Match Report
Match Report - 06 Mar 2011, Bracknell Town Ladies FC Bracknell Town Ladies beat Woodley Saints LFC
On a bright spring like afternoon, the Robins made the short trip to Woodley Saints to play them for the 4th time this season, having drawn with them in the league at home, lost on penalties away in the league cup and lost 2-1 at home in the County Cup. Each game has been of good quality and today's league encounter did not disappoint.
From the opening minute when the hosts took the lead from an overhead kick from Amie Benton to the dying moments of the game when the hosts struck a free kick narrowly wide when in search of an equaliser, this game was absorbing for the neutral!
Once Woodley had scored, the Robins seemed to be very nervous in possession, conceding the ball all too easily and allowing the hosts to dictate the early moments. However, a slick passing movement from back to front set Tracy Corkett free. She beat her defender but at the crucial moment of getting her shot off, the ball hit a bobble causing the ball to bounce up and the shot to go wide of the target. This passage of play seemed to boost the Robins confidence as they started to pass the ball better and to create several good chances.
Caz Paterson went close when she diverted a Libby Shuttle corner towards goal only to see her effort hacked to safety. Corkett again went close, forcing a save low down to the keepers right. The hosts found it difficult to pass through a congested middle third so opted for longer passes to get the lively Benton and her strike partner into the game. Both proved a handful when the ball found it's way into the Robins defensive third and on the rare occasion that the Robin's back line was breached, Kirsty Robertson was on hand to deal with what was thrown at her. She did,however, cause a little concern when she failed to catch a shot at the first attempt but soon regained her composure.
Despite the pressure that the Robins had their hosts under, they could not find the elusive finish to get them back on level terms. Angie Whitney chased down a loose ball putting the last defender and the keeper under pressure. The attempted clearance struck her and headed towards the empty net. Woodley showed why they had only lost once in the league this season with the same defender running to slide and clear the ball to safety when a goal appeared a certainty.
At the start of the second half the Robins began where they left off, pressing their hosts back into their half. A pass from Paterson found Tracy Corkett who worked space for herself to shoot. The resulting drive was pushed onto the bar by the home keeper only for Emma Constable to be on hand to fire home the rebound to bring the scores level. It wasn't long before the same player picked up a pass from Corkett and rifled the ball into the corner of the net from all of 20 yards.
Former Woodley player Sophie Mabbett replaced Jo Atkins who had performed admirably despite having been unwell all week. Mabbett picked up from where her team mate had left off, seeking to run at the back line and set up chances for her colleagues. The Robins defensive line was rarely stretched during the second half, the final ball either not quite finding its intended target or teh Robins defence tidying up effectively. Young defender Jenny Mulleady was particularly impressive, coping well with the experienced strike force opposing her, ably assisted by skipper Tash Boyle and Hannah Burgess.
Further chances to extend the lead came and went with Paterson again seeing an effort cleared off the line following another well worked corner routine. Corkett went close with a header and also a well struck volley and Constable, seeking a hat trick also went close forcing 2 decent saves from the home keeper. 2-1 is always a dangerous scoreline however, especially against such dogged opposition. In the dying moments of the game, Mulleady conceded a free kick just outside the penalty area. The resulting kick flew through a crowd of players and, to the relief of the visitors, went wide of the target for a goal kick. That was the end of the meaningful action with the Robins securing all 3 points from a performance that warranted the result.
Manager Dave Ward paid tribute to all of his players including the late substitutes when he said that, "the whole team performed well and executed our game plan very well even though the first 10 minutes or so were punctuated with some nervous moments. Every player contributed positively and it is clear how much team spirit there is within this group coming back from a goal down to beat a very good team". The celebrations at the end of the game reflected how important this result was to the Robins in keeping the contest for the league title very interesting with all of the top 6 having to play each other in the final run in. At the time of writing, the Robins have no fixture on Sunday 13 March, but keep an eye on the home page as this may change.
Woodley Saints LFC 1 - 2 Bracknell Town Ladies FC Bracknell Town Ladies