Wait goes on for Portsmouth hockey clubs to find out whether they will win promotion

Like most sport around the world, league action was halted in the middle of last month.

But while football leagues still had many games to play, a lot of the hockey divisions were coming to an end or, in some cases, had been completed.

England Hockey took the decision on Tuesday to honour the games that had been played at the highest few levels of the sport.

‘Teams’ standings when the league stopped will be their final standings. Existing promotion and relegation regulations will be applied based on these standings,’ they said in a statement.

That is a different view to the one taken by the Football Association and the Rugby Football Association in recent weeks.

The FA have controversially null and voided all non-league football between steps 3-7, while the RFU worked out their final tables using a point-per-game methodology.

Both Surbiton men’s and women’s teams have won their respective national titles, but in both cases all league games in the division had been completed.

England Hockey’s decision means there is no relegation reprieve for Fareham.

They were doomed to finish bottom of the Division 1 South table when the season was halted. Though they had two games left, they trailed second bottom Teddington by seven points.

Fareham can have little cause for complaint - they scored the fewest goals in their division (21) and conceded the most (68). While their goal difference was minus 47, Teddington’s was only minus 12.

Other local clubs must now wait on the South Hockey and Hampshire Hockey organisations to decide how they want to end their seasons.

Just because England Hockey have decided to honour final placings, though, that does not mean other leagues will have to follow suit. Hockey is not like football or rugby, where there is one body overseeing all the grassroots game.

Indeed, the East of England Hockey League had previously announced they were adopting a points-per-game solution - similar to the RFU - to decide promotion and relegation.

In Hampshire/Surrey Regional 2, Portsmouth 1sts trailed second-placed Old Cranleighans 2nds by two points with two games to go.

In order to snatch that second promotion place, they would have needed to win their last two games and, due to goal differences, hope OCs only picked up a point.

In Regional 1, Fareham 2nds were entrenched in the relegation play-off zone and, with two games remaining, no chance of getting out of it.

In Hampshire Division 1, Petersfield had two games left but were certain to finish in the one automatic relegation place. As it stood, Havant 2nds and Fareham 2nds were third-bottom and second-bottom respectively and according to the league website could be relegated.

The first four division of the Hampshire Men’s League come under the South League umbrella.

In Division 3, US Portsmouth were already guaranteed promotion with two games still to play. If they had won their remaining matches and leaders Fleet & Ewshot lost their last one, US would have won the title on goal difference.

Elsewhere in the Hampshire League, Gosport 2nds finished bottom of Division 6 and Portsmouth 4ths pipped US Portsmouth 2nds on goal difference to win the Division 8 title.

In the Hampshire Women’s League, no local clubs are waiting to hear whether they will be promoted, but a few could well be relegated.

Portsmouth 1sts were third in Hampshire Premier, eight points adrift of leaders New Forest with only two games left.

Havant 3rds were bottom of Division 1 and Gosport Borough 2nd bottom of Division 2 after winning just one of their 20 games.

The latter could still have avoided finishing in the relegation zone, though, had they won their last two games and third-bottom Wimborne picked up no more than a point from their two matches.

In Hampshire 3, Petersfield occupied the second automatic promotion place. But they only held a one-point lead over Yateley 2nds with two games left.

At the bottom, Fareham 3rds were guaranteed to finish in the relegation zone.

In Division 5, Portsmouth 4ths occupied the second relegation place, but were only a point behind Salisbury 5ths with two games to go.

Gosport 2nds were also guaranteed to finish in the Division 6 drop zone, with just one game left - they trailed third bottom Swanage by six points and the Dorset club had two matches in hand.

It is expected that the South and Hampshire Leagues will reveal how they plan to bring 2019/20 to a close within a week.