KINGSBRIDGE & Salcombe Hockey Club 1st XI came out on top in a hard-fought home win against Ashmoor women's 1s, playing the full match with a bare 11.

The first half was scrappy and end-to-end. Positioning was a little off and the flow wasn't quite there, though Ashmoor didn't create many shots on goal.

A lovely passage of play, linking up from the back, produced a great cross, and Lucy popped it in from open play for the opener.

At half time, the message was to play simple hockey. KS 1s came back out fighting but Ashmoor kept breaking and had a couple of nifty players up front, who hit a great reverse shot to level things up.

The Cougars responded with real ferocity. The ball started with the left mid, went back to the left back, and was transferred across to the right. From there it went all the way up the right and was crossed over to the left, and bang, it was in the goal. Beautiful hockey!

Ashmoor were closed down well from then on and KS looked dangerous, firing in a huge number of shots on goal.

Laura finally found the net from a penalty corner right at the end, and the team kept fighting to the finish to see out the win. A special thanks to Julia for stepping up into goal and making many fantastic saves.

Violet and Lucy received two votes each for man of the match, but Fi (pictured) took the remaining nine votes to win. Thank you to Rachel and Mark for umpiring. Thank you to the Creeks End for providing match teas.

Meanwhile, K&S 2nds enjoyed a rampant victory over Torquay.

Kingsbridge started strongly, albeit a little muddled at times, with several players stepping into unfamiliar positions. A huge thanks to Mel for stepping in at the last minute, ensuring a full squad was ready to go.

K&S were quickly on the front foot, with an early goal from JL, the exciting new star forward, setting the tone for the match.

The midfield quartet of Lisa, Julie, Sophie and Charlotte moved the ball swiftly, linking up play and driving the team forward. At the back, Ellie, Mel and Izzy produced some excellent hit-outs and switched play brilliantly across the defence and up the wings, launching attacks from the very first whistle.

Emma found the net twice to complete a superb first-half performance, sending Kingsbridge into the break with a commanding 3–0 lead.

They returned for the second half looking far more organised, making much better use of the width and stretching the play beautifully. With the team moving the ball around and letting it do the work, opportunities continued to come.

Player of the match Poppy caused all sorts of problems with some fantastic baseline runs and shots, putting the Torquay goalkeeper under pressure and creating rebounds for further attacking opportunities.

Sophie added her name to the scoresheet before Emma grabbed her third of the match to round off an excellent team performance and seal the emphatic 6–0 win!

Torquay battled hard throughout and managed to create a couple of chances, but Natalia remained calm and composed between the posts, making some great saves to preserve a well-deserved clean sheet.

Poppy secured four POTM votes after her brilliant attacking runs and relentless pressure with five teammates also getting votes in this team victory.