Chatham Town Women secured their first away League win of the season with a totally dominant display at Meadow Park against Chesham United Women. 

The Chats dominated the opening half for almost every one of its’ fifty-two minutes forcing eleven corners but only had Jess King’s strike to show for it, as in the second minute of stoppage time the hosts levelled the scores totally out of the blue levelled with Elenor Doerr’s header.

The Chats though responded magnificently and after Ellie Jeffkins had dinked back in a ball from wide, Oti Charles hammered the Chats back in front at the break. 

Jeffkins hit the bar twice during the second period before Charles was on hand to tap home after Lottie Sharp’s drive had only been parried by keeper Nichole Spittle to secure the win that the Chats really needed. 

Early on the Chats looked most threatening from Lucy Jones corners which caused Spittle and her defenders all sorts of problems before King gave Chatham the lead after Grace Coombs played the ball into the box and the defence just didn’t cope and King netted. 

Jeffkins let fly from 25 yards and the ball whistled a fraction wide of the right post and Charles sent an intelligent lob over a stranded Spittle, but for the Chats, the ball just didn’t drop quickly enough.

The Chesham goal and keeper were leading charmed lives and Charles was unlucky to be penalised when the keeper spilled another Jones ball. 

Just as stoppage time began, the home side won their first corner of the game in just their third venture into the visitor’s box in the opening 45 minutes, Doerr rose to power home the corner giving Simone Eligon no chance. 

Stung – yes, the Chats definitely were and went straight up the other end to regrab the lead at the break as Coombs did well to nod the ball back into the box and as the ball was laid out to Jeffkins, the midfielder’s super ball to the back post fell to Charles and the Chats were back in front. 

Kicking up the slope after the break, the Chats continued to make chances – Jeffkins hit the top of the bar from a corner; Amelia Woodgate and Jones did brilliantly down the left and the ball was inches away from King as the cross came in; and Charles then had an effort beaten out. 

The introduction of Lottie Sharp seemed to give the Chats a new surge of energy, and it was Sharp’s drive that Spittle couldn’t keep out and Charles side footed home the third and give the Chats the cushion that they were not to lose. 

The home side finally had chances to test Eligon even if they were from mistakes. Natalia Makowska charged down a clearance and Eliogon was fast off her line to bravely save at the striker’s feet and then moments later, the same player got away down the right and her pull back to Natasha Smith, the substitute’s shot was cleared off the line by Lacey Hargest. 

The Chats finished on top as Jeffkins’ lob came back off the bar and Charles couldn’t convert and then Charles was agonisingly close to her hat-trick with an angled lob that was just too high. 

The Chats move up to third in the table, just three points off leaders Old Actonians with a game in hand. 

CHESHAM UNITED WOMEN – Spittle, Smith, Doerr, Bebbington, Porter, Euman (Birkett), Rebecca Fraser, Wright, Bishop, Gemma Fraser, Makowska 

Subs – Almendros, Collett 

CHATHAM TOWN WOMEN – Eligon, Hargest, Jones, Coombs, Perkins (Sareen), Jeffkins, Auguste (Hynes), Wells (Gilson), Charles, King (Sharp), Woodgate (Laverick) 

REFEREE – Ms. Dewayne