Erice Women began their Serie A season with a 36:21 victory over Padova on Saturday afternoon. The hosts took control early and never looked back as they confirmed their standing at the top of the table.
By then the gap was already clear, and Padova had little to offer in attack. They had drawn their previous fixture against Teramo but found themselves outclassed here.
And here's the thing about this result - we had backed the home side to win with 80 per cent confidence. The prediction held up, though the margin perhaps exceeded expectations.
Padoa's defensive structure offered little resistance as Erice moved the ball freely. The visitors managed just one point from their opening game, matching their draw record against Teramo. Their attacking options proved insufficient against a well-organised home side.
To be fair, the visitors had shown resilience in their previous outing, but this was a different proposition. Erice now sit two points clear at the summit after their first outing.
The result extended Erice's winning streak to two matches, having also beaten Teramo 40:14 on their previous outing. Padova's unbeaten streak continued until this match.
The goal difference tells its own story. Erice moved from two points after one game to maintaining their position at the top, while Padova remain on zero points in ninth place. The hosts have opened talks about their title ambitions, though that is assessment rather than fact.