Saturday 7/1/12 Ashford 1st XI 1 v Sunbury, Walton & Weybridge Hawks 1st XI 1

Full of New Year enthusiasm after the inevitable excesses of Christmas, Ashford ladies 1’s faced Sunbury at home in a friendly on Saturday. With only 11 available players and having to call up last minute replacement GK Sarah Jacob, Ashford started slowly against a strong Sunbury side before gaining their composure.
Ashford’s changed but experienced defensive line-up of Kim Fry, Emma Hynes, Tracey Holland and Wendy Baker were tested early on by the speed of the Sunbury forwards, but held firm as a result of strong tackles and close marking. Keeper Jacob’s kept the score at 0-0 when she nonchalantly shrugged a powerful shot over the goal with her shoulder!

Good linking play between the defence and midfield unit of Rasna Sandhu, Nicky Bennedict, Clare Emmerton and Jacqui Bashford helped Ashford get back into the game, creating opportunities for the forwards Maria Cavila and Lynne Morgan to run onto balls and put the Sunbury defence under pressure. As a result short corners were won but Ashford were unable to make their chances count. Sunbury took a 1-0 lead into half time when they took a quick long corner, drove into the D and a strong shot a goal just beat the keeper.

Sunbury came out strong in the second half pushing players forward forcing Ashford to re-group and work hard at man-marking which was successful as they were unable to make the pressure and possession tell.

Again Jacob’s kept Ashford in the game when a Sunbury shot from the top of the D was tipped over with her left hand. Ashford then managed to take possession of the ball and create chances of their own. They had further short corner chances but Sunbury’s keeper kept the shots out.
Then Ashford demonstrated a classic passing move that started from Holland in defence to Benedict onto Sandhu back to Benedict slipping the ball to Cavilla who drove down the line and crossed the ball into the D onto the waiting stick of Bashford whose strong touch took the ball past the keeper to equalise.
With only minutes go Ashford kept out further Sunbury chances so that the game finished 1-1, a pleasing result and even more pleasing periods of good play. Man of the match was unanimously awarded to keeper Sarah Jacob. Thanks are also due to umpires John hillman (AHC) and Ian Howe (SWWH).

AHC: S. Jacobs, K. Fry, T. Holland, E. Hynes, W. Baker, R. Sandhu, N Bennedict, C. Emmerton, J. Bashford (Captain), M. Cavilla, L. Morgan

Report written by Jacqui Bashford