Surbiton men and women head into the winter break unbeaten and at the top of the England Hockey Premier Divisions after fine starts to the season.
Surbiton women won nine of the first 11 games, with two draws.
They head into Phase 2 alongside Hampstead & Westminster, East Grinstead, Reading, Wimbledon and Durham University.
The Premier Division newbies won five and lost six of their matches and pipped Loughborough University to the final Top 6 spot on goal difference.
They came close to holding Surbiton to a draw at the weekend before Erica Sanders snatched a late goal as the Londoners came from 2-0 down, after Lizzy Pocknell’s brace, to prevail 3-2.
At the bottom, fellow debutants Barnes prop up the table after one win.
Three university sides will fill the Bottom 6 fixtures, with Uni of Birmingham and Uni of Nottingham making up the trio.
Surbiton’s Darcy Bourne finished Phase 1 as top scorer on 12 goals, with Pocknell on 11. Biba Mills, who now heads to the Junior World Cup with England, has netted 10 goals.
Gareth Furlong scored a PC hat-trick as Surbiton finished with a 100% record – Nick Bandurak also having scored in every league game – following a 10-1 thrashing of Reading, who needed a result to keep up Top 6 hopes.
Bandurak finished the first half of the season with 18 goals, five ahead of H&W’s Damon Steffens.
East Grinstead needed to beat Holcombe on the road to reach the Top 6 and hope Oxted slipped up.
As it was, both lost (EG 7-1 to Holcombe) and Wimbledon smashed eight past Oxted, who once again reached the Top 6.
Surbiton and Oxted will be joined by Wimbledon, Old Georgians, H&W and Holcombe.
Beeston endured a torrid start to the season at the bottom, losing 10 of their 11 games with one draw.
There is no confirmation on when Phase 2 will start. With England men and women involved in World Cup qualification matches at the end of February, the Premier Divisions could resume in mid-March.
