A tough game for the girls this morning and a 4-0 loss, which at first glance doesnt really tell you the full story.
Up against it from the off, the girls were down to the bare bones, with no Maggie between the posts, and no Izzy or Isabella to dominate play in the middle.
The opposition took the game to us from the kick off pushing forward quickly to a decent pair of strikers, making it very hard defensively to clear our lines. This led to their first couple of goals from some very well worked corners which the girls couldn't clear before being turned in. Despite these setbacks the girls didnt stop working and creating chances of their own, with Emily and Rose both going close.
Even though they went in 3 down the girls upped their effort further in the second half, playing some great footbal, making it difficult to see which team was the one ahead!
While its easy to look at the scoreline, from front to back the girls showed grit, determination and a willingness to try and play good football, even when going behind. Kudos must go to Purdi and Eloise, who both stood up and took on the toughest role of keeper for the team. While they couldnt do anything about the goals, both of them made at least 3 good saves.
I put a lot of extra pressure and responsibility on Megans shoulders to play a captains role today, looking after the defenders and keepers, and she carried this out superbly, alongside some top draw defending! Either side in defence we got to see Betsy in her first match, who stood up well to some great attckers and Eloise/Purdi who put in a real battling performance when on the pitch.
Losing Isabella led us to shift to a 4 girl midfield to try and close the space down. Emily and Olivia took the wide positions and carried on as they have done all season, they were everywhere! Emily looked to carry the ball at every opportunity and bring players into the match and her defending was equally top draw, often getting a toe in the way to break up attacks. Likewise Olivia and especially in the 2nd half was a real handful, often breaking tackles and covering the length of the pitch on some mazy runs!
This left Chloe, Soraya and Rose as the two central midfielders and lone striker. All three rotated positions and worked their socks off, tracking, pressing and when in possession showing greal vision, passing and footwork.
Despite the scoreline, it was a great performance and one the girls should righly be proud of.
Parents POM - a 3 way tie with Purdi/Eloise for teamwork in taking the keepers spot and Betsy for a really positive first game Coaches POM - again, couldnt split this so it went to Soraya and Rose. Simply relentless today, didnt stop running and working all match and there was some great passing and close control from both