Kent Men’s Hockey returned to action at the start of May as they began their second season in England Hockey’s top flight.

With Chris Pearce taking the helm from Giles Osborn, a new look side had just the one session together before the competition began.

With the division split into ‘North’ and ‘South’ groups, Kent headed to St. Alban’s Hockey Club to face a gruelling four games in two days.

With only two sides progressing to Finals Day and several changes to the side that finished second in their inaugural season in the top flight last campaign, Kent flew out of the blocks in Game 1, easing past Hertfordshire by four goals to one.

Sussex, winners of the South Group last season were then despatched 7-1 that afternoon courtesy of a blistering opening period that saw a 5-1 score-line at the interval.

As the only side with maximum points from day 1, Kent knew that just one more win from their final two fixtures would see them through to Finals day and a 7-0 thrashing of Staffordshire at 9am on the Sunday was enough to do just that.

A 5-1 loss in their final group game to a refreshed Somerset side playing in their first game of the day wasn’t enough to dampen the spirits however as, for the second year in succession, Kent qualified for Finals day in which they would face off against Lincolnshire, winners of the North, in their semi-final.

Just a fortnight later, the top four Counties from each division travelled to Beeston Hockey Club in Nottingham to face off for their respective titles.

Drawn against a strong Lincolnshire side, Kent went down early to two quick-fire goals as they struggled to find their rhythm. Two goals in 10 minutes from Luke Smithard and Nick Bandurak restored parity before another lapse at the end of the half saw them go into the break 4-2 down.

With a mountain to climb, Kent came out firing in the second half to put Lincolnshire on the back foot. Defending resolutely, the Northern winners absorbed considerable pressure before springing a clinical counter-attack of their own to extend their lead to 5-2 with just over 25 minutes to play.

Facing an early exit from the country’s top four sides, Kent produced a blistering offensive display to turn the game on its’ head. 2 goals in a minute from Rob Field reduced the deficit to one before Nick Bandurak equalised with just over 15 minutes to play. Smithard then completed his hat-trick with two quick-fire goals as Kent sealed their place in the final with time to spare.

Just 2 hours after completing their improbable comeback, Kent took the field in torrential rain to face Yorkshire in the County Championship A Division Final.

The two-time reigning champions had a comfortable semi-final; despatching Somerset 7-0.

With a 6-0 half-time score-line, the 18-man squad could rotate considerably in the second period and their fresh legs were evident as they sprung out to an early 2-0 lead in the final that followed.

Goals from Richard Turner and Nick Bandurak restored parity for Kent before Yorkshire again took the lead, only to be pinned back by a late Jon Stiff goal as the two finalists went into the interval locked at 3-3.

As the rain finally subsided and the second half began, a controversial decision gave Yorkshire a go-ahead goal and from there the result was never in doubt.

Kent committed men further forward and a ruthless Yorkshire front line exploited the subsequent gaps with clinical efficiency. A late consolation goal for Kent wasn’t enough as their tough semi-final caught up with them in the final 20 minutes, allowing Yorkshire to jump out to an unassailable 8-4 lead and claim their third consecutive title.

With just two years of top flight experience under their belt, Kent’s consecutive final appearances are undoubtedly a testament to the quality of the side and the potential to challenge for titles in the future.

Pictures supplied by Brad Visser.