Airedale II 1 Leeds VI 6

THERE was little relief for Airedale Ladies as Leeds propelled into the lead with an early goal, taking advantage of Airedale’s one-player deficit.

Despite strong defensive resilience from Liv Roberts and Fern Godfrey, Leeds went on to obtain a further two goals in the first half.

Defender Claire Spiller persevered in trying to get Airedale on to the front foot with a succession of hit outs towards forwards Lindsey Carey and Adele Haughey, who struggled to break through the Leeds defence.

Kitty Blake was a solid support on the left wing, marking tightly on a tricky Leeds winger, while also creating space for the counter attack.

Anne Stone channelled oncoming attackers into submission before making crucial clearances in defence.

The second half looked more promising with fresh support from Claire Simons.

Airedale were swift on the attack and obtained a sequence of long corners for their attacking efforts.

Persistent pressure mounted on the Leeds defence as midfielder Georgie Fort drove the ball into the D and took a fantastic shot to merit a goal for Airedale.

Airedale tried to capitalise on this renewed momentum.

Agnes Simons had a great shot on goal which went excruciatingly wide.

A positional change from Spiller almost earned Airedale another goal but a foot from Leeds denied her.

It wasn’t long before Simons collected the ball on the right wing and drove it into the D before being denied by the goalkeeper.

Claire White’s first game back as Airedale goalkeeper continued to be a dreary one as Leeds secured a further three goals in the second half ensuring a comfortable victory.