Ladies' 1s in close game with Wimbledon

To finish off a good few months of pre-season training, Oxford Hawks took on Wimbledon at Banbury Road North for the final friendly before the league begins. With the opposition featuring England stars Anna Toman, Suzy Petty and Olympic gold medallist Crista Cullen, Hawks knew it would not be an easy 70 minutes. With a slightly nervous start, letting Wimbledon dictate the game, it took Hawks a while to settle into their own game. A trademark Cullen drag flick near the end of the first half gave Wimbledon a 1-0 lead.

In the second half, Hawks keeper Jess Hughes kept the home side in the game with countless sliding saves. This gave Hawks the confidence to start building the play more as transfers round the back opened up opportunities for Row Hearn to break forward into our attacking half. Although Hawks struggled to get into their attacking D, being under constant pressure whilst on the ball, they defended superbly throughout the second half and go in the league full of confidence next weekend.

Many thanks to Clive Jones for the excellent photos.