Sunday 10th October
Squad: Ellie, Tash, Ava, Hannah, Izzy, Cara, Kelsey, Priya (Captain), Robyn, Sophie, Lucy, Sophia, Ella, Sophia K, Paige, Evie
Sponsor: Lisa Collins Hairdesign
RTGWFC U15s arrived for a lunchtime kick off to a very warm autumnal day at Butlin Road. The team have been working hard in training, but their first league win is proving elusive.
Rugby started strongly, in particular, Evie and Paige, with some good defence, clean positioning, and a desire to press. With a full squad meaning 5 on the bench, we had plenty of player options available to us.
The curse of the silent game is still plaguing the Rugby team, which seems unlikely compared to the amount of nattering in training, so is still a focus area for us all.
Beaumont won a good number of corners throughout the game and it was 50/50 as to whether Rugby would clear cleaning of have a bit of a scramble, providing a few nervy and adrenaline filed moments.
Priya and Kelsey with linking play and making some good attempts at breaking through the Beaumont defence. Beaumont were strong on the counter attack with some very speedy forward players. A speculative run by Beaumont caught the Rugby defence on the back foot and a somewhat sloppy goal was conceded.
Unlike previous games, conceding a goal actually fired up Rugby Town and they decided to take the game to Beaumont. Some nice work in midfield saw an effective ball to Kelsey, who put everything into her forward run and opened the Rugby account.
Flashes of some nice combination play by Rugby saw us keep command of the game – more of this please girls! Kelsey and Ellie up front were connecting well and a nice layoff from Kelsey allowed Ellie to release one of her trademark power shots from outside the box, just shooting wide.
Rugby worked hard to remain in the ascendancy and generally dealt with any Beaumont forays very well. Shortly before half time, Priya and her nifty footwork released to Kelsey, who decided on another streak of lightning run and put Rugby into the lead.
The second half was a bit of a mixed bag, tiredness was creeping in and a few knocks meant there were quite a few substitutions in the second half. Rugby had a few chances, but the onus was on defending. Kelsey and Ava combined well, only to see Ava shoot a fraction wide.
Beaumont won a few corners in a row, and some of the Rugby clearances were more luck than judgement. An indescribably period saw Beaumont equalise when seemingly the entire Rugby Team switched off and turned to stone, earning themselves some words of “encouragement” from the side-lines.
Still, Rugby kept pressing, determined not to throw the game, an excellent defensive clearance by Ellie, up to Paige and across to Kelsey, for another burning run, her third goal and Rugby’s winner.
Summary
Tenacity, perseverance, and plain old effort has been rewarded with their first league win of the season. U15s have proved to themselves they can do it, and we look forward to going again on 24th away at Harborough. No excuses now.
Rugby Town 3 – 2 Beaumont Park
Parents player: Kelsey, for excellent effort, drive and finishing.
Coaches’ player: Evie, for a commanding performance in midfield
Thank you to Dave for refereeing, Lee for stepping in as linesman and the U15 parents for your support.