Spalding Hockey Club round-up

Spalding Ladies 2nds head into the Christmas break top of the East League Division 3NW table.

They soared to the summit on Saturday after a 4-0 home win over Wisbech Town 2nds at Glen Park.

Spalding had control of the game and unleashed shots relentlessly into Wisbech's defence for the first 20 minutes with no reward.

Honor Moore came onto the pitch and picked up effortlessly an almighty hit out from Sally Pilgrim.

She was one on one with a Wisbech defender and, with speed and tenacity, she out-played her marker and slotted it straight into the left corner, past the astounded keeper.

Spalding's heads were up and Charlotte Mablethorpe drove the ball up the right wing and struck the ball across the D to Moore on the left post for goal number two.

It was a feisty game on both sides and Spalding needed to keep level-headed but a little dip in momentum saw Sam Maltby awarded a yellow card for a sliding tackle.

Down to 10 players, Spalding re-shaped and were very quickly awarded a short corner, slotted away by Karen Timby.

The final goal came from Emily Wright, working the ball up the right wing and crossing it to the top of the D for Charlotte Mablethorpe to do what she does best by dribbling seamlessly past the keeper.

Spalding's men's third team went down to a 3-0 away loss at their Cambridge Nomads counterparts.

Both teams struggled to get into the flow of the game as tackles and fouls broke the contest down.

Nomads eventually broke the deadlock late in the first half with the only goal of the opening period.

Nomads' experience and substitutions in the second half meant they had fresher legs on the pitch as Spalding began to tire slightly and chase the game and Cambridge scored two more goals.

The impressive form of Spalding's men's fourth team contined in a 5-3 success against Ely City 3rds.

It was a rapid start which saw Pete Wright score in the second minute thanks to a brilliant pass by Andy Barlow.

And it was two shortly after when Dave Burrell found Danny Wright to slot home.

Ely showed spirit and levelled with a quick-fire double of clinical finishes. However, on the stroke of half-time, Burrell scored to restore Spalding's lead.

Ely then equalised in first half stoppage time to go in level with a reverse stick finish.

Spalding went back ahead after the break as Peter Wright converted in a one-on-one.

The lead was then increased through Burrell scoring a scrappy goal which saw the ball trickle in.

It was an excellent defensive display to see out the last 10 minutes with just a few impressive saves needing to be made by an outstanding Eddie Sawyer.

Good clearances by Ed Sly and Kev Sawyer helped keep the ball away from the goal for large periods of the match while all of the wingers helped spread the game into more space.

Overall, a great result for a team which has now picked up 13 points out of a possible 15.