FALKIRK LADIES FOOTBALL CLUB
Match Report – SWFA League Cup 3rd round
Bo' ness Ladies V Falkirk Ladies
Sunday 14th September 2008
2:00pm Kick Off
“Below Par Performance Just Enough.”
At the 3rd time of asking, Falkirk Ladies Football Club's participation in the 2008/2009 SWFA League Cup competition finally got underway with a potentially tricky away tie to Bo 'ness Ladies. The previous two rounds had seen the opposition withdraw from the competition and so provide the Bairns with a bye to the next round. On the back of last weeks opening league campaign victory, Coaches Wilson and Thomson kept faith with the majority of the players who started against Dumfries with only Nicky Docherty starting on the bench due to her participation with Scotland less than 24 hours before.
In a familiar 4-4-2 formation the match kicked off: - (Falkirk in Blue)
3min - Falkirk force a corner on the Bo’ ness right but a poor delivery from Ashley McDonald see's the attacking opportunity come to nothing.
5min - Bo' ness win a free-kick some 25 yards from goal and the resulting shot is saved well by Keeper Williamson in the Falkirk goal.
11min - The first real chance of the game falls to the skipper Clare Harris as she is sent through on goal by a delightful Jennifer Godfrey pass. As Clare advanced towards goal she took a touch too much and so allowed the keeper to narrow the angle and make the save.
14min - Both the Falkirk full-backs were encouraged to get forward before the game and it was no surprise to see Arlene Livingston pick the ball up some 30 yards from goal and unleash a shot which did go well wide of the mark.
25min - The squad have been working hard in training with possession games and building from the back going forward and it was some good link play between Maxine/Arlene and Kirky which set Clare Harris off down the right. Despite having time and space down the flank the resulting cross did not cause any problems to the home defence.
31min - Bo' ness were awarded a free kick midway inside the Falkirk half and in the confusion Clare Harrispicked up a yellow card for descent.
37min - Yet another Falkirk corner on the Bo' ness right was played into the penalty area and this time Maxine Thornton rose highest to get her head on the ball but only succeed in heading over the bar.
42min - A potential flash point in the match saw the Bo' ness centre half lash out at striker Laura Yuill off the ball and subsequently Laura reacted by aiming a kick at her opponent, all of which was missed by the referee. However the Falkirk coaching team did not miss the incident and subsequently substituted Laura for her own good.
42min - SUB - Laura Yuill (Off) - Kerry Graham (On).
Half-Time: - Bo' ness Ladies (0) V (0) Falkirk Ladies.
Far from being impressed with the first 45 min showing the coaching team were keen to stress to the players that the work rate and effort had to be better to break down opponents who were keen to sit deep and defend for most of the game. Despite looking comfortable defensively the final ball linking the midfield and front line was poor and as a result we were making things difficult.
46min - A powerful run from Harris down the right flank saw her whip a dangerous ball into the penalty area however there were no takers in a blue shirt hungry enough to get on the end of it and the chance was gone.
49min - Falkirk won a free-kick on the edge of the penalty area and the resulting shot from Kirky went wide of the target.
51min - SUB - Emma Lyons (Off) - Nicole Letford (On).
55min - Ashley McDonald was having a quieter game than normal on the Falkirk left but she did get a shot away on goal after set free down the channel. Like the team mates before the finished article wasn’t good enough and her shot went wide of the target.
63min - GOAL - Attack after attack for the Bairns saw them win yet another corner and as the ball was played in to the penalty area Maxine Thornton managed to get her head on the ball and direct it goalwards, however at the second attempt she managed to poke the ball home and break the deadlock. With the threat off Arlene, Sarah and Maxine at corners chances will always be created (0-1).
70min - Despite foul after foul after foul in the opening half it wasn’t until 70 minutes in that the Bo' ness number 11finally made her way into the referee's book for persistent fouling.
70min - SUB - Jennifer Godfrey (Off) - Sheryl Gallagher (On).
75min - GOAL - Yet another Falkirk corner saw the arial threat of Sarah and Maxine moving forward and when Arlene Livingston played the ball into the penalty area who else but Maxine Thornton rose highest to double the lead and earn her 2nd of the day (0-2).
85min - GOAL - With the home side out on their feet by this point the injection of pace in attack with Sheryl Gallagher was to pay off in the final minutes as she scampered down the right flank and her inch perfect cross was met by the on rushing Kerry Graham who neatly tucked the ball into the corner for number three (0-3).
Full-Time: - Bo' ness Ladies (0) V (3) Falkirk Ladies.
Coach Wilson’s Synopsis: - Again this week we found ourselves with almost 100% possession off the play and creating goal scoring opportunities yet still making life difficult by squandering chance after chance. It was pleasing to see the players battle hard for the entire 90 minutes as it was needed to break down opponents who were hell-bent on making life hard for the players to play football. We did play some excellent passing football from the back going forward and yet again another solid performance from Sarah and Maxine at the heart of the defence. Against better sides in the division we will need to be more ruthless in front of goal and this will certainly have to be the case next week when Celtic come calling.
Similar to last week Kerry Graham came off the bench to grab another goal, 4 in two games, Kerry Kennedy was outstanding at left back, Ashley McDonald was her usual busy self down the left flank and Skipper Clare Harris just as effective down the right with her 3 megs on the poor Bo' ness full back.
One thing that was disappointing was the petulance and indiscipline that crept into a few players during the game which doesn’t help the teams cause. Where I desire the players to have a competitive and winning instinct I also want them to be controlled and that lacked today.
Come on the Bairns !!!!!!!!!
