Knights, Jaguars claim SEMLA’s 2025/26 Winter Box League titles
Knights picked up a record third men’s title in SEMLA’s Winter Box League after a narrow 6-4 victory over Steelheads in an enthralling final in Oxford on Sunday.
Tom Roche’s Knights team, who came into the final unbeaten, were looking to deny Steelheads a first Winter Box League title and they started well, going in at first quarter-time 2-1 up.
A similarly low-scoring second quarter saw the teams separated by a single goal at half-time with the scores at 3-2.
Steelheads really made their opponents work in the third quarter, showing their quality in defence by shutting Knights out and scoring a single goal to head into the final 15 minutes on level terms at 3-3.
However, Knights proved too strong in the end, despite Steelheads’ best efforts, to claim a 6-4 win and yet another Winter Box League title.
In the women’s tournament, Ravens completed a series whitewash with a 9-5 win over Jaguars in their fourth and final match to retain the trophy in 2025/26.
Karma Kabbani scored a hat-trick of goals as her Ravens team ran away with the victory, despite a whiff of a comeback from Jaguars in the final quarter.
In the third-place play-off in the men’s competition, Hornets followed up their 2024/25 title with a bronze medal after a dominant 11-2 win over a Capitals team that never really got going this season.
SEMLA’s Winter Box League fans can watch the entire competition, including the final matches from Sunday, on Lacrosse Live UK’s YouTube channel below.
Hornets 11-2 Capitals
Hornets scorers | O Allsop (6G, 2A), Martin (4G, 2A), Harris (1G), Carr (1A), Trinh (1A).
Capitals scorers | Groves (1G), Krommenhoek (1G).
Jaguars 5-9 Ravens
Jaguars scorers | Lewis (2G, 1A), Ford (1G), Lee-Whitehead (1G), Rutter (1G).
Ravens scorers | Kabbani (3G, 1A), Johnson (2G, 1A), Greenwood (2G), Beaman (1G, 1A), Foord (1G, 1A).
Knights 6-4 Steelheads
Knights scorers | Burke (2G), Rodberg (1G, 1A), Prescott (1G, 1A), N Edwards (1G), Leonard (1G), Goodfellow (1A), Lee-Whitehead (1A).
Steelheads scorers | Robinson (1G, 1A), Di Siena (1G), O Edwards (1G), Ward (1G).
SEMLA’s 2025/26 Winter Box League Final Standings
Men’s Competition
Knights
Steelheads
Hornets
Capitals
Women’s Competition
Ravens
Jaguars