Holcombe made it back-to-back wins to end phase two of their Premier Division campaign.

They beat Southgate 3-0 on Saturday courtesy of goals from Alex Pendle, Tim Guise-Brown and Louis Duprez.

Reporting by Lucas Ball

Holcs, having already secured a fourth-placed finish, travelled to the Southgate Hockey Centre with just 13 players due to a host of injuries but put in an impressive performance to take the three points and head into phase three off the back of two consecutive victories.

The Premier Division top six are now joined by the top two from the bottom six of the second phase period. The eight teams are split into pools of four, with points reset for these sides ahead of three more fixtures.

The top two from each pool qualify for next month's League Finals.

In Pool A, Holcombe are joined by Old Georgians, Hampstead & Westminster and Beeston, with the pool exactly the same as last season where Old Georgians and Holcs secured a spot at League Finals.

Holcs will kick off their phase three campaign with a home clash against Hampstead & Westminster on Saturday (March 16, 6pm). Barry Middleton’s men have beaten the London side five times since the start of last season.

They then host Beeston on Saturday, March 23, a team Holcs beat 10-0 at home in November.

Holcs will conclude phase three with a trip to Old Georgians on Saturday, April 6. The Surrey side beat Holcombe 2-1 and 3-2 in the two meetings so far this season.

On Saturday, Pendle gave Holcs the lead in their final phase two game, with his second goal in as many matches, forcing a save from close range before tidily finishing off the rebound.

Guise-Brown added a second with a great drag-flick midway through the third quarter before Duprez, deployed in a more advanced role than usual, deflected a pass across goal in just three minutes later.

Holcombe sat deep late on to keep their clean sheet intact, defending well to limit Southgate’s chances with tired legs starting to show as the hosts enjoyed a three-man advantage in their squad.

The hosts did still win a penalty corner on the final whistle, with Middleton clearing off-the-line with a huge deflection away to ensure Holcombe took the three points and kept a fifth clean sheet of the season and move to the top of the defensive rankings, with just 20 conceded in 16 matches.