Canterbury coach Nick Clark was named Performance Coach of the Season at the England Hockey Board’s annual awards lunch in London.

However, Clark, pictured, who is director of sport at Kent College, couldn’t be at the function, held as part of the Investec Cup tournament at Chiswick, to receive the award as he was away in Ireland with the England A squad, which included Polo Farm pair Susannah Townsend and Dilly Newton.

They beat the Irish senior side 3-1 at Chiswick, before drawing 1-1 and winning 4-0 in two games against the the country’s under-21s.

Clark, who took over at Polo Farm in August 2010, won the award for his work with EuroCanterbury Ladies, guiding them to the play-offs, and the England women’s indoor team, who won promotion to the top flight of European hockey.

He said: "I was reasonably pleased about Canterbury’s season and on reflection it was about ifs, buts and maybes.

"The England season was good because we were not sure what sort of squad we would have because of Olympic calls and had to delve a bit deeper in terms of selection."

Picture: Ady Kerry