St Austell faced unbeaten Devonport Sevices this Saturday, who are new to the league this season and have dominated their way to the top of the table. In previous weeks they’ve been free scoring, with results as high as 10-0. St Austell had a  battle on their hands but the confidence from last week’s win was still amongst the team.

Devonport Services set the pace from the outset, keeping the ball and controlling possession. The pace was fast and it wasn’t long before St Austell were under threat by the opposition’s skillful forwards. DS kept their momentum and it wasn’t long before they were rewarded with their first goal. They continued to press the defence but St Austell kept denying them their second opportunity and Saint’s own counter attacks began. The game evened out slightly with Saints keeping possession, moving the play across and up the pitch. DS were desperate for their second goal but Saints weren’t going to give up easily. Half time 0-1.

As expected, when the second half got underway, DS meant business and once again were hunting down St Austell’s goal. Strong attacks continued but Saints were battening hard and proving they weren’t going to be walked all over. A messy attack from DS saw St Austell struggle to get the clearance away from the goal; a DS forward managed to slide her way across the goal mouth, sneaking it over the line whilst taking out Saint’s keeper, Gayle King. Now 0-2 down, Saint’s determination heightened even more. They had been making breaks and applying pressure onto the DS defence but their skilled keeper managed to clear them away. A clearance from St Austell’s defence saw the Saints catch DS on the break and Saints began to press. It was no surprise to see Char Jarman make her way into the D and with a powerful strike, the ball effortlessly lifted over the top of the keeper and into the top corner of the goal. DS were clearly surprised by Saints come back, which only encouraged the home team even more. St Austell were back in the game and play was fairly even for the remainder of the match. 

On the final whistle, although the score finished at 1-2, the ladies felt triumphant after a well battled 70 minutes against a very strong opposition.