Fast start sees 2nd team through rocky third quarter

Leo Bacchus reports on the match .........

The team got off to a promising start - captain Debbie Greenslade won the toss, and having scored with the first centre pass, Club defended tirelessly and managed to turnover the Palace centre and convert. Powering on, Club were soon 6 goals up before the opposition scored, giving a healthy lead at the end of the first quarter.

There were no team changes in the second quarter, but the horrific weather of freezing cold temperatures and rain turned the court into a skating rink. However, depite Leo Bacchus spending some time on the floor, Club coped with the conditions a whole lot better than Crystal Palace, and pulled ahead. The movement of Kirsty Hall and Paige Money in and out of the circle was effectively stretching the defence to the limits. This, together with Megan Hayward and Debbie's quick passing and domination of the attacking third made life for the opposition very testing.

Ellouise Edwards at WD kept up the defensive pressure and was quick to pick up any loose balls. Katy Caulfield played a solid GD; intercepting and tipping balls away from the attack and quite a few time into Leo's hands at GK. At half time, Club were still comfortably in the lead.

For the third quarter, Charlotte Penny replaced Ellouise at WD. This period has been a problem for the 2nd team and, yet again, they suffered a mini collapse. Crystal Palace took advantage, scoring a couple of goals in a row and making a dent in the lead. However, this time it was just a temporary bad patch as Club soon re-gained their rhythm and again the shooting combo of Paige & Kirsty kept the opposition wondering what they had to do to stop them scoring. Debbie (having an excellent game) got a flying tip that was scooped up by the fresh legs of Charlie and converted to a goal. The full court defence of the whole team was awarded with a few turnovers and Club regained the status quo.

In the 4th quarter Ellouise returned to the court as C, replacing the hard working Megan. Club continued to work hard to maintain the lead and won the game by 6 goals.