ROSS Juniors Women went top of the Mid West Counties League with a 3-0 home win over Ludlow on Sunday.

It was a tougher day for the club's Ladies though, as they fought hard but were outclassed 10-0 by hosts Hereford Pegasus in their Herefordshire Women's Cup semi-final.

Playing their home game at Viney Hill in beautiful sunshine after five games on the road, Juniors Women found themselves pegged back early on by long balls over the top.

Jess Ruck was forced into a great tackle in a one-on-one sprint, showing her strength to win the ball.

Ross then made early changes bringing on Lauren Creed and Holly Thomas, which was a testament to how well Ludlow were playing.

This swung the tide Juniors' way and they began creating chances with Thomas, Millie Malsom and Lily Irving forcing saves from the Ludlow keeper.

It stayed 0-0 to half-time, but a bit of quality on 73 minutes finally broke the deadlock, Malsom delivering a quality cross, and Creed netting the rebound from Thomas’ saved shot at the back post.

Five minutes later, Meg Boardman blasted a 30-yard free-kick into the net for 2-0.

And with three minutes left, Malsom again skinned her full-back to cross for Creed to control and finish for 3-0.

Coach Carl Roberts said: "Winning when you’ve not played so well is a good mentality and sometimes you've got to grind out results and today was one of them."

With Hereford FC not playing, who Juniors drew with 2-2 away the previous weekend, Ross leap-frogged them to top spot.

Ross Ladies had their hands full at Hereford Pegasus
Ross Ladies had their hands full at Hereford Pegasus (Stuart Townsend)

Meanwhile, it proved a difficult day for Juniors Ladies in the county city, Romanian striker Roxy Dinescu running amok with five goals in the first half, where Pegasus led 6-0.

A Juniors player challenges a Pegasus player for the ball
A Juniors player challenges a Pegasus player for the ball (Stuart Townsend)

Juniors kept trying and created chances, but the hosts scored four more after the break.

Juniors Women visit Bromsgrove in the league on Sunday (March 9), while the Ladies host Westfields in the Ross Invitational Cup.