Without a League game this week the Under 12’s travelled to Quorn for a friendly in much more favourable conditions than last week and the girls were confident of a strong performance despite having some key players missing.
After struggling to find the venue, and then the pitch, we had little preparation time and this showed as the girls were still half asleep and let the opposition start 2-0 up! Rugby spent the first 15 minutes inside the Quorn half but faced a wall of white shirts every time they got into the box and couldn’t find a way through. By contrast Quorn had two attacks and showed their lightning pace and clinical finishing to convert them both!
Captain Isobel was a driving force in central midfield, striding forward at pace and she did well to beat the Quorn defence and unleash a furious strike to get the girls’ first goal and back in the game. Sophia H was relentless on the Rugby wing, using her strength and determination to her advantage to pass players with ease; she looked dangerous going forward and could count herself unlucky not to end up on the scoresheet.
Layla was excellent in goal, looking assured throughout and collecting the ball well; always quickest to react and her distribution from goal kicks and out of her hands was fantastic, always putting Rugby back on the front foot. Sofia was wise to this and pushed forward ready to pounce on any Quorn hesitation and she showed great movement off the ball to create scoring opportunities – Rugby continued to push forward after the initial shock and Sofia showed clinical finishing to level the game at 2-2 and then again to give Rugby the lead before half time.
Returning from absence Izzy showed no signs of any ill effects to play the whole game today – she was a stalwart in the heart of defence, facing a pacy and talented Quorn front line. Izzy was usually always one step ahead and used her experience and positioning to make some intelligent tackles. Esme played alongside her for the most part and was equally up to the challenge – she continues to grow in confidence on the ball and showed great bravery today in defence, putting herself on the line for her teammates with some huge tackles.
Sophie showed great versatility, offering Rugby options on the wing as she flew forward in the first half before using her pace and tactical awareness to keep the Quorn counter attack at bay later in the game; she wasn’t afraid to get stuck in and showed great intelligence on and off the ball throughout. Ronniee demonstrated great energy on the Rugby wing whilst also using her strength and commitment to help out in other areas; she chased back exceptionally to break up play and her persistence and determination were justly rewarded with a well taken goal in the second half.
The second half was much the same as the first with Rugby creating a host of chances and looking lively going forwards, with Quorn defending in numbers but looking dangerous on the counter attack. It was fantastic to see this new-look squad starting to play together as a team, looking for others in better positions and putting the needs of the team first. The girls also adjusted well to the challenges put in front of them and did well to persevere after a slow start.
Player of the Match went to Sofia who was clinical in front of goal and showed intelligent movement to also create opportunities for her teammates; she was deservedly rewarded with two further well taken goals in the second half to take her tally to four.
Huge well done to all of the girls involved and thank you to our parents for fantastic positive support throughout and Quorn who were wonderful hosts. Even our roving reporter finally remembered to take a team photo