South England – with four Surbiton players in their squad – won their final three GB SuperLeague fixtures last week to clinch the annual end-of-season Home Counties’ championship.

Playing under the name of Wessex Leopards they overwhelmed the Welsh Celtic Panthers squad 7-0, from three goals up at the interval, at the National Sporting Centre in Bisham Abbey on Wednesday evening.

Two of Surbiton’s players scored three of the goals: GB Olympic forward James Tindall the second from open play in the 16th minute and then a penalty corner in the final 70th minute of the game; while former England U21 midfielder Tim Pinnock, selected back into full international consideration, also scored a penalty corner five minutes before half time.

Together with another GB Olympic forward, Matt Daly, a Surbiton trio notched all eight goals as the Leopards outscored England U21 (Saxon Tigers, with team mate Ben Tibble in its squad) 8-4, from 4-2 up at the interval, on Saturday afternoon at Cannock Hockey Club.

Daly led the way with four (in the 16th, 38th, 41st and 59th minutes, the second and third of them from penalty corners); Tindall scored a hat trick (in the 20th, 23rd and 45th minutes, the second from a penalty corner); and Pinnock set the ball rolling with a 9th-minute penalty corner.

Together with the fourth of the Surbiton quartet, GB Olympic midfielder Rob Moore, all played their part in, though none scored, in the narrow 2-1victory, from 1-1 at the interval, over then also hundred per cent England North (Pennine Pumas) to clinch the title in the final fixture on Sunday afternoon.

Two other Surbiton players selected for the tournament were forward Andy Cornick in the Welsh (Celtic Panthers) squad which finished fourth; and goalkeeper Allan Dick in Scotland North (Highland Jaguars) who finished fifth. Tibble’s Saxon Tigers were sixth and last, while the other team in the tournament, Scotland South (Caledonian Cougars) finished third.

Great Britain’s constituent nations – England, Scotland and Wales – have now separated out after Beijing into their individual national sides for the first year of the post-Olympic cycle ahead of the London 2012 Games to prepare for this autumn’s European championships.

As well as their four South England players, two of Surbiton’s six current Olympians (the third, Ben Marsden, has retired from international hockey and joined Wimbledon HC), midfielders Richard Alexander and Ben Hawes, not selected for the GB SuperLeague because of injury, will hope to be soon fit enough to be considered for the England squad.

England (ranked 6th in the world and 4th in Europe) will compete in the EuroHockey Nations Championship in Amsterdam from 22 to 30 August.

Both Dick for Scotland (23rd in the world and 10th in Europe) and Cornick for Wales (30th in the world and 15th in Europe) will hope to be selected for the second-tier EuroHockey Nations Trophy, to be hosted by Wales in Wrexham from 1 to 8 August.

Meantime Tibble will be aiming for selection in the England U21 squad for the Junior World Cup being held in Malaysia/Singapore from 7-21 June.