Isle of Wright 1st November 2025

Match Report:Isle of Wright Ladies 2s vs Hamble Ladies

The Ladies 2s had an early start as they travelled to Hamble with just ten players, but spirits were high and optimism was in the air. That confidence was rewarded almost immediately — within the opening minutes, the first shot on goal hit the post, rebounded across the goalmouth, and fell perfectly for Aldridge-Snell, who calmly tapped it in for an early lead.

Despite being a player down, the Island defence held strong as Hamble began to dominate possession. The back line stood firm, denying several promising attacks and frustrating the home side. Midway through the first half, the Island doubled their advantage thanks once again to Aldridge-Snell, who finished off a great move built through the hard-working young midfield — clearly unsettling Hamble’s more experienced players.

Just before half-time, with what felt like the longest 30 seconds of the match (closer to four minutes!), Hamble were awarded a short corner and managed to convert, narrowing the scoreline. The Island went into the break with a 2–1 lead.

The second half saw Hamble come out determined after a rousing team talk. A temporary injury left the Island briefly down to eight players, but Hamble were unable to capitalise. The game became a fast-paced, end-to-end battle, and with less than ten minutes remaining, Hamble found the equaliser to make it 2–2.

Undeterred, the Island regrouped and produced a brilliant team goal to seal the win. A textbook play began from the defence, with Eggleton passing down the line to Rider, who skillfully skipped past her marker and delivered a perfect cross into the D. Aldridge-Snell charged in and swept the ball home emphatically to complete her hat-trick — a superb team goal from start to finish.

Hamble pushed hard in the final moments and were awarded a short corner on the final whistle, but the Island defence stood strong once again to secure a well-deserved 3–2 victory.

Player of the Match: Aldridge-Snell– for an outstanding hat-trick and tireless work up front.

Donkey of the Day: Eggleton – narrowly beating Rider to the title after earning an (undeserved!) green card and managing to spill her water all over the boat!