PERFORMANCE OF THE SEASON FOR ROSES

The Roses faced Anstey Nomads for the first time in league competition, only previously playing against one another in an end of season tournament.

A good venue for football at Loughborough Grammar School and the pitches held up well from recent rain.

A good warm up followed with a detailed team talk and an honest conversation about the effort required, the Roses had a full squad to choose from.

It was a strong start from the Roses with Anstey testing a few balls through but stopped with a strong tackle from Esme and later Lenna stepped in when 1v1 to get across the attacker and dribble it out calmly keeping possession.

At the other end Kayleigh tested the keeper first, a shot which was curling towards top bins was pushed out for a corner, it may have had to much swaz on it but the keeper had to make sure. Ellie was causing havoc running from deep and played a few good balls into Kate supporting from the right hand side.

Tilly and Sophie were holding midfield well, working really hard and later replaced by Lily and Evie who did the same.

Chloe G led by example, a ball into the opposition corner, she chased it down and won the ball playing back to Kiri who found Lily but her shot didn’t have the required power.

Towards the end of the half Chloe G and Ellie had an effort from inside the box saved and pushed out for a corner and then Kate and Chloe G were involved in a goal mouth scramble.

Anstey did threaten a few times in the half and Lyla had to be alert to jump on some through balls showing bravery at the feet of the attacker.

Everything else was dealt with by the defence. Caris was marking the Anstey forward well and nicking the ball to stop attacks, she does this really well and pleasing to see her with some good link up with Katie on the right as she got up and down showing great energy.

In the second half, the Roses still probed for goals. Evie hit a shot from 18 yards which knocked the defender off her feet. Moments later the ball hit the referee, so a drop ball from 22 yards was not contested by Anstey and Ellie hit a looping shot over the keeper, a great strike.

Lauren was having a good second half on the ball and after some early hesitance 1v1, she started to pressure the opposition also. Chloe B worked really hard and made a nice turn and pass outside to keep possession. She later had an opportunity after some brilliant work from Ellie down the right but she couldn’t get enough power on the shot. Ellie played Chloe G in on goal twice but the ball just didn’t fall kindly.

In the final five minutes Anstey threatened to score, firstly they poked the ball wide when through on goal and then managed to find an equaliser right near the end when getting 1v1 and finishing under the onrushing Lyla.

In this game, everyone raised their levels. We now know what the girls are capable of as this was their performance of the season and we left frustrated with a point when three was so deserved. We tried a new unorthodox formation which worked well as everyone carried out their roles really well. The team used the ball well, keeping possession, passing with purpose and building the attacks.

Players of the Match - U15 Roses

It was a real team performance, individual shoutouts to Ellie and Katie, who were exceptional and everyone else played their part so it was only right we awarded everyone Player of the Match as recognition for their efforts.