TYNEDALE Ladies came close to causing a huge shock in the final of the Northumberland KO Plate.

The team which finished third in the Northumberland B League fought back strongly against Whitley Bay III, who are currently third in the division above, but they couldn’t take late chances which would have taken the game to extra time.

Despite the slender 2-1 defeat, the team can be proud of the effort they put in, and that is the case for the whole season as the squad, comprising a large junior contingent, ended with 87 goals to their name, and they conceded only 40.

Tynedale went into the final adopting more defensive tactics, and they did well to thwart their higher ranked opponents.

On the ball, they were very composed which resulted in promising attacks down the wings with chances falling to Alison Westworth, Esme Gallagher and Vicky Foster.

Bay played sweeping passes across the pitch before attacking, with the Tynedale midfield of Lorraine Bell, Clara Hueschar and Sue Crawford moving across to counter the move.

Meanwhile, goalkeeper Nicky Baguley had to make a number of great saves, with defenders Amy Keirl and Katy Brown also kept busy with the latter clearing one off the line.

The pressure finally paid off for Whitley Bay as they grabbed a goal before the break, a shot from a penalty corner sneaking past the defender on the line.

After a bright start to the second half, they found themselves two goals behind from another penalty corner.

However, Tynedale continued to work hard with Lily and Iona Hextall backed up by Eleanor Pearson and Sarah Martindale in defence.

And they were back in it when a quick pass from winger Annie Anderson released Sophie Mitchell, who surged forward with the ball and scored a great individual goal.

Bay continued to attack but were nearly caught out, Mitchell coming within a whisker of equalising when a shot flew just wide.

Tynedale then had a chance from a penalty corner, but a great save from the Whitley keeper secured the trophy for the A League side.

With their status in the North East Premier League already secured, the pressure was off Tynedale’s men’s team as they hosted Jesmond Parish Church in their season finale.

And a goal from Jack Beattie when he netted from a high, mishit shot across the D in the final 15 minutes of the game proved the difference between the teams.

It was a hard fought victory as both teams pushed hard for the win, Tynedale’s defensive performance, epitomised by man of the match Ed Crawford, seeing them keep their visitors out.

It was a similar story for Tynedale II as a strong defensive display saw them to a single goal victory over Durham City III, the strike coming from Matthew Davey.

Jonny Oakley scored twice and Mike Reid and Martin Davey one apiece as Tynedale III ended their campaign with a 4-2 win over Hartlepool.