PRESEASON SUCCESS FOR LADIES TEAMS
Wisbech Town Hockey Club Ladies got their preseason off to a flying start on Saturday, securing victories against teams from King’s Lynn based Pelicans HC, and City of Peterborough HC at Harecroft Road.
The Ladies 1st XI began the day against Pelicans Ladies first team, with captain Jo Gomm opening the scoring during the first quarter, before Alice Salmon, who has returned to the club for the 2022/23 season after a period away, doubled Wisbech’s lead ahead of the first break.
After a goalless second quarter, vice captain Laura Bell put Wisbech 3-0 up when she scored from a short corner opportunity in the third quarter, before young forward Ana Norman, making her debut for the Wisbech first team, scored the home side’s fourth and final goal.
“It was a good opportunity for us to give some different players an opportunity, and experiment with positions, during a preseason friendly.” Gomm said following the game. “We’d still like to improve our fitness, and ball speed, but with three weeks still to go before the start of the new league campaign, I think we’re in good shape overall”
The Ladies host Norwich City this weekend, with the Premier League team likely to provide a stiff test for Gomm’s side, after finishing 2nd in the league above Wisbech last season.
CAPTAIN JO GOMM WAS ON TARGET FOR THE LADIES 1ST XI
Wisbech Ladies 2nd XI took on Pelicans 2nd XI, and Peterborough’s fourth team as part of round robin tournament between the three teams at Harecroft Road.
A pair of goals from Lilian Ley, and one from Lucy Prior, helped Wisbech secure a 3-0 victory against Pelicans, before Coach Jonathan Shippey changed the team formation for the game against Peterborough, eliciting an even better performance from the home side. Ley was on target again for Wisbech, scoring a hat trick, while team captain Harriet Bateman also scored to see Wisbech run out 4-0 winners.
“Our performance was much better in the second game, with the change of formation,” Bateman said “We demonstrated some great link up play and communication. It allowed the team to really gel and work well together.”
Whilst Claire Apted was selected as Player of the Game against Peterborough, Bateman also singled out Amber Crossley-King for praise, after the promising teenager put in an impressive performance in defence in what was her second team debut.
A four-goal performance from Lily Cooper helped Wisbech Ladies third team to a 6-4 win against Pelicans 3rd XI in the final game of the day. Wisbech played some good attacking hockey, but were kept on their toes by the counter attacking speed of their opponents, with both sides also having a number of short corner opportunities.
Goalkeeper Helen Pentelow made a series of key saves in the Wisbech goal to help the hosts keep their noses in front, with Lucy Prior and Laura Dudley also finding the back of the net to help Wisbech secure victory.
LILIAN LEY SCORED FIVE GOALS IN TWO GAMES FOR THE 2ND XI (PHOTO: MIKE BENNETT)
The Wisbech Mens 1st XI travelled to LynnSport to take on Pelicans Mens first team. With extra substitutes available to them, Pelicans rotated their players and kept the pace high, opening up a 3-0 lead by the midway point of the game.
Wisbech was able to mount a something of a comeback in the third quarter however, with Tom Jupp and Dom Stannard both finding the back of the net to setup a tense finish, but once again Pelican’s bench advantage showed, as Wisbech tired and the hosts were able to add two further goals in the fourth quarter.
Despite the result, there were positives to be taken from the game for Wisbech, who will face Cambridge Hockey Club at Harecroft Road this weekend. The Mens 2nd XI is also in preseason action on Saturday, travelling to St. Ives 3rd XI.
JOIN US
Wisbech Town HC has now added a Ladies 4th team to our Senior section for the upcoming season, and is actively recruiting new players for both its Senior and Junior sections for the year ahead.
Adult players of any ability who are interested in joining are invited to attend Senior training on a Thursday evening from 7PM-8:30PM. Training also includes dedicated coaching for new players, or those returning to hockey after some time away, making it the perfect place to start for anyone new to the club or sport.
Junior training for the 2022/23 season begins on Saturday (September 10th) from 9AM to 10AM, with a session also taking place on Wednesday evenings (5PM-6PM) from Wednesday 14th September onwards. Junior training is open to boys and girls aged 5-to-13-years-old, and the club is particularly keen to introduce more girls to the sport, following England Ladies gold medal success at the recent Commonwealth Games in Birmingham.
Anyone interested in joining Wisbech Town HC can join us for training at any of the sessions above, by contacting the club through the Contact Us page here, or by direct message on the WTHC Facebook, Instagram, or Twitter accounts.