutton having won promotion from Division One last season to make an immediate impact on their return to the top flight.
The two semi-final winners meet in the final at 1540.
Surbiton should be confident that they can lift the trophy, having beaten East Grinstead 5-2 in the Premier Division qualifiers after East Grinstead had won their first seven games.
Surbiton also go into the finals as the only unbeaten team in the competition and but for a 1-1 draw with Holcombe and a 3-3 draw with Sunday's opponents, Buckingham, Surbiton would have qualified for the Final Four as Premier Division leaders.
Surbiton met Buckingham in the first match of the second weekend at Repton and led 2-0 through goals from Erica Sanders and Maelona Rees. Buckingham fought back to level at 2-2 by the 25th minute courtesy of a Sally Walton penalty corner brace. Jordan Homann restored Surbiton's lead at the end of the third quarter, but Buckingham were not to be denied, Maddy Newlyn earning a point in the 32nd minute.
Buckingham were Super 6s champions in 2020, but participated in Europe last year when they replaced the 2023 champions, Repton.
Walton finished as the third top scorer in the Premier Division with 14 goals behind Surbiton's Sanders on 20 goals and East Grinstead's Biba Mills on 17, but Lottie Porter scored five goals, Newlyn scored four goals, with both Charlene Mason and Alex Naughalty netting three goals during the Premier Division campaign, so Walton is not short of goalscoring support.
More information about the Premier Division qualifiers can be found at the England Hockey Altius website here.
Sunday's Super 6s Finals Day information, including the ability to follow the matches in real time can also be found at the England Hockey Altius website here.
The Men's Finals Day information can be found here.
The event programme can be either viewed, or the printable version can be downloaded from the Programmes page on the England Hockey website here.
The games can be watched live via the stream from the England Hockey channel on You Tube here.