The order in which the two teams for the men's semi final of the Maxifuel Super Sixes came onto the pitch at Wembley on Sunday spoke volumes about the form of the sides involved. In the first semi, Canterbury, who had finished the league in poll position were seeded against East Grinstead, who had finished fourth. But it soon became apparent that the league was going to be no guide to East Grinstead's performances at Wembley.
Canterbury was brushed aside, trailing 2-0 within the opening minutes, and although they staged a late recovery, they had a five goal deficit to claw back and only four minutes to do it. Final score 5-9 to EG.
EG were then into the final against Reading, who had dominated their semi-final against Beeston, with a 12-4 win. Reading proved to be tougher opponents than Canterbury, but East Grinstead were in the driving seat from the start, winning the match 5-2. 'Grinstead, even without Jackson, seemed a whole lot better side than we had seen in the league. Perhaps they just like the big occasion?
In the women's final Reading took an early 2-0 lead. But Sutton Coldfield managed to draw level by half time, and we were left wondering whether they could stage a recovery like they had against Bowdon Hightown in the semi final two weeks earlier. But it was a game of the proverbial two halves, with Sutton unable to find the net in the second half. Final score, 5-2 to Reading.
There will be a full report on the finals at Wembley in the March edition of our on-line magazine HockeyTalk. Pictures from all the matches are on our sister site a www.HockeyImages.co.uk.
