Reading continued their rich vein of form in their determined, and increasingly realistic, bid for promotion back to English Hockey’s elite Premier League with a convincing win over bottom-placed Havant.
Sitting top of the Conference League South with a 100% record at the start of the game, Reading dominated possession in the early stages and scored twice in the opening quarter with well-taken individual goals from Tom Minall and Andy Oxburgh.
The second quarter was more evenly contested with Reading defenders putting themselves under pressure by unnecessarily conceding possession in their own half of the pitch, allowing Havant to mount dangerous attacks that were only thwarted by fine saves from Chris Wyver in goal.
Havant did find the net once in this period, but Reading’s two goal lead was restored when Andy Oxburgh was upended when clean through on goal and Matt Richards made no mistake with the ensuing penalty stroke.
Reading regained their dominance and kept it throughout the third and fourth quarters, scoring three more goals through Connor Beauchamp with a firmly struck penalty corner, Tom Minall with an unstoppable reverse stick swipe, and Ryan Crowe with a tap in following slick team passing and movement from one end of the pitch to the other, probably the pick of all six goals.
Reading now have 12 points from their first four games, sitting 5 points above their closest challengers at this early stage of the season.
The Reading Ladies are almost keeping pace with the men in their own quest for a return to the Premier League with maximum points going into their Conference League South game on Saturday against Cambridge City.
But a 3-3 draw saw them drop their first points of the season leaving them in second place, those two lost points behind current leaders, Sevenoaks.
With a long way to go though, Reading remain confident that their talent and determination will give them every opportunity to overtake the current leaders and give them the automatic promotion that would come with top spot.
While Reading does have its two exciting elite teams, they also have opportunities on offer for players of all ages and abilities.
They run frequent taster sessions for anyone wishing to explore the game
