An early brace from Yasmin Mason gave the home side a comfortable buffer that was capitalised on for the remainder of the fixture.
A screamer from Skipper Stanfield in the second-half helped put an end to the contest, as Mallin marked a momentous occasion with a brace of assists.
It was a showing at the Stafflex Arena to mark the turning of the month, as Huddersfield awaited North-Western side and familiar foes AFC Fylde in the first outing of the winter, with the aims of extending their profound recent form to seven matches unbeaten across all competitions.
Fylde faced the drop alongside Town from the Women’s National League North last campaign and have since struggled to adapt to life in the fourth tier of the Women’s pyramid, as they headed into the contest with just seven points from their first 10 games, failing to score in their previous three.
The Terriers followed their triumph at the Wham Stadium, with The Coasters opposition their final preparation ahead of the approaching cup-clash at Championship-side Sunderland on the 8th December.
Preston resorted to his recently featured eleven, as Yasmin Mason and Serena Fletcher returned to the starting lineup in the unconventional red-away strip.
The home side came close to an opener as early as the fifth minute, a Kate Mallin received the ball in a wide position, before driving towards the byline and slotting into Mason, denied only by the works of a scrambling opposition defender who prevented the effort well to ensure the deadlock remained in the early stages.
Today’s start for Mallin marked a significant occasion for the winger, featuring for the 575th time for the Terriers to make herself the record appearance maker across the entire football club, starring for the side in 20 consecutive seasons since she made her debut aged just 15 in November 2004.
This incredible achievement is accredited to the resilience of the model professional, experiencing the highs and lows of club football during her time at the side, with her determination displayed through her consistent performances on a weekly basis.
Captain Beth Stanfield came close with a first-time curling strike from range, searching for the far corner with the skipper unfortunate as the ball fizzed marginally wide, with Town remaining in heavy control of the tie.
The Terriers saw a number of individual moments in the first half, as Leah Embley’s effort ricocheting from the post was eventually flagged for an offence by the linesman, as well as Mallin’s in-swinging free-kick minutes later narrowly failing to find the head of a teammate.
It was no surprise therefore that Town secured the contest opener, with Rebecca Beresford freed with space in the opposition danger area, using clever trickery to round the goalkeeper before pulling back to a poaching Mason, who slotted home to open her account for the campaign.
Both Mason and Huddersfield doubled their tally just minutes later, courtesy of a commonly seen pattern so far this season, as Mallin’s searching corner was met by the striker as she noted the significant day with her seventh assist of the campaign, and Huddersfield entered the break two-to-the-good.
Half Time: Huddersfield Town 2-0 AFC Fylde
Play resumed for the second period in a dynamic fashion, with Mallin’s astute creative performance displayed once again as her driven ball into the area was narrowly out of the stretched-Leah Embley’s reach.
Town continued this intense restart out of the blocks, as Mason came close to earning her hat-trick as she was denied by the flag of the linesman.
Preston’s side also displayed a level of defensive profoundness, with Beth Ibbotson’s last-ditch recovery preserving the clean-sheet slate, following Karry Chan’s progression forward after pickpocketing defender Fletcher.
Town earnt their third through the head of top-scorer Charlotte Stuart, meeting Mallin’s ball with a great leap to boost her tally to double figures so far this campaign.
Stanfield extended the lead once again in the 68th minute, with a delightfully cushioned header to round the opposition midfielder, before unleashing a ferocious effort to beat the keeper from distance in consecutive home outings.
Mason was soon replaced before she could reach a third, as Preston’s triple substitution saw Autumn Housley slot into the centre-back role as the home outfit looked to close out the contest.
There was a chance for substitute Molly Firth, who was costed by her mistimed volley on the end of Embley’s cross, repaying the favour in the 81st minute, as Embley was able to finish home following Firth’s low-driver towards the back post, misjudged by the goalkeeper as the ex-Burnley forward netted her fifth of the season.
The side were unfortunate to have costed a clean sheet late on, as an ambitious opposition effort bounced unfavourably for Bolton-Woollam, has the strike rebounded from the slippery surface through the goalkeeper’s captures as a consolation goal for the travelling side.
Scarlett McMahon’s late volley however soon restored the five-goal advantage as the Terriers continued their unbeaten home-league form, and earned another three points as they remain with the hopes of securing a return to the third tier of women’s football next season.
Full Time: Huddersfield Town 6-1 AFC Fylde
Town face a fixture of seismic magnitude next Sunday, with an Adobe FA Women’s Cup tie away at Championship side Sunderland an exciting opportunity in both a gameplay and financial regard, as Huddersfield will be hoping for the ‘magic of the cup’ to provide a remarkable underdog narrative.
Substitutions:
61′ Simone (Duffield)
69′ McMahon, Montgomery, Firth (Fletcher, Mason, Mallin)
Goals:
31′ Mason (Beresford)
39′ Mason (Mallin)
62′ Stuart (Mallin)
68′ Stanfield (Embley)
81′ Embley (Firth)
90′ McMahon (Embley)
