John Adams reflects on Harleston Magpies Ladies winning the Super 6s Championships Division One title

John Adams was full of praise for a squad effort which helped Harleston Magpies Ladies seal their return to the Super 6s Championships’ Premier Division on Sunday.

Magpies went into the second and final weekend of their Division One campaign sitting in third place, just one place and two points from a promotion spot.

And Adams’ side pulled off a perfect run of results in the finale, which was held at Canterbury Hockey Club, recording wins against Holcombe (2-1), Guildford (4-3), Wimbledon (6-2) and Knole Park (6-2).

The quartet of victories saw Magpies finish top of Division One and with it clinch a return to the top flight of indoor hockey for the first time since 2015.

“It couldn’t have gone any better at all,” manager Adams said. “It far exceeded our expectations without a doubt.

“The girls played absolutely superbly. The icing on the cake was to actually win the league as well.

“We knew after we’d won our last game that we were promoted, but we had to wait and watch another couple of games before we were league winners and Guildford got promoted with us.”

Teenager Anna Cogdell, who scored seven goals for Magpies in the first weekend, continued her goalscoring exploits, netting another 11 times to finish on 18 goals.

The 16-year-old was second among the Division One leading scorers, finishing one behind Guildford’s 19-goal star Kerryn Swanepoel.

“I think you don’t do it as individuals to win games indoors,” Adams said. “They’re over a long weekend and we’ve played 160 minutes of hockey over two days.

“You do that as a squad. We used 12 players over the course of those four games and everybody played their part in ensuring that we actually got a promotion and won the league.

“Obviously there were one or two individuals that were outstanding over the two weekends.

“Certainly over the last weekend, our captain Lauren Barber, who is one of the more experienced players in the squad, is undoubtedly one of the best defenders in the league.

“She was just incredible at the back. It was her sheer composure at the back that very much controlled the games for us.

“I think Anna Cogdell as one of our younger players is very worthy of a mention. She ended up as the league’s second top goalscorer.

“I think having the two Gardens, both Beth and Georgie, they were absolutely brilliant over the course of the campaign.

“I can’t emphasise enough just how you don’t do something like this without having a squad. It’s really hard work, that’s for sure.”

The Ladies’ outdoor first team resume their Vitality Women’s Division 1 South campaign on February 4.