Falkirk Fury's senior women lose out against Caledonian Gladiators in SBC Division 1 clash

Falkirk Fury’s senior women captain Shannon Flippard in action previously against table-toppers Edinburgh University (Stock photo: Gary Smith)

The previous fixture saw the Falkirk side go up against league leaders Edinburgh University and this weekend wasn’t any easier against the East Kilbride side sitting in second spot.

While the scoreline showed a 30-point loss for Fury, the side battled untill the final whistle. Down 18-8 after the opening period, Fury remained just ten behind at 24-14 with two minutes of the second quarter remaining.

The Gladiators then edged out to a 14-point half-time lead of 31-17, with Fury still in touch. The third stanza saw the home side only able to add a further six points to that lead as Fury continued to work hard, particularly on the defensive end for a scoreline of 48-28.

The final quarter saw the second-placed hosts start strongly and with six minutes of the game remaining, Fury were now 57-30 behind.

However, Sophie Cram stepped up for the Falkirk side hitting back-to-back threes and two-point shots for a 13-2 Fury run and the game was then back to 16 points with three minutes remaining.

A strong finish from the Gladiators then saw the score pushed out to 30 points and a final scoreline that perhaps did not reflect how strongly Fury had played.

Sophie Cram top scored with ten points in 24 minutes with junior Edie McBain hitting nine points in a solid performance at both ends.

Rachel Penman and Emily Dagger shared 12 points with Abby Rutter on five points having put on a strong defensive performance in the paint.

"Scoring remains our biggest ongoing issue,” admitted head coach John Bunyan afterwards. “We have at times some very strong defence but getting our offence flowing has proved tough in the previous two games.

"While we remain undersized against most teams that brings issues at both ends of the floor but we continue to look to play to our strengths and there is no doubt the team, which has a different look and personnel from last season, is slowly coming together.”

Fury’s senior women now face City of Edinburgh Kool Kats on Saturday at Grangemouth SC with a 12.30pm tip - spectators are welcome.