Herefordshire narrowly failed in their bid for a winning start to their English Counties League campaign when they went down 52-48 to Guernsey in their South West Division match at Hereford Sixth Form College.

Herefordshire started strongly, laying down the gauntlet to the visitors who had beaten them in their last two encounters.

The home side's attack produced some strong drives to the circle, with centre Jaydee Hunt linking particularly effectively with goal-attack Kerry Amos, helping to secure a 17 -12 first quarter advantage, while Mel Hunt provided strong support as wing-attack .

But during the second quarter the Guernsey defence began to assert their authority, restricting the space of the home side and making them battle for possession.

Herefordshire responded well to this increased pressure and, having slipped to a 23-22 deficit, utilised the timely interceptions of their defensive trio to claw back to 29-25 by half-time.

Team changes in the third quarter saw Kelly Stephens move in to goal-keeper and she had a positive impact against the very talented Guernsey goal-shooter. However, this was not enough to prevent the opposition stealing a one-goal lead during this phase and the initial fast pace of the match began to tell as Herefordshire's fitness was found wanting.

In contrast, their opponents maintained the tempo, allowing them to enter the final phase up at 39-35.

A succession of goals, coupled with the dominance of the shooting circle by the Guernsey defence, saw Hereford-shire fading fast in the final quarter and, despite tremendous effort, the squad were unable to regain control of the match as they slipped to a disappointing four-goal defeat.

l Herefordshire's next league game is at home to East Devon at Leominster Bridge Street Sports Centre on Saturday, January 31.