The Under 9’s were the only team at home this week and a large enthusiastic squad arrived at Kilsby Lane for a big cup game against Oadby and Wigston. It was a glorious sunny morning but our roving reporter was also the referee so please excuse the short match summary! We had a large crowd and it was great to see such positive encouragement and support from both sets of parents, applauding and cheering great football from all the girls. It was a competitive and hard fought match with Rugby and Oadby both having chances to score and playing great attacking football.
The first half was largely even and tightly contested with chances at either end and some great defensive tackles and blocks preventing either team from breaking the deadlock. With two minutes to go before half time Sofia latched onto a big kick over the top from the Rugby goalkeeper to finish calmly and give the home team the advantage. With one minute to go before half time exactly the same thing happened again to double Rugby’s lead!
Half time saw a number of changes and all the girls continued to play with determination and fighting spirit to keep Oadby and Wigston at bay, whilst always looking dangerous going forward. Clinical finishing from Rugby proved to be the deciding factor and further goals in the second half saw Sofia complete her hat trick and Poppy bag a brace, one of which was an exceptional finish off the post in the bottom corner. Oadby and Wigston never stopped trying to find a way back into the game until the final whistle and proved to be worthy opponents throughout but Rugby did incredibly well to keep a clean sheet.
This was another exceptional team performance with every single one of the Rugby girls playing their heart out and showing great determination, bravery and commitment. I am sorry I haven’t been able to mention all of the girls individually but they should all be incredibly proud of their performances and thoroughly deserve to be through to the semi-final. The girls always play the game in the right spirit, fighting fairly for every ball and it’s great to see their on field partnerships developing and the way they all work together and support each other to play great football. Well done girls!