League and cup glory for Leamington's ladies

The celebrations started on Saturday with the ladies’ 1st XI securing promotion to the Midlands Premier Division with three games to spare by beating North Staffs 4-1.

Leamington went into the game knowing a win would be enough for promotion and took the lead through top scorer Kerry Luckett only to be quickly pegged back by their relegation-threatened hosts.

Leamington kept plugging away in the second half and, with ten minutes to go, finally made the breakthrough when Sarah Evans hooked home a fine pass from Luckett.

The goal relaxed Leamington and two more followed from Luckett to seal promotion with a flourish.

The next day, Leamington’s over-35s made club history by booking a place in the national Investec Trophy semi-finals after beating visitors Wilmslow 2-0.

The hosts opened the scoring when captain Sarah Gambling deflected Sarah Lucas’ shot into the net.

The hosts kept the pressure cranked up and doubled their lead in the 22nd minute, again through Gambling, who was on hand to finish after a mazy run from Jeanette Lloyd.

Despite pressure from their visitors, Leamington held on for the win and will now travel to Jersey on Sunday March 13 with a place in the final at stake.

The club is aiming to raise £500 to help cover the squad’s travel costs and is keen to find any local businesses willing to sponsor them for their first-ever visit to a national semi-final.

Anyone interested should contact [email protected]