WOODLEY United Ladies got 2020 off to the perfect start with a 4-1 win at lowly Winchester City Flyers and in doing so moved two positions up the Southern Region Premier Division table.

Rosie Page-Smith scored her second hat-trick and seventh goal in her last three visits to The Simply Health City ground as the Kestrels eased home.

Despite the first half being goalless, United enjoyed better possession and were twice denied by Lauren Higgs, who stopped Becky Gooch and Molly Lambourne efforts.

Flyers' best attacks involved lively winger Hollie Agombar, but United’s defence allowed keeper Carley Chilton to be rarely troubled.

Winchester’s Katie Johns had the first goal-scoring attempt of the second half, but shot wide before Lambourne saw Higgs parry a shot on the hour-mark.

Two minutes later Page-Smith capitalised on the home sides’ uncertainly to fire past Higgs into her top left-hand corner.

Page-Smith again reacted to uncertainly seven minutes later, beating Higgs to the ball to find Jess Tripp who calmly rolled the ball into the net from an acute angle.

A number of stoppages occurred with United players needing treatment as they tired on a heavy pitch and it needed a Ruth Pearson block to keep the hosts goalless.

A Woodley counter-attack enabled Page-Smith to fire past Higgs with 10 minutes remaining, but two minutes later the lead was back to two goals when Charlotte Warhurst scored off the underside of the crossbar.

Woodley resisted the late City surge and put the game beyond doubt when Page-Smith won a corner which Ellen Surtees took and Page-Smith completed her hat-trick with a header in the 88th minute.

Michelle Beverley was Newbury Ladies' star performer, but they suffered a dispiriting 9-0 loss to second-placed Abingdon United.

There was success for Newbury Development, however, as they overcame Caversham AFC 3-0 in Division Three South of the Thames Valley Counties League.

A brilliant Nicole Beesley effort put Newbury in front at the interval, and after captain Maria Rodrigues hit the bar from distance early in the second half, Jazz Bird pounced on a goalkeeper error to stab home inside the six-yard box for 2-0.

The goalscoring was completed by Bec Walker, while Nicole Pearce was named player-of-the-match for Newbury.