Tough start for newly promoted Ladies 1sts

Halifax 1sts 2 v Slazenger 1sts 6

Scorers : Walsh, Crawford
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Halifax faced Slazenger’s at Park Lane in their first match in the North League hockey league, having being promoted last year from the Yorkshire league.

Slazengers started strong and immediately put pressure on the home side and spent the first minutes of the opening match in the Halifax half. Halifax managed to stop Slazengers getting their first goal and against the run of play Halifax had a break away when Steph Jones played a through ball to Emma Crawford who slipped the ball to Kath Walsh who at full stretch put the ball into the net on her reverse stick.

Slazengers continued to pile on the pressure on but Halifax started to pull their game together with both sides playing well. However, following a good run by the away side, Slazengers managed two goals from well planned short corners. Then just before half time got another goal leaving the score line 3-1 at half time.

Into the second half, the Halifax side did start to get the upper hand and were rewarded with a goal from Emma Crawford who scooped the ball into the net. At 4-2 it looked like the home side were getting back into the game and at times started to dominate. However, the commitment and determination of the away side meant that the home side couldn’t manage to close the gap.

As Halifax continued to push forward and attack, Slazengers broke away and managed to get another two goals. The home side, although disappointed, did play well at times and have a lot of positives to build on for the new season.