Solid defending and composed attacking gave Wilts this comfortable win against Frys ladies.

Coming out strong from the outset, Wilts sought to take control of the game through posession hockey. With new-comer Lou Riddell leading from the back, Wilts played the ball nicely around the pitch.

With accuracy and support across the whole team, Wilts had time to play their own game, and create opportunities to go hard on the attack.

This provided Frys little opportunity to threaten the Wilts defensive area, but any breaks that were made were efectively picked up by the centre team of Lou Riddell and Nicola Yalland.

Pressure in the Frys circle led to the first goal from a well worked penalty corner, with George Garrity once again occupying the perfect position on the post to deflect the ball out of reach of the keeper.

Fluency was the key component of the Wilts play. With the ball being played confidently around, Millie Cornish once again displayed her development over the current season and made some great runs down the left channel.

Passing to Helen Culverhouse, she needed little time to position herself and in one fluid stroke she smacked the ball cleanly past the Frys keeper.

Tenacity in the Frys circle led to the third goal for Wilts as the keeper worked hard to save some initial Wilts attacks. However, always on their toes to make the most of a rebound, a free hit from Millie Cornish to Helen Culverhouse presented Hannah Cornish with a rebound opportunity which she successfully converted, taking the half time score to 3-0.

The second half saw Wilts remained disciplined, as Frys looked to increase their pressure on the Wilts defense.

Goal keeper Juliette Turner confidently dealt with a couple of on-target shots and continued solid defending ensured any pressure in the circle was quickly dealt with.

Larua Allsop continued to provide good support in the right midfield and it was from a well-timed pass to Helen Culverhouse that the fourth goal was scored - Helen Culverhouse put a perfect weight on the ball to outwit the keeper and enable it to gently cross the line.

WWHC Ladies III 0, Melksham Ladies II 3

An early start saw a short-handed West Wilts 3rds line up against an experienced Melksham side but finish the game with only nine players and a disappointing though not disheartening defeat.

Melksham demonstrated their intent early on, with two short corners soon after the start, but the West Wilts defence, well-drilled, easily smothered the attacks.

Elizabeth Robson and Jess Agate remained calm as they carried the ball out of danger and Suzi Agate battled confidently in midfield, releasing Karla Cundick for an incisive run on goal.

Without Alex at the front, though, Wilts lacked a key element of their attack, and the Melskham won the ball and bounced back.

Despite an interesting tactic of keeping two players very high up the pitch to unsettle the backs, the well-established Wilts defence remained calm, communicating with each other well, using Emma Papworth as able cover when needed. Kayleigh Brothers stepped up to clear two speculative attacks, but when a good cross came in from the left, it was Ali Tutt that reached it first to slide it away for 1-0.

Undeterred, Wilts came back, with a beautiful sequence of passes from Pat Murdoch to Elizabeth Robson to Kate Warren to Karla Cundick, who tool the ball all the way to the ‘D’ but was unable to get the final shot in.

Melksham put together another sequence of short corners, but between Annabel Harrild’s speedy running and Kayleigh Brothers reliable kicking, West Wilts were able to prevent a further score.

In the second half, the team were determined to level the score as they had the previous week and with Emma Papworth stealing the ball off the opposition’s toes to create chances, the match looked evenly-balanced for a while.

Jess Agate took a breather after a hard shot hit her squarely on the thigh, and Suzi Agate covered a huge amount of ground, inspiring the team to even greater efforts.

But after another three short corners, a slip to Sara Clifford saw her line up a fierce lifted shot that grazed Tanya Jackson’s ribs as it travelled into the back of the net.

The goal stood, and Wilts found themselves two down.

A frenetic period of hockey saw sharp words from the umpires regarding stick tackling, and Pat Murdoch adjudged to have committed a professional foul on the sideline to concede another short corner.

Tanya Jackson limped off with a calf injury, leaving a nine-man side to hold off the increasingly ferocious Melksham attack, eventually succumbing to another thumping strike from Sara Clifford in the last minutes to make the final score 3-0.