Canterbury Hockey Club’s men and women begin their new National Premier Division seasons on Saturday looking to build on their success of last season.

Both teams travel to Reading, with the women taking the field at 2pm while the men follow at 4pm.

The city club’s women topped the Premier Division last term, only to lose in the Championship play-off semi-final 5-1 against the Berkshire side, who went on to claim the title on penalties.

New coach Jen Wilson said: “Reading is always a tough game. We go there with nothing to lose. I am pretty happy with the balance of the team. We’ll have a few debutants and I’m excited about it.”

On a dramatic final day of 2012/13, Canterbury's men secured third-place in their first season since promotion back to the top flight, only to lose 4-0 to Reading in the Championship third place play-off.

Skipper Michael Farrer said: “It’s a tough match to start with. They have made some new signings and on paper at least, they are probably the strongest team there is."

He added: “The aim for us is to build on last year. People will still look at us as underdogs but if they do that and we can go back home with the points each time, then we’re happy to continue flying under the radar.”