Cleobury Ladies played a crucial home double header in National League Division II. After a six-match losing streak the team desperately needed two wins to stop the descent into the relegation zone.

On Saturday the home side won in fine style with a crushing 3-0 victory over Mavericks but on the Sunday squandered a comfortable 2-0 lead to send the game into a nerve racking fifth set. Cleobury hung on by the skin of their teeth to take maximum points.

Cleobury 3 Shape Mavericks 0

The first set saw two nervy looking sides trying to find their rhythm, fortunately for Cleobury they found it first and took a 13:4 lead mainly due to an excellent serving run by Becky Brookes. Malmesbury

never looked capable of hurting the home side and Cleobury won comfortably 25:15.

The second set was even more calculated by Cleobury. This time it was the serves of Sam O'Connor which did the damage giving Cleobury an 8:1 platform from which to springboard from. Accurate passing from Becky Brookes and Lyndsey Rankin allowed the hitters to relax and the away side could find no answer to the controlled but well placed attacks from Cleobury. Another devastating 9 point serving run from Ellie White killed off the set, Cleobury thrashing Mavericks 25:11.

The third set was a bit more competitive and Mavericks briefly took the lead in a set for the first time in the match at 3:2. However it was short lived and Cleobury soon found themselves back in the driving

seat with a changed line up, Eva Mort doing well in an unfamiliar off-setting role. Clare Jones used the ball well to kill nearly 77 per cent of the balls she was given. Lyndsey Rankin served 6 balls without reply to give Cleobury a 15:6 lead. The gap was never to drop below five points again and Cleobury romped home 25:20 for that much needed confidence boosting win.. Player of the day was Ellie White.

Cleobury 3 Oxford Students 2

The first two sets saw Cleobury continue where they left off from the previous day. They dominated the net and again served low and hard to cause the Oxford defence problem. Although both sets were ultimately close the confidence and domination by Cleobury made them the side in control. The first set was taken 25:23 and the second 25:21.

The third set started the same way and Cleobury raced to a 16:11 lead. However Oxford found their fight and they rallied well preventing Cleobury finding the floor as easily as they had been accustomed to. The home side sat back on their heels and Oxford started to attack with aggression and accuracy. Despite the best efforts of Eva Mort who hit well though the wing and Lyndsey Rankin sturdy defensive work Cleobury were being hauled back. With the score levelled at 19 all there was all to play for. Oxford took their chances well and sneaked the set 25:22.

The fourth was a shambles for the home side. They made repeated mistakes and sat back allowing Oxford to grow in confidence. Sophie Cooke came on and hit well to cut the 8 point lead down briefly, but it was too little too late and Oxford cruised the set 25:17.

And so it came down to a crucial fifth set. Cleobury picked themselves up thanks to sustained serving pressure from Ellie Boddey and took a 5:1 lead. Oxford turned up the heat again though and Cleobury had only a 2 point lead at 13:11. Strong blocking from the away side put pressure on the Cleobury hitters who made errors to give Oxford a match point at 14:13.

Up stepped Sam O'Connor to stuff block their middle and save the day for Cleobury. Cleobury quickly followed up with two points to set up their own set point and Ellie Boddey courageously finished off with an ace serve to win the game in style. It had been a close call but at this stage of the season a win is a win..no matter how it comes about.