KAREN Wignall hit a magnificent second half double hat-trick as Nelson Seconds cruised into the first round of the Lishman Cup.

Everything went right for free-flowing Nelson who scored eight of their ten goals from open play.

It was a day when all their training paid off as the more experienced and skilful Nelson side used the match to try out some new rotations and set pieces.

Not that the young Blackpool side did not put up a fight.

For the visitors were still in the hunt up until the break until Nelson turned on the style - with Wignall in particular in formidable form.

Sweeper Diane Mulcahy opened the scoring from a well worked short corner and then repeated the act to give Nelson a two goal lead.

However with Blackpool defending solidly, Nelson needed a third before half time to break down the visitors' dogged determination.

And it was captain Fiona Clark who added the third goal with a tap-in that finished the match as a contest.

Nelson controlled the match from start to finish and keeper Jill Thorpe was only called into action twice.

How Blackpool could have done with someone like Wignall leading their attack.

The left sided forward scored five goals on the trot after the break to become the club's leading scorer to take her season's total to eight. As the match wore on, Wignall grew in confidence in front of goal and she twice went around the keeper to score with reverse stick shots - one of the hardest shots to play in the game.

Clark grabbed her second of the day before Wignall wrapped up a fine individual performance when she scored her sixth and Nelson's 10th goal.

Skipper Clark said: "Karen had a superb game to score so many goals but this was really a good all-round team performance. With so much room on the pitch we got a rare opportunity to try out some of our moves and everything we did seemed to work.

"However credit must go to the Blackpool side who were a lot younger than us. They put up a great fight in the first half and even when we started scoring goals in the second half their heads never dropped."

Nelson: Jill Thorpe, Karen Wignall, Diane Mulcahy, Alison McDuff, Cathy Kilgallon, Clare Booth, Lyn Regan, Sarah Towers, Rebecca Whitham, Fiona Clark, Dianne McInnes.

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