East Premier League Ipswich 7 Maidstone 0 Ipswich stormed to a big victory against Maidstone, which was a great reaction to last weekend’s disappointing 2-2 draw with City of Peterborough.
The home team started a little sluggishly but soon thought they had taken the lead, however a great penalty corner strike by Sarah Daley was adjudged as too high.
It was only a brief let off for the visitors though as minutes later player of the match Lizzy Wheelhouse fired Ipswich ahead. The home side were dominating all over the pitch and soon were 2-0 up, Sophie Sexton with a shot that was deflected in.
The visitors offered glimpses of a threat to the Ipswich goal, but these were dealt with efficiently by defenders Kat Blake, Kristine Ayling and Ellie Scott and as half-time approached Ipswich extended their lead. First Wheelhouse scored her second of the match and then Daley made it 4-0.
The second half followed a similar pattern with Ipswich dominating and this time it was Chloe Williams with a great goal to make it 5-0.
Maidstone did cause a few nervous moments but a great save by Ali Barham and a fantastic mid-air bat away of the ball by Scott ensured the Ipswich goal was not breached.
With the visitors tiring it was obvious the home side would have further opportunities to add to their goal tally and it was Micha Knowles, scoring her second goal in as many games, who knocked in the sixth goal.
A final penalty corner, awarded on the stroke of full-time, gave Ipswich one more chance and Wheelhouse stepped up and fired the ball home for her hat-trick to seal a resounding 7-0 win for Ipswich.
It was a totally dominant display from the Suffolk team and sees them stay in second place in the league, two points behind current leaders Wapping. Next up for Ipswich is an away match against St Albans 2’s.
Meanwhile, Ipswich head coach and double Olympian goalkeeper Mariette Rix, made her on pitch debut for the club’s fourth team and proved that she has some pretty handy skills out of the goal. Rix was part of great team performance as they beat Christchurch 3’s 5-0. Rix scored two brilliant goals, an amazing reverse stick strike and a blast from a penalty corner.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here