Holcombe started their Premier Division Phase Two efforts with an impressive 2-0 win over Sutton Coldfield last time out, backing up their strong performance through the indoor season, where Richard Lane’s side finished fifth in the Super 6s Premier Division upon their return to the top-flight.

Saturday’s victory saw double-Olympian Sarah Robertson, who took part in Holcs’ Super 6s campaign, score on her second outdoor debut for the club to fire Brad Read’s side into the lead, with New Zealand international Tessa Reid adding a second late on with her first goal for the club.

This week has seen former New Zealand international Katie Glynn join the coaching set-up alongside fellow Kiwi Brad Read, who took over in October.

Robyn Hodges was appointed captain earlier in the season and led the team through the remainder of Phase One and the aforementioned Super 6s campaign.

On her hopes for the rest of the season, Hodges said: “We must continue building on what we left in the first half of the season.

“Obviously, we went through quite a few ups and downs, but now we are set, we’ve got our structure, we’ve got our strategies, and we won’t be going down without a fight.

“Everyone will be leaving everything out on that pitch, whether it’s home or away, and moving forward we look forward to the support at Holcombe Park for homes games, with the music and the drums for that extra encouragement so we can show everyone we enjoy playing together as a team.

“Being captain is a huge honour, I never imagined it being this soon, and I have such a name to live up to by taking over from Harriet [Pittard].

“She was an absolute legend, and she has set the club and this team in such good stead for the future, and I just want to do her proud moving forward.”

 “I was absolutely gutted to finish fifth [in the Super 6s Premier Division].

“The journey was such a rollercoaster of emotions, and we could have, and should have made it into the top four. It just came down to those last two games and they were hard.

“On reflection we probably had the toughest last two games out of everybody but the grit, the fight, the determination, and the belief, we will take into the outdoor season moving forwards.

“On top of that, having Lottie (Bingham) back was a dream and Holcombe Park is always open for Lotts!”

Robertson made an instant impact, providing a calmness on the ball in midfield and leadership on the pitch in tough moments alongside the likes of Hodges.

Her experience at the top of the international game could prove key in the coming weeks as Holcombe bid for Premier Division survival in their first season back in the top-flight.

“With Sarah back in the team, her experience is so welcomed and to have her there almost as my right hand is such a positive for the team.

“She knows how to control the game and what we need as a team, and it’s so uplifting to have her.

“As an external player coming in and reinforcing the ability of the team, it gives us that extra bit of confidence and self-belief that we can really compete in Phase Two.

“After our win at the weekend and a goal from Sarah, we are really looking forward to having her for the rest of the season and we wouldn’t have it any other way.”

Glynn, meanwhile, will be on the sideline for the first time this weekend having started her role earlier this week.

Head Coach Read will be in action for Holcombe’s Men at Old Georgians, leaving an all-female staff to work alongside Holcombe’s Women on International Women’s Day.

Hodges added: “As a team, we are very excited to have Katie Glynn joining the coaching team, I’ve heard so many good things about Katie.

“Not only will it be good for me personally to get that exposure, but it will be good for the whole team, especially for our forward group to work with her as she will be able to offer a lot to them and to our attacking side.

“This will also allow Brad (Read) to focus on his super skill with the defence, and to have another voice, another pair of eyes will support him so much.

“Both the team and I can’t wait to get going with her, we are so excited!”

This weekend, Holcs are looking to make it two wins from two in Phase Two as they head to Manchester to face Bowdon, a side who they beat 1-0 in Phase One.

That match included a late penalty stroke save from goalkeeper Tilly Woodhead, with Holcs hoping for a win to lift themselves out of the relegation zone.

“Going into this weekend, we can’t wait to get going, especially with an away day to Manchester – team bonding at its finest!

“We’ve had a really good week of prep on and off the pitch, including video analysis.

“With Katie coming in on Wednesday, she has added so much more knowledge to our forwards and has really helped to build connections.

“On Saturday, we had so many chances we could’ve put away, so we are hoping that we’ve built on that and are ready to fire a few more home going into this weekend!”

Holcombe are in action this Saturday at Bowdon Hockey Club (13:30), with the men set to play Old Georgians at St. George’s College (18:00) – updates for both games will be provided across Holcombe’s social media channels.

Image: Gaby Hull