With the league title safely in the bag, Bingley Bees’ men travelled to Halifax 4ths and had to settle for a 3-3 draw as they experimented with a revised line-up.

Robbie Manning and Khalid Naseem dropped into defence and Stephen Booth, Bill Livingstone and Mark Greenbank were called into the starting line-up.

With players settling into new positions, it was no surprise that Halifax took the lead after 20 minutes.

The Bees hit back through Naseem and although the hosts restored their lead, they were hauled back again with an equaliser from Matthew Clough.

Halifax then thought they had won the game after going 3-2 up but Bingley levelled again through a superb individual effort from Simon Hinchliffe, who dribbled past a number of players before slotting the ball to the left of the keeper.

With just one game remaining to complete their third season in the Yorkshire League, the Bees have an impressive overall record of 51 wins, four draws and just four defeats.

They have amassed a total of 256 goals along the way, 152 of which were scored by Clough and Hinchliffe.

Skipper Ben Clough has led the team to three successive titles, winning Divisions Ten, Nine and now Eight.

The original 2007-08 squad had an average age of just 18 and, as a newly-formed group, it was difficult to predict how they would perform.

But from the outset the lads outpaced and outplayed their opponents, losing just one game in their debut campaign.

With the addition of a few mature players, the average age rose but so did the playing standard and Bingley continue to grow in confidence.

This season’s 18-man squad, which includes three sets of brothers, range in age from 13 to 54 for a subtle mix of youth, speed, skill and experience.

The Bees are now looking forward to next season and hopefully a good run in the summer league at Wakefield.

Any potential new players wishing to contact the club can do so via the website www.bingleybeeshockeyclub.org.uk.