Ladies denied three points by late Dromore goal!
North Down Ladies 1st XI played Dromore Ladies 1st XI on Saturday at Comber Leisure Centre back in Senior One.
From the first whistle North Down came out fighting strongly wanting to make a good start to their season. The girls attacked the goal straight away and within the first few minutes of the match a fabulous team goal was scored. The ball was transferred around North Down’s defence from the right-hand side around the back. Caitlyn Adair played a fast ball to Olivia Brown in centre mid who found Megan Murray running up the left-hand wing who slid the ball to Rachel Andrews who skilfully carried the ball into the circle. She played a powerful ball to the back post which was then slotted into the net by Lois Wilson. North Down then dominated the remainder of the first half of the game and were very unlucky not to score another goal.
The second and third quarters were full of fast paced attacking hockey from each side with both teams’ defences working hard to keep the opposing team from scoring. Megan and Olivia in the centre both had an amazing game. The midfield of Rachael Murphy and Bethany Burrows also working hard to link up balls from the defence to the forwards. The forwards attacked the circle with Rachel Andrews, Jenna Pliagau and Lois Wilson all looking very dangerous going into the circle for multiple shots on goal.
Both teams won a number of attacking penalty corners throughout the match and North Down’s goalkeeper Kathryn McGregor performed outstanding saves to keep North Down from conceding.
The last quarter saw North Down go down to ten players at times. With sustained pressure from Dromore the visitors won a corner and scored in the last few moments of the game making the final score of the game 1-1.
North Down had a solid performance for their first league game under the direction of their new coach Andy Edwards. They worked hard throughout playing some good hockey, and are hopeful and excited for the season ahead. Burch Autos Player of the Match was Olivia Brown.