Our Under 11 Wildcats were in Leicester League action on Sunday against familiar foes East Goscote at the familiar venue of Syston. Having played them in the Cup semi-final last year we knew we would be in for a tough match against a talented attacking team, in most of the girls’ second match of the weekend!
It was a nervy start as both teams tried to take control of the game, with chances at both ends; East Goscote looked dangerous on the counter attack as they sped forward and Rugby were fortunate at times to be saved by the woodwork. Layla made some fantastic saves to keep East Goscote at bay; she is always a calm presence with assured handling and quick reactions.
As the first half progressed Rugby soon relaxed into the game and set about creating a huge number of chances themselves; with instructions to shoot on sight and test the home ‘keeper. Sofia showed her maturity with some excellent one touch passing to keep possession up front, linking up well with the Rugby midfield and creating space to put the team in scoring positions.
Lexie was dogged and determined in the centre of midfield, showing great vision to find her teammates in space whilst protecting the Rugby defence and chasing back to thwart East Goscote. Aurora was electric on the Rugby wing and used her natural aggression to hound the opposition, never giving them time on the ball and showing her winning mentality as she refused to give up on any challenge, loose ball or misplaced pass.
Poppy demonstrated her confidence on the ball with some excellent dribbling skills on the Rugby wing, passing players with ease and putting in some fantastic crosses to create clear scoring opportunities for the team. By half time the game was beyond the reach of East Goscote and the end result was never in question.
Captain Isobel put in some great corners which the team have been working on in training and used her strength and determination to hold off the East Goscote attack; her big clearances are a huge asset to the team. Izzy put in a committed performance alongside her at the back, communicating well with her teammates and always chasing back to be the last line of defence with some well timed last-ditch challenges.
This was a pleasing performance as the girls put into action a lot of things we have been working on in training, created and used the space to their advantage as they demonstrated some fantastic quick passing moves. The girls showed great vision and creativity in the final third to put each other in scoring positions to benefit the team as a whole.
Overall it was an excellent display from a hugely talented bunch of girls against one of the top teams in their division. Player of the Match went to Layla for an assured, confident display in goal to keep East Goscote at bay with some exceptional reflex saves. Well done to all the Rugby Town Girls involved!