THE second half of Stourport's National Premier Two campaign got off to a disappoinitng start when they let a two-goal lead slip before losing 5-2 at home to Bowdon.

Coach Caroline Frye had a full squad to choose from with newcomers Rob Allen and Peter Gibbin both available and Dan Packwood and Dave Tuckett-Good recovering from injuries.

The game had a cagey opening with both teams' midfields cancelling each other out and failing to exert any real pressure on defenders.

Stourport and their Cheshire opponents resorted to speculative long passes and the tactic paid off when the hosts took the lead on the quarter hour mark.

Irfan Yousaf picked out Dave Westhead unmarked on the left hand side of the 'D' and he slotted past the advancing keeper.

Bowdon did respond but found Stourport's defence in good form with Gwyn Williams, Dave Tuckett-Good and Mark Harradine nullifying attacks with no undue problems.

Having absorbed Bowdon's pressure, a short corner at the opposite end saw Imran Yousaf open his account to take the score to 2-0.

Bowdon came at Stourport again and scored just before half time through David Egerton to give the away side hope. The second half was a story of set-pieces as Stourport were unable to convert any of their numerous short corners.

Meanwhile Bowdon scored another two of theirs and scored two other unanswered open play goals with Simon Egerton, Jason Tomlinson, Will Musgrave and Stephen Brogdon all on target.

The loss drops Phil Lashford's men to ninth in the league with only the top six certain of retaining their Premier Two status for next season.

At 12.30pm on Sunday, an important match sees Stourport entertain local rivals Bournville who also opened the second half of their season with a loss.

Stourport seconds still require a couple of wins to make sure of safety after a 4-1 defeat at Beeston left them looking nervously over their shoulder.

David Knott opened the scoring for them but Beeston took control to leave Stourport languishing below mid-table.They host Belper on Saturday.

There were two defeats for Stourport thirds, losing 3-2 at home to Beeston and 5-2 at Loughborough Students, despite decent displays. Goals from Andy Watson and Justin Wilday gave them hope against Beeston before they succumbed to a late strike. And Ben Everrett-Li's double was not enough to prevent a young side going down in their re-arranged clash with the students on Sunday. They travel to Nottingham University on Saturday.

A crazy match for Stourport fifths all but confirmed their relegation as they squandered a three-goal lead to lose 4-3. Kevin Hughes's bottom-of-the-table side looked to be cruising when Neil Stone, Neil Thomas and David Shepherd gave them a comfortable advantage. But after conceding a goal before the break they completely capitulated in the second half.

There was a 3-0 defeat for Stourport sixths who were under-strength for their visit to Edgbaston sixths.The main plus point was a fine debut from 13-year-old Ben Harris. They expect more selection problems when they travel to Bridgnorth fourths on Saturday.

Stourport Ladies are hoping to put together another long unbeaten run after thrashing Bournville 6-0 in the Worcestershire first division.

Having had their first winning sequence ended by Worcester a fortnight ago they are bouncing back with a vengeance. They followed up the previous weekend's win over Bromsgrove by completely dominating their visit to Bournville. The hosts did create chances on the break, but a solid performance by Alissa Elford in defence, helped to neutralise this threat.

Stourport fashioned plenty of goalscoring opportunities and after initially being denied by the keeper eventually made the breakthrough. Captain Holly Lashford opened the scoring from the top of the 'D' after a short corner was cleared. The second arrived soon after Stourport intercepted the ball and Kate Bailey scored after a fine solo run to make it 2-0 at the break. With Stourport continuing to dictate the play, a drag flick by Alissa Elford before a reverse sweep by Jodie Vincent extended their lead to 4-0. Another goal from Bailey and a strike from Kerry Walker completed the rout.

Youngster Harriet Burns earned plenty of plaudits for an impressive debut after coming on as a substitute. The firsts have an afternoon off this Saturday.

Stourport Ladies seconds and thirds had their fixtures cancelled last weekend but return to action with friendlies at home to Cannock thirds and away at Leamington on Saturday. Stourport fourths slumped to their second successive setback with a rain-drenched 5-0 defeat at Malvern. They host Cannock fifths on Saturday.