After a two week break, the Eagles had a home fixture against second in the league KPR this morning at the Heath. It was a cold morning and the incessant drizzle made the playing conditions very greasy and a challenge for the players.
After a balanced start to the game, and with a fierce battle for the ball in midfield which saw Ella repeatedly knocked over, the Eagles slowly started to dominate, showing huge determination to stand firm against a very tall and powerful team. With Bonnie and Ria getting stuck into the opposition in midfield and Ella as tenacious as ever it was set to be a thrilling encounter.
Freya and Lyla made great headway up front and within the first 10 minutes they had seen several shots go just wide of the goal, and one lovely finish by Lyla ruled out for offside. With the weather worsening and the game continuing to be very physical, Cassidy, Livs and Maeve came on after 20 minutes to provide fresh legs in midfield and up front. With the wind blowing in favour of the Eagles, Ruby’s potent right footed clearances and goal kicks caused havoc with the opposition defence and saw Freya, Ella and Livs repeatedly run clear on goal but they just couldn’t find the back of the net – the KPR goalie was having storming game.
At the other end of the pitch, Seren was a spectator for long periods but when called upon she was solid in the goal and kept the game flowing with long kicks out of hand when required. Tabs and Heidi, supported well by Ruby, had the measure of the KPR forward line who had two very fast wingers to contend with. But the Eagles defenders communicated brilliantly and covered each other to close down the attacks and prevent KPR from any shots on target.
Just before the break, another lightening attack from Livs and Freya saw the ball moved to Ella who slotted it into the back of the net – just reward for their efforts.
After a halftime chat and a hot chocolate each from Steve, the girls started the second half with renewed energy, though a little cold and some were ruing the fact they hadn’t brought gloves with them!
Maeve got heavily involved in midfield and Cassidy made several telling contributions to tackle the opposition left winger who saw more of the ball and started to pose a real threat. With more attacks from Albury it seemed the girls were destined to score a second but time and again the ball went just wide or out of play and as the game wore on it was clear that a 1-0 lead wasn’t going to be enough. With twenty minutes gone in the second half, KPR won a corner and in the goalmouth scramble that followed the ball was poked past Seren to level the score.
However, the Eagles players never let their heads drop and raised their game to a higher level battling everything and refusing to take a backward step. Lyla, came on for Livs and she chased a long ball and put in a fantastic shoulder challenge that saw her win possession but yet again the KPR goalie made a telling save. The Eagles refused to lie down and another strong attack led to confusion in the KPR penalty area and Ella popped up to score.
The last few minutes were focussed on keeping possession and playing up in the opposition half. With Maeve back on for the last few minutes her chasing and tenacity enabled the Eagles to see the game out for a well deserved win. Well played to the whole team today – awesome performance!

Star Player : Cassidy