Whitehaven Amateurs ladies started their Lancashire league championship campaign with a comprehensive 10-1 victory over fellow Cumbrians Penrith Development.
Whitehaven were promoted to the championship after finishing second in the North West division last season and were quick out of the blocks.
Good interplay between Ashley McCallister and Scarlett McAvoy in the second minute forced a corner which was knocked out to the edge of the area where Lissy Close lashed the ball home.
Whitehaven scored a second goal after 11 minutes following a good combination between Close and Sophie May. A great ball over the top from May found Ashley McCallister and she finished calmly past the Penrith keeper.
Less than one minute later Eden Hetherington dispossessed the last Penrith defender before striking the ball past the helpless keeper.
Hetherington scored her second and Whitehaven’s fourth on the 18th minute. May won the ball in midfield and played a diagonal ball into the box. The unfortunate goalkeeper spilled the ball at Hetherington’s feet and she made no mistake, tapping it into an empty net.
Whitehaven made it five on the 30th minute when a good link up between Leila Branthwaite and McAvoy put Ellie May Callander away down the left. Callander played a delightful ball into McCallister who beat the offside trap to slide the ball home.
Callander went from goal assister to goal scorer on the 32nd minute when she dispossessed a Penrith defender on the half-way line, ran 30 yards, cut in on her right foot and curled the ball past the stretching goalkeeper.
The goals continued to flow for Whitehaven when they made it seven after 41 minutes.
Great possession play, starting from Kaela Reay, the Whitehaven goalkeeper, saw the ball eventually played through to McCallister who took it in her stride and finished confidently to complete her hat-trick.
Seven minutes after the restart Whitehaven made it eight when McAvoy found McCallister in some space, wide right of the penalty area. She whipped the ball into the box where strike partner Grace Houghton brought the ball down smartly, swivelled and thumped the ball into the bottom left corner from eight yards out.
It was 8-0 in the 64th minute when Caitlin Irving turned smartly to feed May who played a perfectly weighted ball through to Hetherington to beat the offside trap and also complete her hat-trick.
Hetherington wasn’t finished there as she scored her fourth on 66 minutes after a brilliant flowing move, It started from Reay, bowling a quick ball to Jess Bridgman who then fed Erin Marley wide left – a quick ball inside to Braithwaite was followed by an exquisite pass to May who played in Hetherington and she finished with a cross shot.
Penrith did get a consolation goal in the 80th minute when a free kick was awarded in their own half. The ball was played deep into the Whitehaven half where Abbie Frizzle lost her marker and beat the onrushing Whitehaven keeper to score.
