Alex Nord put Camden Town ahead in the first half with a composed finish

THE bragging rights belonged to Camden Town WFC on Sunday after they recorded their first win over neighbouring rivals Islington Borough LFC since being promoted to the Premier Division of the Greater London Women’s League.

The home crowd made plenty of noise as the two teams played out a thrilling encounter in front of 40-plus supporters at Wingate & Finchley FC’s Maurice Rebak Stadium.

Those fans got to see an intense midfield battle between Islington’s Carrie-Anne Layton, Freya Glen and Farida Dankaro and Camden Town’s Josie Shand, Jordyn Galway and Maxine Borden – six of the top players in the league.

A frantic first half saw Town take the lead on 27 minutes courtesy of a composed finish from right wing-back Alex Nord. Top scorer Saffron Jones then nipped in to score her sixth goal in her last four games to double the home side’s lead.

Saffron Jones doubled the home side’s lead with her sixth goal in four games

Islington Borough mustered the perfect res­ponse, however, as they pulled a goal back just before the break when a sweeping attack resulted in Andrea Niper’s cross-cum-shot looping over Town goalkeeper Ena Buljko and into the back of the net.

The second half proved evenly matched as both teams pushed forward in an entertaining clash that would certainly have helped the supporters in the stands forget about the frosty conditions.

Camden Town captain Shand saw a long-range free-kick tipped over the bar by the Islington keeper, while in the final minutes of the match a probing ball into the box almost resulted in the visitors equalising with an attempted lob that fell the wrong side of the post. In the end, though, it was the Town players celebrating as the game finished 2-1 to earn them their third win of the season.

Camden Town celebrate their victory over Islington Borough at Wingate & Finchley FC’s Maurice Rebak Stadium

“This was a great game to watch for the neutral,” said Camden Town chairman Richard Mahoney after the game. “I was on the edge of my seat throughout! I am really proud of the players and the coaching staff, we really dug in to hold onto our lead and I can see that the team is improving week-on-week.”

The victory will give the Town players an extra fillip ahead of another home game this Sunday when they welcome Tooting Bec to the Maurice Rebak Stadium for a 2pm kick-off. Urging fans to visit the club’s Instagram page to secure their free tickets, Mahoney added: “We are all very excited for the second half of the season and I am looking forward to the visit of the league leaders Tooting Bec this Sunday – come and support the team.”

Islington Borough, meanwhile, can claim their share of the bragging rights as they still sit above Camden Town in the table on goal difference, and have two games in hand over their north London rivals. They will be looking to bounce back this weekend when they entertain Hammersmith at St Aloysius Playing Fields in Hornsey. Kick-off is 2pm.