Hove Secure D1 Title

Congratulations to Hove Park for securing their first Parks League title for 13 years.

Hove finished their 18 game season with an away victory at Queens, holding an impressive final score of 135 sets won and just 16 lost. Dyke finished the season in second place, with Queens third.

Captain Josh Pollard told us that Hove’s best performance was the opening fixture of the season: “We beat reigning champions Dyke 3-1 in a really touch match. From there on, we really thought we could win the league.”

Hove lost only four rubbers over the entire season, with four players ‘carrying their racquet’ unbeaten from April to September: Josh Pollard, Alistair Alexander, Marc Manton and Helen Almond.

The core ladies for Hove were Almond, Basia Suzin, Lucy Chadburn, Jo Davis and Amy Slonje, with further contributions from Patricia Pollard, Jess Pither, Morna Fox and Hayley Oxley. Other significant men players were Darren Pollard, Fariss Barakat and Neil Dickson.

Victory has been a long time coming for one of Brighton & Hove’s largest and most popular parks clubs. Hove Park have not lifted the Charles Beckett Shield since 2008. See below:

2008 Hove
2009 Queens
2010 Dyke
2011 Stanford
2012 Dyke
2013 Saltdean
2014 Dyke
2015 Saltdean
2016 Queens
2017 Dyke
2018 Queens
2019 Dyke
2020 not contested
2021 Hove