Harrogate Hockey Club Men's 2s thrash Doncaster Hockey Club 3s to clinch Yorkshire Division Two title
Harrogate Hockey Club’s Men’s 2s clinched the Yorkshire Division Two title in some style as they thrashed Doncaster Hockey Club Men’s 3s.
Josh Lyon’s team opened up an unassailable lead at the top of the table courtesy of Saturday’s 5-0 triumph away from home.
The Ainsty Road outfit have led the way for the majority of the 2025/26 season, getting themselves into a great position to go on and secure promotion thanks to a fine 12-match winning streak.
And, although they suffered a slight wobble during February, they managed to regather themselves and get over the line with a game to spare.
Lyon and his men headed into their fixture at Doncaster knowing that victory would see them crowned champions regardless of results elsewhere, and they wasted very little time getting the job done.
Skipper Lyon set the ball rolling with just five minutes on the clock, with Oliver Sanderson then adding a quick-fire brace to put Harrogate in full control with only a quarter of the contest gone.
Lyon then struck again on the half-hour mark, with Peter Shipston making it five in the 40th minute.
Now five points clear of second-placed City of York 3s, ‘Gate will be looking to round off what has been a superb campaign with another win when they visit Sheffield 3s on the final day – this Saturday (11.30am).
In the Yorkshire & North East Premier Division, Harrogate’s Men’s 1s played out a 2-2 draw with Doncaster 2s.
Charles Edmondson, in the 34th minute, and Tom Gugan, in the 67th minute, were the players to find the back of the net at Ainsty Road.
That result keeps ‘Gate eighth in the table heading into this Saturday’s last-day-of-the-season showdown with Durham University 3s at Granby Hockey Centre (1.30pm).
Already-relegated Harrogate Ladies 1s’ miserable Yorkshire & North East Premier Division campaign went from bad to worse when they were thumped 7-0 at home by derby rivals City of York 1s.
That loss was their 17th in 21 outings to date, and leaves them well adrift of second-from-bottom Ben Rhydding 2s with just one game left to play.
Evie Barnard’s team will sign off for 2025/26 when they entertain Durham University 3s this Saturday (3pm).
Harrogate Ladies 2s missed the opportunity to climb one place in the Yorkshire Division One standings and up to eighth position when they suffered a 5-0 reverse at the hands of Driffield 1s.
‘Gate travel to Slazenger 1s for their final outing of the season this Saturday (1.20pm).