Our U18 Girls welcomed Oaklands Wolves to Pursley for a second home league game in as many weeks, with the reigning County Cup holders arriving nice and early for a first-ever encounter between the two sides. They clearly meant business.
The Wolves were an unknown quantity for us, but we knew we were in for a tough afternoon given their strong position in the U18 division last season and the fact that their squad is made up almost entirely of Year 13 girls.
The Wood started brightly and looked comfortable, although without quite dominating proceedings. So there was a definite sense of relief when the breakthrough finally came.
After 10 minutes, Abi opened the scoring. A great move saw Abi set the ball back to Milly on the halfway line and spin, with the ball then played in behind the defence. Abi held off her defender, raced 30 yards towards goal and calmly finished into the bottom-left corner to make it 1-0. A fantastic finish and a deserved reward for the bright start.
Abi doubled the lead soon afterwards when Amie slipped a ball through for her, leaving her one-on-one with the keeper. From there, she did what Abi does best, kept her composure and finished to make it 2-0.
The game remained competitive, with both sides working hard, and the effort from the girls was tremendous. On a hard, dry pitch, combined with some more warm late-September sunshine, it was a demanding afternoon physically. But the girls kept going.
After 65 minutes, Amie made it 3-0. Martha’s wayward shot turned into a cross, which Amie controlled before bundling the ball home. Another reward for the pressure and hard work.
Just five minutes later, Olivia added a fourth. She collected Milly’s assist before racing through on goal and finishing at the second attempt to put the result beyond any real doubt.
Oakwood pulled one back with a long-range strike in the 75th minute, making it 4-1, but it proved little more than a consolation as the Wood saw the game out comfortably.
Today’s performance was all about the team and they all played their part. Nicole was alert and assured in goal, making sure the Wolves had very little to work with. The back four of Leni, Missy, Amy and Rose played the full 90 minutes and were excellent throughout. Solid, disciplined and composed, they provided the platform for everyone further forward to express themselves. Amie, Olivia and Milly all added guile and attacking flair, contributing goals and assists and causing problems for the Wolves defence. And Player of the Match Jess was the standout in central midfield. She covered ground tirelessly, competed for everything and brought the composure and quality needed to keep the team ticking throughout a demanding game, ably supported by the ever willing running and pressing of Martha and Scarlett.
Four goals against a strong, experienced Oakwood side, just one conceded and another huge shift of effort from the girls. There will be plenty of tougher challenges ahead, but this was another important step forward for a team still finding its feet at U18 level. Two home league games. Two wins. Nine goals scored and just two conceded. Days to savour and The Wood are up and running!
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☀️ What glorious weather for Borehamwood 2000 U12 Girls! ☀️
Today the girls took on Bedwell Rangers at their beloved home ground, Pursley, and WOW… what a game! 🔥⚽️ The girls brought their energy and focus to the pre-match team talk, where we talked tactics, holding our positions and pushing the ball up through the pitch using our skill and teamwork. Boy, oh boy, did we excel at that today! 👏
Borehamwood were led onto the pitch by our Captain, Sienna, who won the toss and gave us the great advantage of not playing into the sun. 🌞 The whistle went and Borehamwood soared into action! Our strikers Gracie, Elsie and Daisy showed great runs up the wings, backed by midfielders Katy and Xyla, who were reading the game brilliantly. Katy was ready for the rebound off a cracking sideline throw into the middle from Elsie. Borehamwood took a deep breath as Katy found Gracie, who hurtled our first shot at goal… just missing by a cat’s whisker! 😱
The girls weren’t hanging around. We saw a strong defence holding their line and positions, leaving no room for Bedwell’s strikers to penetrate our barrier. Sienna was winning fierce and determined tackles, Maisie was like a fearless rocket across the middle, and Amber was taking no prisoners on the right, flying that ball up the wing at every opportunity. 💪
Then came an impressive kick-out from Olivia, finding Sienna, who ran up the line towards Gracie. Gracie had already read Sienna’s mind and knew exactly where that ball was going. Sienna passed to Gracie, who effortlessly glided the ball up the wing and smashed it into the back of the net! ⚽️🔥 1-0 to Borehamwood 2000! The crowd went wild! 🙌
Borehamwood had found their flow, and no sooner had we come down from the first goal than a second push came after a smashing clearance from the box by Amber landed perfectly at Daisy’s feet. With her usual speed and skill, Daisy raced up the wing with Elsie beside her pushing forward. Daisy produced the perfect cross to Elsie, who was positioned perfectly to hammer in our second goal! What teamwork! 👏⚽️
Bedwell were starting to fight back, but Olivia was ready for them, pulling off a brilliant save and letting Bedwell know that even when they did break through, they would still meet a determined keeper. She confidently came off her line, pushed through the crowds to get HER ball and even threw her entire body on it to stop it crossing the line! 🧤🔥
Then Bedwell got lucky. An awkward ball close to the box meant the score was 2-1.
With 10 minutes to go before half-time, Sienna came off, suffering from the heat. Xyla slipped back into defence, with Leah fighting hard in midfield alongside Katy.
Bedwell kept the pressure on, but Amber, Maisie and Xyla worked incredibly hard to keep them at bay, with Katy and Leah providing fantastic support. They moved with the ball, waiting for that break so they could scoop it up and push forward.
Half-time 🔄 Sienna was back in defence alongside Maisie and Amber, with Katy and Leah in midfield and Daisy, Elsie and Gracie up front. Emily took her position in goal. 🧤
Bedwell came back fighting, and it wasn’t long before the ball found its way into the back of our net. 2-2. Despite our best efforts, a third followed. 3-2 to Bedwell. The tables were turning… could Borehamwood keep their heads up and fight back?
A quick change at the back saw Amber come off for a well-deserved rest, with Xyla moving onto the back line supporting Sienna and Maisie whilst linking up with Leah to push up on the wing. And fight back we did! 💪 Elsie produced a fantastic power shot… OFF THE CROSSBAR! 😱 Katy was still battling away in the middle, but the ball broke through and Emily made a brilliant save, pushing the ball away from her net and straight into her defence. Maisie cleared to Sienna, who smashed the ball out of the box and down the wing. It was crossed to Elsie, whose ball rebounded to Katy. Katy saw her chance…AND TOOK IT! ⚽️ 3-3!!! ⚽️
Straight back to it, and Bedwell were showing their frustration. It was getting brutal out there, but our girls stood tall, kept their composure and stayed focused on finding that winning goal. And we certainly weren’t going to give Bedwell another one! A fabulous clearance from Xyla in the box found Daisy, who needed no encouragement to charge forward. She crossed to Elsie, but unfortunately it ran past her and was picked up by Gracie, who passed it straight back to Elsie. And Elsie flew that ball into the net! ⚽️🔥
The goal she had been planning since that first crossbar shot! 4-3 TO THE MIGHTY BOREHAMWOOD 2000! 💙⚽️
BUT IT WASN’T OVER YET! 😱 The ref called for a hydration break. The girls were hot and took the chance to discuss their tactics. We were going back on from a throw-in by Sienna. They made their plan… and implemented it beautifully. Sienna ➡️ Katy ➡️ Daisy
A quick decision from Daisy found Katy in midfield, who unleashed a cracking shot on target. But their keeper was ready and waiting. Then Bedwell changed tactics. They were going all in, and it seemed every one of their players was in our box!
Emily was having none of it. She saved a tasty high incoming ball and smashed it out, only for another shot to come hurtling back at her. Again, she stood strong, never taking her eyes off the ball, and got it out to Xyla, who battled hard to find Maisie. Maisie pulled out all the stops to get that ball out of the box and up the pitch. Next came a free kick after a back pass to the Bedwell goalkeeper. Daisy stepped up. Knowing she couldn’t shoot, she passed to Katy, who found the bar! The ball flew back into play to a waiting Elsie, who was immediately surrounded by red shirts. The ball broke free…Gracie was there!
A great shot, but the keeper was adamant Borehamwood weren’t getting a fifth! 🧤
Bedwell charged forward towards our goal, but they were intercepted all the way by Leah and Katy. They broke through……but Sienna, Maisie and Xyla were waiting. Maisie came forward, putting on the pressure, with Sienna backing her. The ball broke through and Sienna smashed a clearance from the box…
…and THAT’S THE WHISTLE! 📣FULL TIME: BOREHAMWOOD 2000 4️⃣ – 3️⃣ BEDWELL RANGERS 🏆💙 One thing’s for sure… these girls mean business!
Today they showed all of us what they can do when they play it smart. We know they have the ability. We know they have the pace. We know they have the power. But today, they showed us that they also know how to play clever, use their space and work together as a team. 👏 And that teamwork has helped them maintain their position at the top of the league! 🥇🔥 Gareth, Kacey and I are so incredibly proud of you girls. I hope you know just how amazing each and every one of you are. ❤️
⭐ Captain of the Day - Sienna 👑
🧤 Players of the Match - Our two brave and fearless goalkeepers…Emily & Olivia! 🧤👏💙 What a team. What a game. What a performance! COME ON BOREHAMWOOD 2000! 💙⚽️🔥