Hockey: Saxon Ladies snatch league title on final afternoon
South Saxons 2, Brighton & Hove (4s) 0
Going into last Saturday’s matches – the final fixtures of the season – three teams stand neck-and-neck at the head of the South East Division 1 Martlets League table. Mid-Sussex (from Haywards Heath), South Saxons and Middleton each start with 45 points from their 21 games, separated only by goal difference. The top two should be promoted to the full Division 1 (East or West) for next season. The third will lose out.
Intriguingly, the rival teams start at different pushback times. South Saxons play first, at home at 12 noon against Brighton & Hove 4s – potentially the hardest game, since the visitors are themselves fourth in the table and only just out of contention themselves. But Saxons know the idiosyncrasies of their own pitch at Horntye, they have amassed lively support of friends and family, and they mean to give it their best shot.
At 2pm Mid-Sussex will be playing away at Worthing – they have comfortably the best goal difference of the three, so any win will suffice to keep them top; at 3pm, Middleton entertain East Grinstead – their goal tally for the season to date is one less than Saxons, so they will probably need to better their rivals’ result by two clear goals.
Let the day take its course.
Over at Hastings, Nat Palmer scores early on to put Saxons ahead. After that, their defence – always well-marshalled and the meanest in the league – keeps all visiting attacks at bay. In the second half they push forward with increasing confidence. Four minutes from time, a sweeping shot from Amelia Acott crashes into the back of the Brighton net, securing the points and a 2-0 margin. Saxons can relax. They’ve done what they came to do. If Mid-Sussex win, and Middleton also overhaul them by a three-goal-margin of victory – good luck to them: it’s been a grand season anyhow.
The news from the west filters through. Mid-Sussex have gone down 2-0 at Worthing. Middleton draw 1-1 with East Grinstead. Saxons are champions! Next season, in the higher division, it’ll be tougher. But this is a day they’ll remember and have a trophy to show for it.
| P | W | D | L | F | A | GD | Pts | |
| South Saxons | 22 | 15 | 3 | 4 | 50 | 27 | 23 | 48 |
| Middleton | 22 | 14 | 4 | 4 | 48 | 28 | 20 | 46 |
| Mid-Sussex | 22 | 13 | 6 | 3 | 72 | 30 | 42 | 45 |
| Brighton & Hove 4 | 22 | 12 | 3 | 7 | 60 | 35 | 25 | 39 |
South East Hockey League Div 1 Martlets – Final Table 2022/23
South Saxons Mens team finished a respectable eighth out of 12 teams in Division 1 East after a narrow 2-1 defeat by Holcombe on the final day.
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