Sevenoaks HC aiming to win remaining games with, 'top two the goal'

Chris Barker is keen to keep run going. Image credit: Liam McAvoy

By Hugo Mirabel Hardy

First team captain Chris Barker wants his Sevenoaks Hockey Club team to continue pushing league leaders Reading until the very last day of the season.

His side are currently third in the National Division One South, 10 points behind Reading and one point behind Canterbury.

He said: “We discussed as a team over the break and, given the performances over the first half of the season, the goal is to win the eight games we have left and put ourselves in the best possible position.

“It’s a bit out of our hands as Reading are top of the league with a ten-point lead, but all we can do is win our remaining games and hope that other teams get good results over Reading, and see where we end up.

“Top two is the goal, but putting in good performances and winning our games is the main target.”

They played bottom-of-the-table Havant and won 3-0 – a performance which delighted the captain.

Barker said: “I was very pleased – the three points put us on good track for the rest of the season.

“We kept a third clean sheet in a row, which is a really good platform to press on from.

“Under some tricky conditions – it was cold, blustery, windy and the pitch was a bit slick – it was a really good performance.”

Over the Christmas break, when playing conditions weren’t the best, Sevenoaks took part in the Indoor Premier League, known as the Super 6s.

He said: “Three-quarters of the squad were involved in that. We finished fifth but we had a successful campaign, going toe-to-toe with some of the biggest clubs.

“It was awesome, it also helped to keep everyone sharp, keeps everyone fit and ticking over the break.

“It allowed us to come into the game against Havant all guns blazing.

“It’s looking really promising and hopefully the Havant result gives us a really good position to crack on and take three points from Canterbury this weekend.”

Like many sports clubs across the country, Sevenoaks were affected during the course of the pandemic.

He said: “From when we were all in  isolation, to then yo-yo-ing in between lockdown and not, it has really brought the club together.

“There is now a big desire to take things forward and to push and drive to develop our junior talent as well.

“We have a huge junior section and we’re looking to develop that, and drive those younger players into performance teams.

“We’re happy to be back out there playing games and being able to have a beer after the game in the clubhouse as well to support them as well.

“It’s been a testing time, but hopefully now it’s time to look forward to a period of sustained play and progress.”

Sevenoaks’ next game is against Canterbury on Saturday (February 12).

Sevenoaks HC play in Sevenoaks, Kent.