The Round Ball's Monique Sim's was in action last week.
Saturday’s sunshine was very welcome at Blue Lake Sports Park for the opening matches of the SEWFA season. This weekend’s round of matches witnessed the return of familiar faces, welcomed new players and saw several players step out in new colours after a change of allegiance.
SENIORS
Palace 4 d Portland 1
Despite the necessity for several juniors to complete the Palace squad on Saturday, the girls opened the season confidently scoring early. The last time these sides met, Palace could not overcome the strong Portland defence and they seemed determined to make up for that this time and were content to work the ball patiently into goal scoring opportunities. Despite the tenacity of Donna Kilgour and Tracey Jensen in Portland’s defence another was added soon after. A defensive misunderstanding lead to an opening for Portland, with a long range strike leaving the keeper stranded. With a 2-1 half time score, Palace resumed play with Chelsea Dickins letting little through in defence and providing encouragement for her team mates. Tess Andrews directed traffic in midfield feeding forwards to perfection and two more goals were added before game end.
Goal scorers:
Palace – I Pratt, T Andrews, J McCormick, S McCarthy
Portland – K Kilgour
City 9 d Villa 0
City stamped their authority on the game early, leaving the very young Villa side to chase their passes. A tough pre-season and good recruiting paid off with lots of strong runs throughout the midfield and fine distribution to attacking players. Villa saw the welcome return to the game of Marley Ongley and Jaymie Morrish who have both missed the past few seasons and made an impact on the game. With multiple goal scorers including 4 to Tania Grant and one to newcomer Kristy Henriksen , City have put the league on notice of their intentions for the season.
Goal scorers:
City: T Grant 4, J Smith 2, E Gilbert, E Kourmouzis, C Henriksen
Wanderers 4 d United 2
With several new signings, United were confident as they hit the park and spent the first few minutes camped in Wanderers half but were unable to convert. Wanderers settled into their game, with several forays forward however were only able to score one before the break by beating the offside trap. The United centre backs of Karen Panagopoulos and Kylie Durbidge were tireless and repeatedly cleared the ball from danger. A quick break from the reds saw an equaliser scored before the break for United. Early in the second half, United stole the lead with a fine strike into the top corner. Wanderers’ Leonie McCallum moved from defence to attack and used the strong breeze to perfection, sending the ball into the United penalty box time after time. The speed of the youthful Wanderers caused United a headache and Kim Jensz made stamped her authority on the game scoring a hat-trick in her return to SEWFA .
Goal scorers:
Wanderers – K Jensz 3, P Ackland
United – K Seiler 2
Millicent 1 drew with County 1
Millicent were buoyed by the Grand Final experience of last week and were confident in their approach to the match. However, the stalwart County defence were not about to give them easy access to goal, clearing the ball from dangerous quicks repeatedly. Neither side were able to score in the first half and returned to the pitch with gritty resolve to take the lead. The shift of County’s Tania Widdison moved from left back to midfield proved a wise move and provided crucial support for forwards. In a break for Millicent, Kimberley Vivian slid the ball home to take the lead for the home side. Shortly after, an unfettered run from the backline saw County equalise and return the game to level footing. Jess Feast was outstanding in her debute match for County and showed great promise for the season. Maria Montuori returned to the pitch after her stint in goals last week and again proved difficult for her County opposition, thwarting any further addition to the scoreline.
Goal scorers:
Millicent – K Vivian
County – K Hockey
UNDER 14S
Wanderers 1 d Villa 0
Wanderers were determined to continue their winning form from last weekend and pressed forward using the width of the park to their advantage. With Villa danger players Melanie Wilmot and Monique Ianella pushing forward, Emily Aston in the Wanderers goal was forced into action several times early in the match. With a 0-0 scoreline at the break, the tempo lifted with Elizabeth Ray-Thatcher increasing her work rate in the middle of the park for the remainder of the game. A clean strike, during the second half, from the left caused jubilation in the Wanderers’ camp and Villa left to regroup for next week.
Goal scorers:
Wanderers – J White
City 4 d Palace 0
Once the nerves settled, both teams played a determined quality match. Despite several moves forward by Imogen Pratt, Palace were unable to convert due to the consistent City defence marshalled by Emily Birch and Meg Walters. Ashlae Pilven worked diligently in the backline for Palace and sought her midfielders with long range clearances. Conceding an own goal in the first half lifted Palace however a lack of numbers on the park proved telling during the second half, with three City goals slotted home.
Goal scorers:
City – J Stephenson 3, Own goal 1
County 3 d Millicent 0 (forfeit)
Despite a lack of registered players, Millicent were keen to play their first home game on the weekend. Knowing the game would result in a forfeit, both teams took to the park for a high spirited, high quality match impressing coaches and spectators alike with all involved looking forward to a complete squad for the rematch later in the year.
The Junior Development Squad seems to expand weekly, with an 8-a-side match resulting on Saturday. Simone Morony proved an asset for her side, with strong throw ins and the ability to cross the ball into danger. Alyssa Leggett was the huge improver this week, scoring several goals due to her ability to intercept and finish well. Whilst Zara Hunt is only new to the sport, her capacity to read play and tackle in defence shows great potential for a future champion. This new crop of players for the league will have coaches lining up to recruit these girls in a few years time.
This week’s games sees three Under 14 matches played at Blue Lake Sports Park for the first time. Villa host Millicent and City will play Wanderers at noon, while Palace take on County at 1.30pm. Also at 1.30pm, Villa meet Millicent in the senior fixture, followed by 3pm matches of Wanderers v County and Palace v United. City seniors take the drive across the border to Portland in Portland’s first home fixture of the year.
SENIORS
Palace 4 d Portland 1
Despite the necessity for several juniors to complete the Palace squad on Saturday, the girls opened the season confidently scoring early. The last time these sides met, Palace could not overcome the strong Portland defence and they seemed determined to make up for that this time and were content to work the ball patiently into goal scoring opportunities. Despite the tenacity of Donna Kilgour and Tracey Jensen in Portland’s defence another was added soon after. A defensive misunderstanding lead to an opening for Portland, with a long range strike leaving the keeper stranded. With a 2-1 half time score, Palace resumed play with Chelsea Dickins letting little through in defence and providing encouragement for her team mates. Tess Andrews directed traffic in midfield feeding forwards to perfection and two more goals were added before game end.
Goal scorers:
Palace – I Pratt, T Andrews, J McCormick, S McCarthy
Portland – K Kilgour
City 9 d Villa 0
City stamped their authority on the game early, leaving the very young Villa side to chase their passes. A tough pre-season and good recruiting paid off with lots of strong runs throughout the midfield and fine distribution to attacking players. Villa saw the welcome return to the game of Marley Ongley and Jaymie Morrish who have both missed the past few seasons and made an impact on the game. With multiple goal scorers including 4 to Tania Grant and one to newcomer Kristy Henriksen , City have put the league on notice of their intentions for the season.
Goal scorers:
City: T Grant 4, J Smith 2, E Gilbert, E Kourmouzis, C Henriksen
Wanderers 4 d United 2
With several new signings, United were confident as they hit the park and spent the first few minutes camped in Wanderers half but were unable to convert. Wanderers settled into their game, with several forays forward however were only able to score one before the break by beating the offside trap. The United centre backs of Karen Panagopoulos and Kylie Durbidge were tireless and repeatedly cleared the ball from danger. A quick break from the reds saw an equaliser scored before the break for United. Early in the second half, United stole the lead with a fine strike into the top corner. Wanderers’ Leonie McCallum moved from defence to attack and used the strong breeze to perfection, sending the ball into the United penalty box time after time. The speed of the youthful Wanderers caused United a headache and Kim Jensz made stamped her authority on the game scoring a hat-trick in her return to SEWFA .
Goal scorers:
Wanderers – K Jensz 3, P Ackland
United – K Seiler 2
Millicent 1 drew with County 1
Millicent were buoyed by the Grand Final experience of last week and were confident in their approach to the match. However, the stalwart County defence were not about to give them easy access to goal, clearing the ball from dangerous quicks repeatedly. Neither side were able to score in the first half and returned to the pitch with gritty resolve to take the lead. The shift of County’s Tania Widdison moved from left back to midfield proved a wise move and provided crucial support for forwards. In a break for Millicent, Kimberley Vivian slid the ball home to take the lead for the home side. Shortly after, an unfettered run from the backline saw County equalise and return the game to level footing. Jess Feast was outstanding in her debute match for County and showed great promise for the season. Maria Montuori returned to the pitch after her stint in goals last week and again proved difficult for her County opposition, thwarting any further addition to the scoreline.
Goal scorers:
Millicent – K Vivian
County – K Hockey
UNDER 14S
Wanderers 1 d Villa 0
Wanderers were determined to continue their winning form from last weekend and pressed forward using the width of the park to their advantage. With Villa danger players Melanie Wilmot and Monique Ianella pushing forward, Emily Aston in the Wanderers goal was forced into action several times early in the match. With a 0-0 scoreline at the break, the tempo lifted with Elizabeth Ray-Thatcher increasing her work rate in the middle of the park for the remainder of the game. A clean strike, during the second half, from the left caused jubilation in the Wanderers’ camp and Villa left to regroup for next week.
Goal scorers:
Wanderers – J White
City 4 d Palace 0
Once the nerves settled, both teams played a determined quality match. Despite several moves forward by Imogen Pratt, Palace were unable to convert due to the consistent City defence marshalled by Emily Birch and Meg Walters. Ashlae Pilven worked diligently in the backline for Palace and sought her midfielders with long range clearances. Conceding an own goal in the first half lifted Palace however a lack of numbers on the park proved telling during the second half, with three City goals slotted home.
Goal scorers:
City – J Stephenson 3, Own goal 1
County 3 d Millicent 0 (forfeit)
Despite a lack of registered players, Millicent were keen to play their first home game on the weekend. Knowing the game would result in a forfeit, both teams took to the park for a high spirited, high quality match impressing coaches and spectators alike with all involved looking forward to a complete squad for the rematch later in the year.
The Junior Development Squad seems to expand weekly, with an 8-a-side match resulting on Saturday. Simone Morony proved an asset for her side, with strong throw ins and the ability to cross the ball into danger. Alyssa Leggett was the huge improver this week, scoring several goals due to her ability to intercept and finish well. Whilst Zara Hunt is only new to the sport, her capacity to read play and tackle in defence shows great potential for a future champion. This new crop of players for the league will have coaches lining up to recruit these girls in a few years time.
This week’s games sees three Under 14 matches played at Blue Lake Sports Park for the first time. Villa host Millicent and City will play Wanderers at noon, while Palace take on County at 1.30pm. Also at 1.30pm, Villa meet Millicent in the senior fixture, followed by 3pm matches of Wanderers v County and Palace v United. City seniors take the drive across the border to Portland in Portland’s first home fixture of the year.
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