Hockey: Ramsden's treble keeps Cannock at the top

Simon Ramsden scored yet another hat-trick to take his season's total to 21 goals in Cannock's 6-2 win against Canterbury, which keeps the Staffordshire side two points clear of Reading at the top of the Premier Division. Reading were also in form with a 6-0 victory against lowly Hampstead and Westminster with Richard Mantell scoring twice.

It was a useful weekend for Guildford, who followed up their a 3-1 win against Teddington on Saturday with a goalless draw against Loughborough Students. They remain a point ahead of Teddington in the chasing pack behind Students for the last place in the play-offs. The bottom two clubs both surrendered early leads, St Albans going down 2-1 at home to Surbiton and Doncaster losing 3-1 away to Teddington.

The First Division leaders, Old Loughtonians, gave their sponsors a few heart-stopping moments in their game against third-placed Beeston before winning 2-1 to remain seven points ahead of second-placed Firebrands, who beat Bournville 7-1. In a game in which both sides included a number of highly promising teenagers, Old Loughts, after conceding an early goal to Beeson, when 17-year-old David Griffiths scored his 17th of the season, were in control after strikes from Mike Cullen and Sam Jennings. But they lost their way in the final quarter and there was great relief for the large home crowd as Alastair Wilson flashed a last second penalty stroke high and wide for what would have been a well-deserved equaliser.

In Saturday's games in the Women's Premier there were no changes in the top three places with Slough, Olton and Canterbury all winning and Chelmsford moving into fourth place after a 4-3 win at Trojans. Lisa Wooding scored a 69th-minute winner at a penalty corner a few minutes after the Southampton club had been reduced to 10 following a red card for Kath James.