Scorey Spice slots fourth hat-trick

Striker Kirstie Spice completed her fourth hattrick in consecutive matches on her way to a five-goal haul.

Spice was first on the scoresheet after seven minutes driving the ball in from the edge of the penalty box and when Tina Wilson added a second ten minutes later, the visitors were already in comfortable control of the game.

While the forwards created repeated opportunities, United's defence, strengthened by the return of skipper Nicky Wright after a three-week absence and dominated by an outstanding performance from player-of-the-match Kirsty Foster, was confident in snuffing out any attacking moves by the home side.

United's third goal and Spice's second came on the half-hour and the visitors went into the break with the match as good as won.

United might simply have played out the second half to hold onto their lead but instead the game was illuminated by a five-minute spell of attacking football between the 84th and 89th minutes during which the UKP defenders were left chasing shadows while Spice added three more goals to the Hastings' tally. UKP snatched their consolation goal with the last kick of the match but by then United were already celebrating a win which, despite the scoresheet, owed as much to team performance as it did to individual effort .

The Reserves entertained Crawley Town at William Parker School. The young United side battled hard against a more experienced Crawley outfit and had their chances to score but in the end were beaten 4-0.

United's girls had a weekend of mixed fortune. The Under-11s lost 3-0 to Crawley Wasps and the Under-12s drew 1-1 with Polegate, Martina Kelly finding the net for Hastings. The Under-14s made the short journey to Battle and enjoyed a 7-3 win. Chantelle Barkworth (3), Beth Richardson (2), Laura Bolton and Jasmin Gray were United's scorers.

This Sunday sees a top-of-the-table clash at the Pilot Field when United take on current Division 1 leaders AEI Gravesend. A victory for Hastings will see them take over top spot and the match is sure to be keenly contested by both sides. Kick-off is at 2pm.