HOCKEY: Ipswich Ladies have reached the end of an era. The single sex hockey club, which has achieved tremendous recognition at home and abroad, has voted unanimously for the merger plans with Ipswich, exclusively revealed in last Friday's Evening Star, to go ahead.

IPSWICH Ladies have reached the end of an era.

The single sex hockey club, which has achieved tremendous recognition at home and abroad, has voted unanimously for the merger plans with Ipswich, exclusively revealed in last Friday's Evening Star, to go ahead.

Final details of the deal will now be thrashed out between the two clubs in readiness for next season.

Claire Webb, president of the Tuddenham Road club, said today: "It's the end of a chapter for us and naturally there was a certain amount of sadness, but it's also the start of an exciting new era.

"It's the sort of the thing that had to happen as single sex clubs just cannot exist any more at the level at which we play.

"We have been autonomous for so long and a lot of us have put in a tremendous amount of work over the years. What we have achieved, both at home and in European competitions, has been done on our own, but the time is right to join forces with another club.

"Ipswich are now in their second season in the English Hockey League and the merger of our two clubs simply serves to secure the future of hockey in the town.

"There is so much we can do and a working party will be sorting out the nitty gritty in readiness for next season.

"These are definitely exciting times for us and Ipswich are a good club with whom to merge."

She added: "Ironically, it was 25 years ago when merger talks with Ipswich were first held so the acutal deal has taken some time to come to fruition, but we feel it has been worth the wait."

Ipswich Ladies are without a league game tomorrow, while captain Leisa King is with the England squad taking park in the Champions Challenge in South Africa.