Harrogate Hockey Club Ladies 1st XI beat Alderley Edge to record first win in five attempts

Tilly Hall netted Harrogate Hockey Club Ladies 1s' fourth goal in their victory away at Alderley Edge. Picture: Gerard Binks

Harrogate Hockey Club Ladies returned to winning ways courtesy of a 4-2 success on the road at struggling Alderley Edge.

Lucy Wood’s team headed to Cheshire without a victory in their four previous Vitality Women’s Conference North’s matches, but were always in control of Saturday’s contest.

The first quarter was an end-to-end affair with both sides trying to stamp their authority on the game.

It was however Harrogate who settled the quicker and went on to break the deadlock.

Leading goal-scorer Holly Oldham fired home on the reverse stick, pouncing on the loose ball after Alderley’s keeper made a save following a strike from a short-corner.

And the ‘Gate advantage was quickly doubled as skipper Wood surged into the ‘D’ and pulled back from the byline for player of the match Grace Schofield-Mell, who is just 14 years-old, to coolly lift over the home custodian from close range.

The hosts hit back from a well-executed short-corner routine, but Harrogate then began to really assert themselves as they sought to re-establish that two-goal cushion.

With their forwards pressing from the front and midfielders Wood, Harriet Payne, Tilly Hall and Rebecca Sagar repeatedly turning over the ball and playing some fluent, passing hockey when in possession, further goals always looked on the cards.

It was Payne who would eventually add the Ainsty Road outfit’s third, finishing powerfully, from a well-worked short-corner.

Harrogate managed the game well at 3-1 up with some strong tackling from Cecilia Allen helping to snuff out Alderley attacks on the couple of occasions when they did manage to get themselves into dangerous areas.

But, although it looked as if ‘Gate were cruising to a comfortable win, a misplaced pass led to a short-corner for the home side which somehow found its way over the goal-line, setting up a nervous last 10 minutes for Wood and her team.

The points were however wrapped up in the closing stages when Hall’s made it 4-2, lifting the ball into the net from close range after another short-corner.

Saturday’s result leaves Harrogate seventh in the table ahead of this Saturday’s home showdown with third-placed Fylde (1.30pm).

Elsewhere, ‘Gate’s Men’s 1s suffered a 3-2 defeat on the road at Whitley Bay & Tynemouth in the Yorkshire & North East Premier Division.