Spalding Ladies 1st 2 Dereham 2nd 1
Immediately Spalding dominated possession. Three minutes in, Dereham were awarded a green card allowing Spalding to capitalise on the situation with Charlotte Maplethorpe driving round the defence to bring the game to 1-0.
Spalding maintained composure and powerful transfers between the defence, allowed balls to be consistently played to the forwards. However, no goals came. Shortly after, a scrappy short corner routine allowed Dereham to equalise.
Going into the second half, Spalding were keen to get ahead and five minutes in, a pass from Honor Moore to the far post allowed Georgina Maplethorpe to perform a skilful shot, bringing the score to 2-1. With green cards being awarded to Honor Pearson and Jess Ball, Spalding became more defensive but were able to keep calm and prevent Dereham from scoring.
Spalding Ladies 2nd 1 Cambridge City 6th 3
Spalding began the match with intensity and purpose, immediately establishing control and putting City under pressure.
Their early dominance paid off 11 minutes in, when Kate Amess drove into the D and forced a defender’s foot, earning a well-deserved penalty corner.
From the resulting set piece, Amy Naylor executed a clean straight strike, firing the ball into the bottom corner to give Spalding a 1-0 lead.
City responded with increasing pressure of their own, forcing Spalding’s defence to stay sharp. A crucial moment came when Holly Gleave produced a goal-line save.
Despite the Spalding’s resilience, City managed to equalise just before half-time.
The second half saw City come out with renewed energy and they capitalised on that by scoring two further goals.
Spalding Ladies 3rd 0
Oundle 1st 2
The opening half was a tense affair, with both sides battling hard but unable to break through.
Spalding’s defensive unit stood strong, with goalkeeper Anya Knights producing key saves to keep the score level.
Despite Spalding’s efforts, the score remained 0-0 at half‑time, reflecting the balance of play and the determination shown.
The second half saw Oundle begin to edge ahead. Their first goal came from open play, breaking Spalding’s resistance.
The hosts then doubled their lead through a penalty flick, clinically dispatched to make it 2-0.
Spalding continued to battle until the final whistle but were unable to find a way back into the game.
Spalding Men’s 1st 9 Cambridge City 3rd 0
The hosts flew out of the blocks with Stu Cunnington opening the scoring after just three minutes with a penalty corner.
With captain Sam Howitt displaying superb first-half distribution, dictating play from the centre midfield, Spalding controlled the tempo throughout.
Spalding lost Harry Maplethorpe to a green and from this Cambridge struck the woodwork.
From that moment on, Spalding turned the screw and Cunnington managed to bag his second in the 17th minute from a penalty corner.
The goals kept coming as James Grant struck another home in the 20th minute, swiftly followed by Will Wright’s quickfire double in the 24th and 29th minutes, one an unstoppable reverse and the other a penalty corner deflection.
Cunnington then completed his hat-trick with a drag flick just before half time sending Spalding into half-time with a 6-0 lead.
The second half saw no let-up, with Grant grabbing his second on the 37th minute before Callum Fravigar scored at the back post from a penalty corner.
Wright then completed his own hat-trick with a superb solo goal.
Spalding head into the Christmas break ten points clear at the top.
Spalding Men’s 2nd 5 Peterborough 1
Spalding started with first push back. Lots of well worked triangles led to attacks. Glenn Richardson took the ball to the corner with skill and squared to Reuben Rogers who miscontrolled but regained composure to find Lawrence Smith-Hughes who finished it neatly in an open goal.
Ollie Roy added a second from a rebound after numerous efforts.
Peterborough looked to up their game but Spalding stayed firm with good resilience.
A good ball found Tim Maltby who finished calmly for 3-0.
Jo Maltby danced through multiple sticks to score a lovely solo goal flicked in the corner for 4-0 at half time.
Peterborough got one back from a short corner but Spalding stayed solid.
Danny Wright controlled the ball well and the keeper took him out leading to a flick which Richardson scored excellently.
Spalding Men’s 3rd 1 Cambridge City 5th 2
The first half was a tight contest, with both sides finding the net to see the score level at 1–1 going into the break.
After the restart, Spalding continued to press, linking play well and maintaining their attacking intent.
City, however, proved resilient and dangerous on the counter, gradually working their way back into the game.
With just three minutes left on the clock, City struck the decisive blow, finding the net to snatch victory in the closing stages.
Spalding Men’s 4th 0 City of Peterborough 6th 4
Short of key players, Spalding 4ths were indebted to goalkeeper Rob Callaby making a series of fine saves, as his side put in a superb performance against hosts who had scored 52 goals in 11 games.
Everyone worked hard and played some good hockey against a very experienced, skilful Peterborough team.
The first half scoresheet was looking set to be blank with 30 seconds remaining, but a cruel bit of luck saw the ball put in the top corner on the third attempt following a short corner and Spalding were one down at the break.
The second half saw more of the same pressure with Peterborough converting another three goals to make the final scoreline 4-0.
Spalding go into the Christmas break ninth in the table.
