Hungry Wolves Devour Stour

Once Amber Hughes had put the visitors ahead inside three minutes, there was little the Glassgirls could do to stem the tide. A four-goal lead within 20 minutes had Wolves in command and although Stour continued to battle and scrap throughout, Wolves’ greater experience and know-how always had them in control.

Manager Mike Harris handed a debut to new signing Macy Winters in midfield, with Daisy Clements also returning to the starting line-up, with Sunday’s injury victims Sophie Heaselgrave and Esme Moran both absent.

It didn’t take long for Wolves to establish control, penning Stourbridge in their own half, and when a half-clearance was fed back into the area, Hughes was quickest to react as her shot on the turn beat Jamie-Lee Bamford from 15 yards.

And it wasn’t long before the lead was doubled. Anna Morphet’s dangerous 7th minute free kick saw the ball skim off a Glassgirls head for a corner, and Morphet herself was the beneficiary from the resulting flag kick as she headed home at the near post.

The onslaught continued with Hughes adding a third goal on 12 minutes as she drove into the penalty area before placing a low shot across Bamford and inside the far post, before Katie Johnson headed over from another Morphet set piece, as the Glassgirls strived for any kind of foothold in the game.

Tammi George made it 4-0 with 20 minutes played, Morphet again the provider with her corner lifted beyond the far post where George arrived late to fire home.

As the tide abated, Stourbridge began to show some glimpses of an attacking threat. A rare attack saw Hannah Fishwick’s speculative effort from 30 yards drift wide, and then Fishwick and Kelsey Richardson combined well, only for Senna Robinson to be crowded out as she looked to make something of the opening.

But Wolves pushed again as the sanctity of half time beckoned. George’s threatening low cross was cleared from inside the six-yard box, Harrison scuffed her shot when well placed to score, and then Johnson’s header somehow managed to hit both crossbar and post without going in. From the corner that followed, however, George added her second, despite a fantastic save from Bamford who could only parry the ball back to George to nod home.

Within five minutes of the restart Liv Ferguson was in on the act, tucking home a low cross from the left, before Bamford twice kept Hughes at bay with good saves, and for a while it seemed Stourbridge might escape without further damage.

However, spot-kick expert Morphet was able to add a seventh from 12 yards when the unfortunate Maria Timms, after a brilliant tackle on Hughes, brought down Sophie Bramford in the box, and Ferguson grabbed an eight as she burst into the penalty area and tucked the ball past the luckless Bamford.

Clements got forward to drill a cross into the area, with no Stour player on hand to convert, before Bamford distinguished herself once more with a tip over to thwart Jade Cross in added time.

(Photo - Anthony Dunn, Focus Dunn Sports Photography)