Southgate were made to work by bottom placed Wimbledon, yet two goals in the last 90 seconds secured Ellie Robinson and her team 3 important points sending them to into 3rd place, their highest ever position in Division One South.
Results have not gone the way of the Helen Jelley coached side, despite strong performances in recent weeks. They may have been without a win since their 2nd game of the season, yet they have made every opposition work with all games since mid October being lost by a single goal margin or drawn. In recent weeks they drew with Surbiton and Guildford and took the Magpies close in a 2-3 loss. They are a far better side than their league position suggests.
The Southgate side were largely unchanged but with defender Ami Robinson out with a hand injury, Liv Richardson made a welcome return to 1st team hockey after her own hand injury from the indoor campaign in December.
Southgate v Wimbledon II – EH Women’s Division 1 South at Southgate Hockey Centre, Trent Park, London, UK on 08 March 2025.
Photo by Simon Parker/SP Action Images
So it proved with Wimbledon repeatedly forcing Southgate errors on the ball as a largely youthful Wombles side made Southgate really work for their possession which shot back and forth down the pitch in a an entertaining ig haywire game of hockey. Louisa Bray had a very strong game in goal and needed all her guile to keep a succession of Wimbledon corners at bay, meanwhile the young u16 England keeper Ciara Beech showed all her potential denying repeated shots from the Gate forwards.
Southgate v Wimbledon II – EH Women’s Division 1 South at Southgate Hockey Centre, Trent Park, London, UK on 08 March 2025.
Photo by Simon Parker/SP Action Images
It took until the 33rd minute for the dam to burst when Katie McCallum continued her form in front of goal when Ella Poole Crowe set up a fine opportunity for McCallum who dinked it through a series of Wimbledon sticks before chipping the ball over Beech into the goal to give the home side the league.
The heat of the spring afternoon proved a factor as teams tired moving into the second half with repeated turnovers from both teams. Meg Parry for Wimbledon stood out with some exemplary work in the midfield for visitors creating a series of chances down the Southgate flanks. Meanwhile Charlotte Childs, Lorna Cruickshank and Jess Denniff worked hard with energetic leading into Wimbledon pockets yet couldn’t find any passages of sustained possession. As the minutes ticked down the Gate supporters felt a growing sense of Wimbledon beginning to edge the advantage and is it proved when Emily Barker forced her way into the Southgate D over and through the defensive wall and found a small space to get a shot away beating Bray to equalise and give the vocal Wimbledon supporters a ray of hope.
The final quarter was played out in blinding late afternoon sunshine, Ellie Robinson the Southgate skipper was all over the pitch and proved a key outlet, yet Wimbledon kept pushing and were unlucky at times not to convert their chances yet the Gate defence led by Ellie Halliday, Flora Walker and Emma Postings in the central role doing sterling work to deny the visiting side the lead. Eventually experience, guile and home advantage proved the winning formula and in the 69th minute when Cruickshank on a superb run cutting onto the baseline from the right wing put up a perfect ball for her captain to finish with clinical precision. There followed a further goal just 30 seconds later when Ellie Halliday converted with well placed slap into the bottom left corner of the Wimbledon goal.
Southgate v Wimbledon II – EH Women’s Division 1 South at Southgate Hockey Centre, Trent Park, London, UK on 08 March 2025.
Photo by Simon Parker/SP Action Images
It wasn’t always the prettiest hockey that Andy Richardson’s side have placed, and the home side certainly didn’t have it all their own way. Yet stubborn determination and increasing confidence from this team paid dividends and the side deservedly take their place in the top 3 of Division One South. This weekend they are afforded the chance to close the game on the University of Exeter in second place as they head to Surbiton for another crunch game.