Southgate’s hard fought win against Cardiff & Met on Sunday sees them move up into 3rd space in the Premier Division Phase 2 Lower 6 table.
Huw Stevens side travelled back from an equally tough 1-1 draw away to Beeston Saturday evening and just hours later were back in action on the Sunday afternoon against the Walid Abdo side who are always a tough opponent.
The endurance and resilience of both sides was tested in an end to end contest which saw captain John Sterlini score from a rebounded flick in the 33rd minute allowing Southgate to take a 1-0 advantage into half time. Allan Dick made his return to the team after Akshay Palaniappan put in a heroic performance in goal the night before, Dick once again showed his class with a series of commanding saves but there was nothing stopping a beautifully worked Cardiff goal that saw Scott Rawlings but Johnny Flek in on goal for a superb deflected finish in the 39th minutes just after half time.
The rest of the second half was an edgy affair, New Zealand international James Hickson clattered the post with a fine flick from a penalty corner and Barney Bithell nearly scored an outrageous volley on the run that was well saved by Cardiff keeper Mark Philpot but it was Xavier Guy who had a fine game and showed his class in the 56th minute when he slotted a flick away into the bottom right corner of Philpot’s goal squeezing it through the eye of the needle of the Cardiff runners. It should be noted that Cardiff’s Penalty Corner Defence worked exceptionally hard to neuter the Southgate threat from the corners- they defended 9 corners and prevented the home team scoring from 7 with some very brave running down the barrel of the Gate flickers.
Southgate’s Xavier Guy scores at a penatly corner. Southgate v Cardiff & Met – EH Men’s Premier Division Lower Six at Southgate Hockey Centre, Trent Park, London, UK on 22 March 2026.
Photo by Simon Parker/SP Action Images
In front of a lively Sunday afternoon crowd Southgate survived a late Cardiff corner to pull of a popular victory which ensures their undefeated run in phase 2 continues. 4 points were taken from the weekend and mean that Southgate now pull away from Reading by a single point and are tied on points with 2 placed Cardiff with a goal difference of just 5 separating the two teams. John Sterlini and his players have just two games now to secure that much sought after 2nd place berth to allow them through to the top 8 teams playing for a playoff spot in phase 3. A win this weekend against struggling Brooklands is an essential step to achieve that ambition.