JUST a week after the disappointment of missing out on a national cup semi-final, Wycombe HC U18 girls bounced back to win the Home Counties Premier League title for the first time in their history.

Wycombe were beaten 1-0 by Wimbledon in the quarter-finals of the EH Cup two weekends ago in a game head coach Marco Parmegiani describes as the best game he’s ever seen.

But, instead of slinking away to feel sorry for themselves, they bounced back superbly to win 2-1 at Oxford Hawks in a last-day title decider.

Parmegiani said: “The game against Wimbledon was one of the best games I’ve ever witnessed.

“It was end to end with two teams really battering each other. It was worthy of being the final and a draw would have been a fair result.

“There were a few tears at the end, but the girls were very proud of themselves and took that energy into the game against Oxford.

“It was a title showdown. We needed to win or draw but if they’d beaten us by two goals they’d have won it on goal difference.”

That was never on the cards though as Wycombe took the game to their arch rivals, going 2-0 ahead thanks to a double from Amanda Greenwoods.

A late Hawks penalty flick halved the deficit, but Wycombe held on to end the league season unbeaten.

Parmegiani said: “Getting to the national finals was the aim and I was hurting for three days after we lost to Wimbledon.

“But wimbledon and Oxford were the two biggest games ever for the girls and how they bounced back after was outstanding.

“They have worked hard all season, they have played with self-belief, passion and determination and deserve to be crowned as champions.

“It’s the first time Wycombe have ever won it. We’ve been runners-up a few times but they did themselves proud and I am very proud of them."

Junior club captain and team captain Vicky Fallan said “The girls were amazing. We have all played together since U14 and most of us are going off to university and so we wanted to finish on a high. Marco has coached us for a number of years and he has always believed in us.”

The U18s squad was: Anna McQuade, Zoe Harris, Jessica Hole, Emma Postings, Lizzie Clarke, Emma Couves, Vicky Fallan, Abbey Griffiths, Olivia Hamilton, Meghan Howitt, Amanda Greenwood, Taylor Goulding, Caitlin Gillies, Jade Pallister, Alice Simmonds, Livvy Vize, Danni Woodland