The last 16 of the Men's Cup was played today, with no real surprises emerging. Cannock, Bromley & Beckenham, Brooklands MU (as a result of a walkover), Beeston, Hampstead & Westminster, Canterbury, Southgate and Bowdon go through to the quarter final draw.
As usual there were some high scoring matches as some of the minnows came up against the elite teams from the Premier Division, but you could hardly find a greater gap between high flying Cannock and Brighton & Hove from the South Premier League. Despite being depleted by injuries from their previous day's tussle against Surbiton, Cannock should have been the odds on favourites to win this match but they probably have James Fair's deputy, Patrick Smith, to thank for coming away with a respectable scoreline.
Cannock's strength was their speed on the break, but they have an Oli Westbrook penalty corner to thank for their first goal. Ajan Chana made it two from a penalty corner just before the break, but it was honestly difficult to split the teams in terms of skill, enterprise and possession. Ben Crease's superb 67th minute goal for Brighton just emphasised how little there was to choose between the two sides. The cheering from the home supporters was cut short however by Tom Moore's almost instant response, to clinch the result 3-1 in Cannock's favour.
Photographs from the Brighton & Hove v Cannock match are on our pictures site at www.HockeyImages.co.uk .
In the Investec Women's Premier Division, today's only match saw Reading open up the gap between them and second placed Leicester with a 7-0 win over Olton & West Warwicks. Reading currently lead the division by seven points and an incredible goal difference of +33.
In the Women's East Conference, Surbiton pulled away to put a two point gap between themselves and second place St Albans. This was after Surbiton beat Harleston Magpies, but St Albans could only draw 0-0 against lowly Old Loughtonians. Sevenoaks keep in touch with the leaders with a 6-0 win over Horsham, leaving the Sussex club at the bottom of the table with seven defeats in nine outings.
In the North, Beeston are still neck and neck with Wakefield Bradford, both on 20 points. Beeston bolstered the goal difference which separates them with a 10-0 win over Northampton Saints. Wakefield's effort was a comparatively modest 2-0 over Whitley Bay and Tynemouth.
In the West, Buckingham continue to lead the charge with a 4-0 win over Exe, whilst Swansea stay in touch with a 4-1 win over Staines. Buckingham are on 26 points and Swansea on 21. After that there is a sizeable gap with third place Gloucester City on 13 points.
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