Old Loughtonians men’s Firsts extended their winning run to six games after defeating Dereham 3-2 on Saturday Loughts started the brighter of the two sides in the East Hockey League clash but were unable to convert their chances in the final third.

And it was the hosts who broke the deadlock when they surprised Loughts with an attack and capitalised on the opportunity.

The pattern of the game remained the same after the break until a tide of purple managed to power through a resilient Dereham defence and a botched short corner was hammered home by George Lilley.

Having got back on terms, Martin Lear scored Loughts’ second after he deflected home from a slick play.

The bad news continued for the home side when they had to play the rest of the game with 10 men after an injury to Laurie Hill.

The visitors made the most of their numerical advantage when Shane Martin added a third. Although Dereham reduced the deficit, Loughts held on for the deserved win.

Victory was also enjoyed by Loughts men’s Seconds after they defeated Richmond Thirds 3-2 in London Hockey League Division Two.

The Thirds rounded off a good day for the men’s sides with a 3-1 win over Southgate Fourths in Division Three.

Wapping Hockey Club men’s Seconds returned to the summit in East Division One, with seven games to go, after a resounding 5-0 win over Bourne Deeping.

The game was goalless for 20 minutes before Jonny Madill converted from a penalty corner to continue his scoring streak.

However, Bourne dug in and despite Wapping testing their keeper, the score stayed at 1-0 going into the second half.

But the hosts put their opponents to the sword after the restart and the first blow came from Dudley Spiers, who scored from another penalty corner.

Jack Beard then added the third following a team effort which included contributions from Richard Marshall, Matt Hyden, Alain Traill and Bobby Watson.

The latter was to be shown a yellow card for a poor challenge inside the 25 but goalkeeper James Bowler was able to keep out the resulting penalty corner.

The day only got worse for Bourne when Wapping’s fourth came from Madill, who was able to shrug off a defender and calmly shot the home for his sixth goal in four games.

And there was still time for Beard to add his second when he slotted the ball home through the keeper’s legs from the top of the D.

Wapping ladies Firsts fought back to take a point against Wisbech Town as they returned to their home turf for the first time in 2017.

Wisbech struck first when they converted a penalty flick to go into half-time with the advantage.

But Wapping did not give in and Jordan Mulvaney found the back of the net from a deflection to even the scores.

This was the cue for the visitors to up their game and they managed to win a barrage of penalty corners and score two in quick succession.

Belinda Armstrong reduced the deficit to bring Wapping back into the game at 3-2 with 10 minutes left on the clock.

And with two minutes to spare they got their just rewards after working hard across the pitch when Aisling McKeon slotted the ball away from a short corner routine.

Crostyx men’s first did not have the best of weekends, losing 7-0 to Broxbourn in a East Men’s Hockey League Division Two South match.

The ladies’ Firsts unbeaten run came to a halt as they lost 3-2 to Folkestone in the East Women’s Hockey League Division One South.

Although the visitors travelled with 11 players, they were a strong side and caught Crostyx off guard.

Folkstone opened the scoring and went into half-time with the lead but Lucy Leel scored immediately after the break to tie the scores.

Mia Birchall put Crostyx 2-1 up after she went through one-on-one with the keeper.

But the home side could not hold on to their advantage and succumbed to the pressure from their opponents which allowed them to score two late goals.

It was also a disappointing weekend for Waltham Forest men’s Firsts who lost 3-1 to West Herts Seconds at Walthamstow Academy.

But it was a better day for the ladies Firsts who defeated Burnt Ash firsts 2-1 and headed to the top of the league.

Forest started the game with some smart passing but both sides had chances from the short corners.

Ultimately it was Forest who took the league when Isabelle Scerri followed up from a rebound.

However, Burnt Ash came out strong in the seoncd half but Waltham held firm and Katerhine Abbie got Forest's second to put the away team 2-0 ahead.

The hosts kept the pressure up and pulled one back from a short corner before Forest had to defend a string of corners and managed to hold on for the win.