They made doubly sure of safety today, beating Manchester Comets 6-4, including two goals each for Tamsyn Sciortino and Lilly Tomlins.
Penguin Emperors completed a hat-trick of wins when Rachel Bull (Photo: Trevor Hyde) netted five in an 11-7 victory over Cheltenham. Otter also collected maximum points from the Northampton weekend. The London rivals took the top two places, both with six wins and a draw from seven matches.
Southampton head for Championship 2 together with Otter Lutra, Penguin Emperors, Watford and Cheltenham. Also involved will be the Division 2 bottom three - Welsh Wanderers, Sheffield Stingrays and Birmingham. St Andrews, Liverpool Water Beatles and Manchester Comets miss the second phase of the season and will need to book a place for 2022/23 via next April’s qualification tournament.