Luton Town Ladies 1st XI do the triple!

It was another successful Saturday for Luton Town Ladies 1st XI, who travelled to St Albans to play Harpenden 2s this weekend. Not only was there a game to play, but a change in weather to contend with - this time out it was cold and wet, rather than the sun and heat that we've had for the past few weeks!

The girls started off strong, with a coin-toss win that gave them the first pushback. Immediately after the starting whistle Luton were dominant, attacking Harpenden's D within a minute of pushback. However, the opposition's keeper was incredibly strong, and made it difficult for the girls to get anything past the P-spot, let alone into the net! In spite of this, Luton managed to open the scoring around the 11th minute, with a spectacular reverse flick into the top right corner by striker Suzanne Starkey.

Luton continued to dominate the game following this, with multiple strong crosses into the D from Chelsea Wright and Charlotte McKinnon. However, once again the Harpenden keeper proved her worth by blocking the oncoming onslaught of red, holding Luton at 1-0. A quick restart from a hit-out gave Harpenden the breakaway chance they needed, and despite several fantastic clearances from Luton keeper Amii Bonner, the home side managed to find the net, setting the score at 1-1 at the 20-minute mark.

The scoreline didn't stay level for long, however! A fantastic counter-attack immediately after the restart saw Luton encroaching Harpenden's D within seconds, and a strong strike from Wright found the roof of the net, taking Luton to 2-1 up and giving Chelsea her first goal for Luton Town HC - on her birthday, no less! Despite Luton's continued dominance throughout the remainder of the first half, Harpenden managed to prevent any further goals from being conceded, and the teams headed into the half-time break with the score at 2-1 to Luton.

Luton really came into their own after the restart, with McKinnon stepping into midfield from her regular position in defence to give the girls more strength on the wings. Several fantastic passes were made up the line that were crossed into the D, however again the Harpenden keeper managed to block any goals from going in. Taking McKinnon's place as sweeper, Ayse Samiloglulari had a fantastic second half, helping to keep the ball in Harpenden's D by picking up any clearances, and even having a couple of opportunities at a shot herself! However it was Charlotte Dunham who found the net next, with a cheeky tap-in that took the girls to 3-1 up with 25 minutes left to play.

Not satisfied with this scoreline, the girls continued to push for more goals, and a foot in the D from a Harpenden defender gave Luton a short corner and a chance to do just that. Thanks to a strong injection from Ashley Masukusa, captain Becca Blanchett's strike found its way through the Harpenden keeper's legs, putting the ball in the perfect position for Masukusa to lunge for the tap-in, securing Luton's 4th goal. Luton's attack continued throughout the half, with the girls' fifth and final goal coming as a result of a strike from Dunham, her second goal of the game. The rest of the game was spent preventing a counter-attack from Harpenden and trying to slot a couple more in themselves, however neither team managed to find the net in the last 10 minutes, and the game finished at 5-1 to Luton at the final whistle.

Birthday girl Chelsea Wright won the Player of the Match award for having an incredibly strong game, not only with her goal but also some fantastic runs and passes into the D, and strong commitment into tackles throughout!

Next week sees the girls take on Stevenage HC at 12:00 at Challney Girls School, Luton, LU4 9FJ, where they will be looking to win their fourth game on the bounce! Head on down to support the Ladies 1st XI, followed by the Mens 1st XI at 13:30, and support us not only in our games but also in our entry to The Hockey Paper's #watchyour1s competition!