Borehamwood U18 Girls – Match Report
A Summer of Change, a Brilliant Start
The first game of the new season always brings a few nerves, and this one was no different. After a summer of change, with five players moving on, new faces arriving, the team stepping up to U18 football and Ryan settling into his new role as assistant coach, there was plenty to look forward to — and plenty to wonder about!
New signing Nicole made her competitive debut in goal, while Sophie also made her first competitive appearance for the team. Ryan’s pre-match planks may have been less convincing, however, with the girls seemingly not entirely sold on his methods just yet!
With the sun shining gloriously, the only thing looking a little worse for wear was the pitch, which was still suffering from the effects of a long, dry summer.
The girls started brightly and quickly took control of the game, dominating possession and proceedings. Unfortunately, losing Lily in the first minute disrupted things, and despite controlling much of the half, the girls were caught on the break and went into the interval 1-0 down. The second half, however, was a joy to watch.
Whatever was said at half time clearly worked, as the girls came flying out of the blocks and produced a brilliant comeback. Five very well-taken goals followed in a flurry, including one straight from the training ground, as the game was turned completely on its head and the contest was put firmly beyond doubt.
Abi led the charge with a superb hat-trick, with assists coming from Connie, Sophie and Scarlet. Martha also got on the scoresheet, assisted by Player of the Match Abi, before Olivia calmly rounded things off with a composed finish.
There were plenty of individual performances worthy of a mention too. Birthday girl Leni deserves huge credit for battling through illness to put in a solid 40 minutes at the back, allowing Abi the freedom to move further forward and make such a huge impact.
Missy was absolutely faultless defensively — dominant, composed and giving the opposition very little to work with. And wearing the armband for the day, Amie Adams led the fight from the front. She showed excellent strength, composure and determination on the ball and was a real driving force throughout.
It was a fantastic way to start life as an U18 side. There will undoubtedly be tougher tests ahead, but the coaches can be very happy with what they saw, and the girls can be delighted with the way they responded after going into half time behind.
A summer of change, a new assistant coach, new players, new challenges — and a brilliant start to the season.
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The U16 girls played their first league game today away to our great friends at Bury Rangers. Our last meeting was one to forget where Bury handed us a chastising 5-0 defeat in the cup, that’s with us always having had the upper hand in our previous meetings.
This was a real shock to our system on the day. Today, the girls came prepared for everything Bury would throw at them and were all up for the fight!
We took an early lead through some more clinical finishing from Maisie who is on fire atm, this is after her bagging four goals the week before in our last pre season game.
Maisie’s pace, power and finishing are phenomenal when she is on form and she certainly is atm.
The girls smelt blood in the water and they pressed and harried the home defence into early mistakes, this on a terrible pitch that was more akin to a cabbage patch than a football pitch, so mistakes would happen.
More pressure from Maisie on the home GK saw her fluff her lines and totally miss read the
flight of the ball, and fortunately for us it rolled over the line for our second 0-2 up after 10 mins!
We couldn’t have asked for a better start to a game we all had worries about as Bury are a tough nut to crack and have improved massively over the last year. The plan today was to go against our belief’s of trying to play possession based football, we needed to play percentage football and get the ball forward quickly and play in Bury’s half, and to keep trying to turn Bury’s defence.
Marisa was having a fantastic game in defence for us today stopping Bury’s tricky winger on numerous occasions. Poppy N also deserves a mention for yet another stellar performance in midfield, she is starting to string these performances together and is becoming a team stalwart.
New signing Ayla made her debut today and she adds a real steely toughness to our midfield along with her undoubted skill, and it didn’t take her long to make her mark when she notched the teams 3rd with a screamer from all of 35yds over the keeper !
The team was cruising now and looking to take the match away from Bury, but our hosts had other ideas. Bury’s electric forward managed to find space and this one time Riss couldn’t reel her in, she then managed to beat Emily in goal with an excellent finish for 1-3 at half time.
The second half started and Bury’s tails where up and they where back in the fight, pushing our girls back and playing the game in our half, doing to us what we had done to them in the first half. There second goal was beginning to look inevitable and it came from our own mistakes not heading a clearance, buying a trick and it was soon 2-3. Game on!
Bury where pushing and pushing and the girls were struggling try as they might to get our 4th. The terrible pitch seemed to turn on us in the second half and we just couldn’t get a hold on the ball or any territory for that matter. Elsie was starting to have more and more influence on the game especially from the left wing in the second half and was tormenting her marker, her mazy runs nearly ringing our fourth but it just wouldn’t come.
Another Bury attack and a lapse in defence saw the home side equalise and go wild.
The game was anyone’s for the taking but our girls seemed to wrestle back control and were looking the most dangerous, I think Bury had put so much energy into getting back level that they didn’t have much left for the last 10 minutes. Again and Again Elsie drove forward and hurt Bury the shot was blocked or the finish straight to the keeper.
With 3 mins left Elsie found Lola attacking from centre midfield not her normal left flank, Lola offers something different with her eye for goal from the centre of the pitch and she put the ball expertly past the home GK to wrest back the lead 3-4 to the Wood!
The last few minutes were all ours and we saw out the clock and came away with the deserved 3 points from a tough scrap on the road. Well done to all the girls who got the job done today 👏👏
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After last week’s dominant performance ended in a frustrating draw, the mighty U12 Girls travelled to Chorleywood determined to continue in the same vein, but this time, be a little more clinical in front of goal. Led out by captain Katy, the girls lined up in a 3-3-2 formation, with the aim of controlling the tempo through the middle of the pitch.
Chorleywood proved to be an incredibly frustrating opponent. They closed down quickly, gave the Wood Army very little space and certainly weren't interested in giving Borehamwood an easy morning!
The back three of Sienna, Maisie and Amber were absolutely watertight. The trio covered brilliantly for one another whenever Chorleywood managed to break forward, with every player willing to put their body on the line for the team.
Sienna produced one particularly brutal tackle, winning the ball cleanly before finding Katy in midfield. Katy then picked out Daisy, whose sharp thinking released Juniper out wide. Unfortunately, Juniper fired a shot just wide.
Moments later, Elsie’s striker instinct kicked in. Reacting immediately to a Chorleywood goal kick, she fired a first-time effort that narrowly missed the target. Katy then went on a fantastic solo run from midfield and came close herself. The Wood Army were beginning to find their rhythm.
Then came a moment that perfectly summed up Sienna’s attitude. A Chorleywood attack threatened to cause problems, but Sienna bravely threw herself at the ball and cleared it with her head, taking a kick to the mouth for her troubles. It's going to take considerably more than that to stop Sienna! At the other end, Olivia was being called into action, repeatedly coming off her line to close down Chorleywood attackers and snuff out dangerous opportunities.
Borehamwood were playing the better football, but there was one frustration creeping into the game. Too often, the ball was being played into a congested middle rather than being moved quickly out to the wings, where there was more space to attack.
Chorleywood had moments, but Amber was doing what Amber does best. Putting attackers under pressure, shepherding them off the pitch and winning valuable throw-ins and goal kicks. Despite Borehamwood controlling much of the play, Chorleywood found an opportunity. A loose ball bounced around inside the Borehamwood box after a battle in the middle. It eventually fell kindly to a Chorleywood player, who smashed the ball into the back of the net. 1–0 Chorleywood.
With only five to ten minutes remaining in the first half, Borehamwood dug deep. A brilliant attacking move ended with Daisy firing just wide.
Maisie was magnificent at the back, producing clearance after clearance and refusing to allow Chorleywood through. Juniper then showcased her skills with some quick footwork, cutting inside beautifully and linking up with Elsie and Katy.
Leah came close too, racing down the right wing, only for the clever Chorleywood goalkeeper to read the danger and race off her line to shut the opportunity down.
Half-time arrived with Borehamwood trailing 1–0.
Borehamwood came out for the second half with a change of approach. Three up front and two in midfield. The girls immediately looked more energetic than Chorleywood. A goal was coming.
Eventually, the Chorleywood defence cracked. The ball broke loose on the edge of their box and fell perfectly for Elsie. She didn't hesitate, she struck the ball with venom and accuracy. The goalkeeper had absolutely no chance. GOAL! 1–1!
Suddenly, the whole game changed. The Wood Army had their confidence back, and within minutes, almost the exact same scenario happened again. This time it was Katy standing on the edge of the box. She took aim. and unleashed another thunderous strike.Another unstoppable finish.
2–1 BOREHAMWOOD!
Two brilliant long-range goals within moments of each other.The crowd went crazy.The coaches breathed again and Borehamwood were back in the driving seat.
Chorleywood weren't finished. They had their moments and threatened to get back into the game, but Anisia was producing some perfectly timed tackles to keep them at bay.
As the game progressed, Borehamwood became more disciplined. The back three held their line. The front three timed their runs brilliantly to beat the offside trap. Everyone was working for everyone else.
Then came another test of character. Daisy took a nasty knock to the knee and despite clearly being in pain, she carried on. Moments later, another knock. This time to her ankle. Daisy desperately wanted to continue, but it was clear the pain was getting worse. Eventually, the brave decision was made to take her off, with Leah coming on to play out wide. Leah immediately pushed forward and won a corner for Borehamwood. Katy took and planted the ball into the danger area. Xyla unleashed a shot, only to be denied by the crossbar. Fantastic effort.
With ten minutes left on the clock, Borehamwood were firmly in the driving seat. Xyla was becoming more influential in midfield. Juniper continued making dangerous runs down the left, although Chorleywood clearly recognised the threat, often sending two players across to try to contain her. But Borehamwood kept building. Another attack, another opening, and once again, the ball broke free for Katy. She took aim from distance and 'BANG'. Another long-range rocket found the back of the net. 3–1 BOREHAMWOOD!
The cheers from the Borehamwood supporters were matched only by the enormous sigh of relief from the coaching staff!
But the Wood Army weren't finished yet. Elsie was determined to get another goal and tried to catch the goalkeeper with a clever lob. The keeper just managed to deny her, but Borehamwood won another corner. Katy stepped up and whether it was planned or not, her delivery nearly flew straight into the net for a fourth. The quick-thinking Chorleywood goalkeeper managed to save it.
Even in the dying moments, Chorleywood refused to give up.They won a free-kick outside the. Borehamwood box. The back three stood tall and formed a wall.Emily, now in goal, calmly instructed her teammates to mark up in case the ball broke loose.
The free-kick came in. It hit the Borehamwood wall and Sienna calmly collect the ball and play Borehamwood out of danger?
Moments later, the final whistle blew.
CHORLEYWOOD 1–3 BOREHAMWOOD 2000
Cheers erupted from the players, coaches and supporters. This was a fantastic performance from the Wood Army against a Chorleywood side who made life extremely difficult, Borehamwood showed skill, determination, resilience and, most importantly, teamwork.
They were patient when things weren't going their way. They responded brilliantly after going behind. They changed the shape. They attacked with purpose. They defended together and when the pressure came, they stood tall.
There were brilliant individual performances everywhere — from the defensive resilience of Sienna, Maisie and Amber, the bravery of Anisia, the energy of Xyla, the attacking threat of Juniper, Elsie, Daisy and Leah, the determination of Olivia and Emily between the sticks, and, of course, Katy's spectacular 2 goals. However, Player of the match went to Xyla, whose non-stop effort from start to finish helped drive Borehamwood forward. She battled for every ball, influenced the game more and more as it went on and came desperately close to scoring herself. A brilliant all-round performance.
Opposition Player of the match went to Elsie for her superb attacking display. Her wizardry upfront, quick feet and constant movement made her a nightmare for the Chorleywood defence throughout the game.
Last week, Borehamwood dominated but couldn't quite find the goals. This week, they dominated, dug deep, found their clinical edge and came away with a deserved victory.
Two games into the season and the Wood Army are already showing exactly what they are capable of.