Lakenham Hewett Ladies can feel proud of their performance against visitors Stanford-le-hope, despite suffering a 24-19 defeat.

In a 12-a-side fixture, the hosts gave as good as they got on a cool, wet day, recovering from a 12-0 half-time deficit to make a real game of it.

After conceding two tries before the break, one of which was converted, the Lionesses hit back when player of the match Hannah Ellis ran half the length the pitch to touch down, with the conversion attempt missing the target.

The home side scored again when coach Dee Mann offloaded to Sophie Bambridge who turned up the pace and flew up the field to plant the ball directly beneath the posts, with the conversion levelling the scores. Stanford-le-hope scored another couple of tries to move clear again but Lakenham Hewett had the final say, with Mann marking her birthday by adding another five points and the conversion completing the scoring.

The Lionesses train every Tuesday night at their Hilltops base from 7pm.