YOUTH HOCKEY: Harleston Magpies Under 18 girls arrived at the National Finals short on match practice – and it showed early on.
They lost 4-3 to Ashmoor in their first game (Emily Wilford 2, Amy Brook) and were then beaten 5-2 by Bradford (Wilford, Verity Blyth).
Magpies showed that they were a team that was learning throughout the tournament and on the second day played much better. A 1-1 draw against Trojans (Blyth) in a game that could have gone either way was followed by a 2-2 draw against the eventual winners Beeston in an excellent game (Blyth, Wilford).
• Norwich City's Under-16s reached the last 16 of the National Cup when they beat Spalding on penalty strokes after their third round tie had ended in a 3-3 draw.
The nerve and skill of keeper Freddie Briscoe were put to the test as she sent four of the opposition's flicks away, and City's 14-year-old Amy Campbell and captain Georgie Kidner redressed the balance to win the match.
City looked to have had the game wrapped up when they moved 3-0 ahead midway through the second half thanks to goals from Campbell, Kidner and Jess Harris but Spalding hit back strongly to take it to penalties.
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