East Premier League Norwich 1 Ipswich 3 It was derby day delight for Ipswich Hockey Club’s women, as a 3-1 victory over Norwich Dragons extended their winning run to four games and kept them in second place in the league, level on points with leaders Wapping.
Despite starting well Ipswich were not playing their best hockey and were initially behind after a poor clearance from a corner saw the hosts take an unexpected lead.
However the Suffolk side bounced straight back and were level within minutes.
Chloe Williams got the equaliser, finishing off a great team move involving co-captain Lucy Dunnett and Megan Dawson.
Despite dominating possession and territory Ipswich went into half time level but with coach Mariette Rix highlighting some areas to improve upon the visitors stayed calm and knew that the second half would give them further opportunities to turn pressure into goals.
Sure enough after 10 minutes Ipswich took a well deserved lead, Sarah Daley with a rocket of a shot to make it 2-1.
The hosts were now paying the price of only having one sub and as their legs tired Ipswich poured forward.
This time it was Lizzy Wheelhouse finding the back of the goal, with a quick shot from a rebound at a penalty corner.
Ipswich were now in complete control and had several good chances to extend the lead.
The pick of the bunch was a wonderful mid-air backhand effort from Wheelhouse, but her shot just missed the target to the relief of the home side.
The final whistle saw Ipswich happy with the win but such is the desire for improvement in this team, slightly disappointed with the performance.
Next up for Ipswich is a home game against league newcomers City of Peterborough.
That match is on Saturday, with a push-back at 2pm. The Suffolk side then host Maidstone at home the following weekend, before making the trip to St Albans to start November.
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