Falkirk Ladies V Murieston Ladies.
Thursday 5th June 2008 –
7:30pm kick-off.
The Pace, Dunipace.
“Bairns Bring Curtain Down With Home Win”
The final league game of the current season 2007/2008 took place last night for the glorious Falkirk Ladies as they entertained relegation haunted Murieston at the Pace. The Bairns were looking to bank their 3rd win on the bounce after picking up maximum points at both Bishopbriggs and Buchan.
New signings from the under 17 squad, Sheryl Gallagher and Maxine Thornton were added to the squad at the expense of the injured Natalie Stewart and the unavailable Sarah MacLennan. Despite playing her final game for the club, Alana Marshall started on the bench and young Laura Yuill partnered top scorer Kerry Graham in attack.
Before the game coaches Wilson and Thomson had impressed upon the squad that a win was a must to finish the season the way they had started and so they were looking for a high tempo start to the game.
It took the glorious Falkirk Bairns all off 60 seconds to create the first opportunity in the match. Some neat play down the Falkirk left by Ashley McDonald, 1min, saw the ball being played into the box and Laura Yuill turned sharply to get a shot in on goal however the ball went wide. The Falkirk left side has proved to be a real cause for concern for most defenders and Ashley McDonald again went on a merry dance on 4mins as she made way to the by-line. The ball was crossed into the Murieston penalty area where Kerry Graham met the ball with a powerful header that went over the bar.
The opening 15 minutes of the game saw Falkirk in complete control of the match and Murieston struggling to contain the wave on wave of attacks from the Bairns. The home side really should have taken the lead on 17min when Ashley McDonald found herself racing in on goal with the keeper to beat but the visiting goalie found a yard of pace and cleared the danger.
The visitors had their first real attack on 23min when they managed to force their way towards the Falkirk goal. Skipper Clare Harris picked up another yellow card this season on 25min, harshly in the coaches view, with a slightly late challenge on the Murieston no11. The Bairns thought that they had opened the scoring on 32min when Ashley McDonald managed to beat the keeper with a low drive however the ball cannoned back off the post and away to safety. The same play also crashed a shot against the cross bar on 35min as the Bairns searched for the opening goal.
A moment of madness for the Falkirk side allowed the visitors to take a shock lead in the game on 40min. Murieston won a free kick just inside the Falkirk half and were allowed to play a quick ball into the midfield area. As the defence stood static the ball was played through the heart of the back-line and a first time shot beat Keeper Renny and into the back of the net (0-1).
Falkirk looked for an instant response and they almost got back on level terms on 44min when Shirley Martin fired a free-kick towards the Murieston goal however the ball whisked wide of the near post and the chance was gone.
Half-Time:- Falkirk Ladies (0) V (1) Murieston Ladies.
Despite trailing at the interval the dressing room was one of calmness as the coaching team were confident that the ladies would find their way to goal in the 2nd period. The team had created chances in the first half but lady luck just wasn’t on their side.
The 2nd half started similar to the 1st with the Bairns launching the first attack of the half. On 46 min Arlene Livingston played a delightful pass into the feet of the on-rushing Ashley McDonald who’s first time shot was saved by the keeper at the expense of a corner.
Subs – 47 min.
Alana Marshall & Kelly Fullerton (ON) – Laura Yuill & Shirley Martin (OFF) –
The introduction of Alana Marshall as a sub for her final appearance in a Falkirk shirt saw her partner Kerry Graham in attack and Kelly Fullerton move into her normal midfield role. The Bairns did manage to break their duck and it was 2 goals in 2 minutes.
A simple ball into the penalty area on 54min saw a mad scramble between 5/6 players and when the ball finally landed at the foot of Kerry Graham she made no mistake by blasting the ball past the Murieston keeper for the equaliser (1-1). The wind was in the sail of the Bairns at this point and after winning a corner on 56min they were to take the lead. As the ball was crossed into the penalty area the visitors made a hash of clearing the ball and it fell nicely to Arlene Livingston who drilled a sweet right foot shot past the keeper and into the back of the net (2-1).
The Bairns were making all the running at this point and it only seemed a matter of time before the goal advantage was to increase. On 70min Kerry Graham picked up a pass midway inside the Murieston half and she played a delightful ball into the path of Alana Marshall and her delicate lob over the advancing keeper just sneaked past the post.
A moment of concern for the coaching team raised it’s ugly head on 75min as a long hopeful ball over the Falkirk defence saw the pacey no 11 “LC” run towards goal however Keeper Renny was alert to the danger and as she raced from her line to clear the ball she managed to crack the stomach of the Murieston player and win a by-kick in the process.
A promising new signing for next season from the under 17 squad, Sheryl Gallagher, made her senior team appearance on 80min to replace top scorer Kerry Graham. Kerry had run herself into the ground during the game and was also feeling unwell so it was best to rest her for the remainder of the match.
Young Shez was to have an almost immediate impact in the game as she linked well in creating Falkirk’s 3rd and decisive goal on 87min. Sheryl picked up the ball midway into Murieston’s half and played a delightful pass into the path of Emma ‘Kirky’ Lyons and it was Kirky who fired the ball across the penalty area for Ashley McDonald to finish well at the back post from a rather tight angle (3-1).
Just before the final whistle, 89min, Alana Marshall did her best to sign off her Falkirk career with a left footed drive towards the Murieston goal however the shot went wide of the target.
Full-Time:- Falkirk Ladies(3) V (1) Murieston Ladies.
Coach Wilson Commented:- The players showed great spirit in the 2nd half to bounce back from a goal down to win convincingly in the end. We always looked like scoring throughout the game and it came as no surprise that Kerry Graham and Ashley McDonald were on target. I am delighted at ending the season with 3 straight wins and scoring 15 goals in the process. I would also like to wish Alana Marshall all the very best in her new pastures next season.
The players are now enjoying a well earned few weeks break before the joy of pre-season starts on the 1st July. It should be a few interesting weeks in July as the new players that are coming in to the squad will be pushing for a place in the starting 11.
The coaching team will be continuing to work hard during the remainder of this month to ensure that everything is in place for Tuesday 1st July.
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