Karen Timby’s late leveller earned Spalding Poachers 1st a 1-1 draw with Cambs Nomads 1st in East Women’s Hockey League Division 2NW on Saturday.
The first half saw both teams making some attacking play, with a cracking shot from Ellie Holland just going wide and a few shots from Charlotte Morris saved.
Not long into the second half, battling play from the Spalding defence led to a penalty flick for Nomads that even the player-of-the-match Donna Chester-O’Neill could not prevent from hitting the back of the net.
With an eagerness to grab that equaliser, Timby and Macy Carr dominated the central midfield, playing the ball out wide and into the D continuously.
This determination did not go unnoticed and resulted in a penalty short corner. This well-rehearsed routine was slick and Timby duly levelled the scores.
Both sides pushed for a winner, but Poachers had to settle for a point.
Meanwhile, Spalding Poachers 2nd suffered a 4-2 Division 3NW defeat against Huntingdon 1st at Glen Park.
Both teams were pretty evenly-matched, but it was Huntingdon who held a 2-0 lead at half-time.
After the break Spalding pulled one back from a short corner when Eva Keyes scored a direct strike to the bottom right hand corner.
The comeback was very much on when Sam Foston slotted in a leveller from a long ball.
However, Huntingdon were hungry for the win and netted two deflected goals to seal the points.
Down in Division 4NW (N), Spalding Poachers 3rd’s young development side gained a point from a hard fought 0-0 draw with Louth 2nd. Frances Dalton led from the back and her young midfield played some excellent constructive hockey through the middle.
Spalding did manage to get the ball into the net, but after the whistle had blown for a short corner.
