Celebration time for City of Peterborough Ladies after a dominant East League season, but men pipped by National League title challengers
City of Peterborough Ladies have clinched the East Division One North title with two games to spare.
The city side beat Ipswich seconds 5-0 at Bretton Gate on Saturday to ensure an immediate return to Premier Division hockey. It’s been an outstanding response to relegation last season with 18 wins and just one defeat from 20 games under the coaching of Paul Hillsdon and the captaincy of Amelia Shepherd.
If there were any nerves on Saturday they were gone after 60 seconds when Hope Elkins opened the scoring, She quickly added a second goal in the sixth minute and Breesha Foxton made it 3-0 after just 10 minutes. Matilda Halford added a fourth goal prior to half time and then Laura Pakenham added a fifth on 62 minutes to close out another convincing win.
City have scored 95 goals and conceded just eight. They have two games left to reach a century of goals, at home to Sudbury on Saturday (2.30m) and then away at second-placed Norwich Dragons on March 21. Sudbury are the only team to have beaten City.
City of Peterborough men came off second best after a tight tussle with second-placed Oxford Hawks in the National Midlands Conference on Sunday. City went down 3-2 and are now fifth in the table ahead of a home game against bottom club Stourport on Sunday (2pm).
City fell behind in the first quarter in Oxford, but equalised through a Joe Finding penalty corner. The hosts then scored either side of three quarter time to take a 3-1 lead with seven minutes remaining before an instant response from City player-coach Gareth Andrew but they couldn’t find a late leveller.
Bourne Deeping seconds clinched the East Division Four title with a 2-0 win against Cambridge City. Ryan Matthews and James Watkins scored the goals.
Latest East League results: Men: City 2nds beat Long Sutton 6-1 (Danny Needham 4, Alex Boxall, Harry Raybould); City 2nds lost to Dereham 3-4 (Cole Bowtell, Jacob Hings, Trevor Matthews); City 3rds lost to Newmarket 1-4 (Shane Carlton); City 4ths beat Long Sutton 4-1 (Ewan Fletcher 2, Will Astbury, Manny Patel); City 5ths lost to Newmarket 1-3 (Jonathan Bigham); City 6ths beat Long Sutton 6-0 (Phil Martin 2, Wayne Humphreys 2, Eesa Najib, Oakley Elwood-Jeal); City 7ths beat Wisbech 2-0 (Max Hawtin, Harry Catto); City 8ths beat St Ives 2-1 (Steve Browning, Ian Kennedy); City Over 45s beat West Herts on penalties after a 3-3 draw (Darren Norman 2, Gary Hales); Bourne Deeping beat Cambridge University 3rds 3-1 (Ben Brittain 2, Alessandro Vardaro); Bourne Deeping 2nds beat Cambridge City 2-0 (Ryan Matthews, James Watkins); Bourne Deeping 3rds beat Spalding 6-0 (Aaron Waters 2, Chris Mann, Anthony Stainsby, Ryan Byrne, Pete Moisey); Wisbech beat Cambridge City 5-1 (Tom Jupp 2, Jason Mallett, Lee Punter, Johnny Garner); Wisbech 2nds drew 2-2 with Pelicans (Elliott Peck 2);
Ladies: City 2nds lost to Cambridge City 0-2; City 3rds drew with Kettering 1-1 (Hayley Jeal); City 4ths lost to Long Sutton 0-3; City 5ths beat Spalding 2-1 (Janet Warren, Michelle Poroniuk); Wisbech drew 1-1 with Cambridge City (Holly Tyler); Wisbech 2nds lost to Cambridge City 0-1; Wisbech 3rds lost to Newmarket 2-4 (Elana Freedman 2).