Halifax Irish Whites u10.....................4

TWO late goals from free kicks enabled Saints Tigers to continue their steady climb up the table.

The early deadlock was broken on 10 minutes. An Irish corner put pressure on the home defence and an own goal handed the visitors the lead.

However, it wasn’t long before an almost identical goal was scored at the other end as a corner from Martin Howard was turned in by the Irish defence. Good defending from Owen Buchan and a last ditch clearance by Jacob Burton helped keep the score at 1-1 until the stroke of half time when another dangerous corner was handled by a Tigers player and the resulting penalty converted to make the score 1-2.

Only 20 seconds into the second half and Tigers were level. A good passing move was coolly finished by Alasdair Pedley who slotted the ball in from the narrowest of angles. Tigers' confidence grew and substitute Josh Petersen twice gave them the lead only for Irish Whites to equalise from goals started by long throw-ins into the box.

With five minutes to go and the match standing at 4-4 Tigers got a free kick wide on the right wing. Sam Thompson swung the ball into the far post where Howard stabbed it in to give Tigers the lead. In the final seconds another free kick on the right edge of the box was driven straight in by Peterson for his hat-trick to make the final score 6-4.

Hebden Bridge Saints u11..................5

Rothwell Juniors u11...........................2

(West Riding Girls Football League)

SAINTS' commitment to playing passing football on a poor pitch and in atrocious weather made their second win in a row all the more impressive.

From the start Saints were clearly the better team and Mia Cameron-Foulger put the home side ahead after latching onto a misplaced Rothwell throw-in.

The defensive partnership of Lucyna Kazmierski and Teegan Simpson is growing stronger with every game and their accurate distribution put Saints on the attack countless times. After a flowing passing move, Rachel Littleboy delivered a perfect ball for Cameron-Foulger's second.

Roisin Johnston-McCondach was unlucky not to make it three with a shot from close range. It wasn't all one-way though and keeper Kiera Holmes showed great bravery diving at the feet of Rothwell's strikers to keep the visitors out by the break.

Saints extended their lead in the second half when Bethany Waring found Rhianna Purvis in space on the right and she took her chance confidently. Rothwell came back with an unstoppable shot and scored another when Saints' defence was caught out of position for the only time in the game. But even at 3-2, the result never seemed in doubt. Grace Powell's industry and Issy Wharton's deft passing in the muddy midfield kept Saints moving forward.

Another fast break was converted with Waring's shot from wide on the right into the bottom left-hand corner.