Brampton hit for Six

It was a return to league action between 2 cup games for Cardea Ladies at the weekend as they travelled to face newly formed Brampton Ladies.

Cardea seem to have made it a habit to start the game quickly and hit the opposition early and this proved to be no different, with only 5 minutes on the clock, Helen Buckingham assisting skipper Laura Rudd to open the scoring as she skipped passed one defender just inside the box and from the angle hit a left footed shot that curled nicely into the bottom corner beating the keeper.

Only a minute later and the away side doubled their lead, this time thanks to Emma Pollard, the striker ended up tapping in from close range from a Sophia Amanor cross.

Previous weeks would suggest that this would be another rout but Brampton fired back in the 12th minute from the spot to half the deficit and show that Cardea would have to be fully switched on this weekend. It was defender Maisie Homden who gave away the foul, although the referee seemed to award the penalty in bizarre fashion.

Cardea struggled to reach full potential and were still not playing football they way that the team are capable of. Despite this, a 3rd goal was scored before half time. A corner was driven into the box by Courtney Coles was met by Pollard to grab her second of the game who later claimed the ball was "like heading a rock" because it hurt that much, although some might say there isn't a lot inside her head to damage.

HT - Cardea Ladies 3-1 Brampton Ladies

Cardea came out the stronger team in the second half and looked a little sharper than the first half which paid dividends within 10 minutes. Another Coles corner was delivered and this time it was met by Rudd who headed home to make it 4-1. Rudd followed Pollard's earlier complaints as she too cried the ball was too hard.

Seven minutes later, a Brampton goal kick fell to Pollard who proceeded to beat the nearby defender and hit a left footed shot into the bottom left corner, to make it consecutive hat-tricks. 5-1 to Cardea

The final goal of the game come shortly after in the 66th minute. Rudd was first to react to a mix up in the Brampton defence and managed to get a knee on the ball which fell nicely for Pollard to grab her 4th of the game as she placed it past the keeper. That is 9 goals in her last 2 matches.

FT - Cardea Ladies 6-1 Brampton Ladies

Stand in manager Steph Wagstaff was pleased with the win but disappointed the team dropped their levels and didn’t play to the high standards that had been set.

Cardea Ladies are without a game next weekend but return to action on Sunday 25th October as they host Histon Ladies Reserves in the Women’s League Cup.