HAMPSHIRE CUP 1ST ROUND

GOSPORT BOROUGH v CHRISTCHURCH

MATCH RESULT: 4 - 2

Christchurch entered the game on the back of 2 wins and hoping to make it 3 in a row. However right from the whistle Gosport took the game to Christchurch creating a few chances within the first 5 mins. Saves from Mason, especially one low to her right ensured that Gosport did not get off to a flyer. Christchurch responded with Warne breaking the offside trap to run onto a through ball form Stickley but shooting wide. Gosport broke the deadlock after 15 mins and maintained the pressure to score 2 more in the next 15 mins. Christchurch were struggling to maintain possession or put pressure on the Gosport players, but with 8 minutes left in the first half Christchurch raised their work rate created a few chances that saw a through ball from Devlin to Madkour who rounded the Gosport keeper to draw one back. Christchurch came out after half time 3-1 down and realising that they had to up their work rate to get themselves back into the game. Improved performances from Devlin and Awdas in the middle of midfield saw Christchurch increase their possession and create a number of chances. None though that caused the Gosport keeper much trouble. Christchurch kept pushing and finally were rewarded when Awdas combing well Devlin was able to play a ball in behind the Gosport defence for Stickley to beat the keeper and pass into an empty net. With the score at 3-2 Christchurch were looking the more likely of the teams to score again so taking the tie into extra time, but a Gosport counter attack in the final 5 mins extended the margin to 2 goals again taking the game out of Christchurch’s reach.

Christchurch were disappointed with exiting the cup in the first round but recognising that they had left themselves too much to do in the second half.

Christchurch: Mason, Gossling, Vincent, Toal, Payne, Madkour, Awdas, Devlin, Curtin, Stickley, Warne, Weir, Maierhofer

By Iain Bowker

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY WOMEN'S FOOTBALL LEAGUE DIVISION 1

PORTSMOUTH UNIVERSITY RESERVES v CHRISTCHURCH

MATCH RESULT: 3 - 0

Christchurch started off well considering a number of injuries meant some players were not in their preferred positions. Portsmouth scored an early goal from a through ball with their striker running onto the ball and beating Mason in goal in a 1 on 1. Christchurch kept battling with good build up play through Payne down the left along with Kretz, Nilson, and Awdas in midfield meant Christchurch started to create a number of chances. Awdas had a good shot on goal but was denied by a good save by the Portsmouth keeper. Further shots by Bailey and Weir tested the keeper further. Portsmouth Uni scored their second with a good strike form the edge of the area that found the top right corner. Christchurch kept their heads up and great defending from Gossling and some fine saves by Mason meant the score was only 2-0 at half time. In the 2nd half Stickley and Weir kept good pressure up front and Christchurch started to pass the ball around well and having more of the possession but without being able to really test the Portsmouth Uni keeper further. Portsmouth Uni then scored a 3rd from a speculative 35 yard shot that dropped just under the crossbar to kill of the win and take all 3 points.

Christchurch: Mason, Gossling, Vincent, Toal, Payne, Kretz, Awda, Nilson, Bailey, Stickley, Weir

By Demi Curtin

HAMPSHIRE LADIES CUP ROUND 2

CHRISTCHURCH v MUDEFORD PHOENIX

MATCH RESULT: 5 - 4

GOAL SCORERS: ROBINSON (2), WARNE (3)

A fantastic day for football and a fantastic match for everyone involved. Christchurch started brightly and played good football with the forwards looking to get on the end of good through balls, however Robinson scored an excellent goal going round two defenders to slot home for Church. Nine minutes later Charlotte Warne intercepted a backpass and finished well. Things were looking good for Christchurch in this derby game. However a spirited Mudeford had their chances with the wind at their backs and a couple of quick goals from defensive lapses made the score level. Christchurch failed to awaken from their malaise and despite having several chances to clear Mudeford added a third very quickly. A rather flat finish to the half followed.

Only two minutes in to the second half and Phoenix poked in a fourth as Christchurch started sluggishly. Time for a change and the excellent Laura Gilbert came on for her first game after injury and produced an exhilerating display. A rejuvenated Church cut the deficit as Robinson rounded the keeper to tap in. A few minutes later and Warne rounds the keeper as well to get her second of the game as well. 4-4 and over 30 mintes to play. Stickley was added up front and held the ball up well and linked the play. However Warne later followed a through ball and charged down the keeper with the rebound going in for her hat trick. It was one way traffic now and Christchurch could have had a hatful with Gosling and Devlin terrorising the right hand side of the field. Resolute defending and great goalkeeping from the reserve keeper after the starting goalie was sent off for bringing down Warne after she skipped past her kept the score respectable.

Christchurch Mason, Weir, Vincent, Toal, Gosling, Devlin, Robinson, Gilbert, Nilsen, Warne, Awdas, Stickley, Madkour

By Mark Lowe

Friendly

Christchurch v AECC

Match Result: 3 - 3

Christchurch playing good quick two touch football in an around AECC half however on counter attacks AECC also look dangerous. Hard work paid off when Christchurch got off the mark after 20 minutes through Madkour. A few wide shots from Christchurch came in before the half time whistle but nothing else to beat the AECC keeper.

Second half and Christchurch were caught on the back foot with AECC scoring twice in the first 10 minutes after the break to go 2-1 up. Just as Christchurch started to get on top AECC scored again against the run of play to make it 3-1. Christchurch kept calm and were rewarded with a goal in the 80th minute again from Madkour to make it 3-2 to AECC with 10 minutes to go. Christchurch kept pressing and their hard work paid off as they pulled one back to make through a headed finish from Stickley. With five minutes to go it was anyone's game. Christchurch continued to work hard and with AECC tiring looked like they may pinch it but AECC were able to hold on for a draw. Both teams work hard and both played some fantastic football.

Christchurch: Weir, Payne, Mason, Gossling, Gomez, Devlin, Curtin, Madkour, Awdas, Stickley, Maierhofer, Robinson

Abbie Awdas

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY WOMENS LEAGUE 1

QK SOUTHAMPTON v CHRISTCHURCH

MATCH RESULT: 7 - 1

A visit to QK Southampton is always eagerly anticipated and this one didn’t disappoint, physical opponents, plenty of goals and the sunshine always makes things better.
QK started off quickly and caught Christchurch off guard with a goal in the first 2 minutes via a long ball and a finish into the bottom right corner. QK continued to press and keep the pressure on Christchurch threatening goal on a few more occasions. After a few minutes the game started to even out and Christchurch build up pressure, with Warne, Nilsen and Awdas all threatening the goal. QK then stepped up another gear and scored 4 goals one being a tap in, one a penalty and the third and fourth finished into the top right corner from balls played over the top. Christchurch pushed before half time and were rewarded with a well deserved goal from Weir shooting from the edge of the area and finding the bottom left corner.

HALF TIME 5-1

Half time substitution saw Weir replaced by Toal
QK came out strong after the break and were rewarded when the ref awarded a free kick and a goal was scored directly from this. At 56 minutes Christchurch came close again, a corner came in from Stickley and Warne climbed high and headed just wide. Minutes later Madkour went on a mazy run passing 4 QK players and got a shot off which was saved by the Goal keeper. QK were pressing and Christchurch was really being tested. Second half goal keeper Mason made several vital saves but was unable to do anything about QK 7th when they beat the offside trap to go through and score. For the last quarter of the game Christchurch deserved a goal or two creating numerous chances and looking the more energetic with the introduction of Kretz on 65 mins for Warne and Gomez on 70 mins for Nilsen. The score line was not reflective of the game, a valiant effort by the Christchurch girls!

Christchurch: Stickley, Payne, Mason, Weir, Gossling, Madkour, Devlin, Awdas, Curtin, Warne, Nilsen, Toal, Kretz, Gomez

Hannah Vincent

HAMPSHIRE COUNTY WOMENS DIVISION 1

CHRISTCHURCH v PORSTMOUTH UNIVERSITY

MATCH RESULT: 3 - 2

After a friendly game last week against the AECC team Christchurch were looking to develop the positive aspects of last week’s draw.

Christchurch continued their upbeat play with high tempo from the start against the Portsmouth University side, Christchurch dominated much of the possession and the hard work quickly paid off in the 23rd minute with a crossed ball from Madkour and a goal finished with precision by Warne. Christchurch then took their foot off the pedal, enabling Portsmouth to fight back. Portsmouth then started to move the ball around quickly in the middle of the pitch and then playing wide, this tactic eventually paid off with the university side drawing one back.
Warne and Stickley nearly got lucky on several inaccurate quickly taken short goal kicks from the opposition and were unlucky not to convert these opportunities. Portsmouth still playing with confidence scored a second goal just before half time.

After half time Christchurch knew that the game was there for them to win but they would need to pick up the tempo and play as they had been before Portsmouth scored their first goal. The university side continued to use their wide players but Gossling and Payne remained solid in defence putting in many successful tackles to cut off the runs down the line. Warne then made a run which saw her take the ball around four members of the opposition before beating the keeper and scoring a well deserved goal for Chistchurch in the 70th minute.

This goal further boosted playing confidence for Christchurch and the ball rarely crossed into their own half. In the 85th minute Awdas seized the opportunity to secure a goal from 25 yards leaving the Portsmouth’s goalkeeper unable to save the ball as it powered into the top left corner. Christchurch were able to hold onto the lead in the remaining 5 minutes for a well deserved win.

Christchurch: Weir, Gossling, Mason, Toal, Payne, Madkour, Gomez, Awdas, Curtin, Warne, Stickley

Amber Madkour

The ladies reached the half way point in their season on Sunday of what is being a challenging year with them still looking for their first league win. Having finished mid table at the end of last season the ladies have gone through a large change in personnel resulting in only 4 players in this year’s squad remaining from last year. This in the main has been down to a large number of players going off to university as well as losing a few to injury, illness and changing personal circumstances. Therefore the ladies had a brand new squad going into the 2010/11 season with players moving up from Christchurch Girls U16, the first time the club has had players progress through from U12’s to the senior side, as well as the Twynham Rangers ladies team moving across to play for Christchurch. This obviously takes time to for such a large number of players to gel and start playing well together but we are starting to see what they are capable of in the last few games and are hoping for improved results in the second half of the season. It is also a large step up in standard for a number of players having being playing junior football or in Div 4 last season and with 75% of the squad being eligible to play for a U18 side if there was one in ladies football it is taking time to adjust to the increased speed and physical nature of the game.

Along with the new players the ladies have also had Mark Lowe move across with the Twynham Rangers team to become Assistant Manager and Sally Fell moving up from Christchurch U16 to help out with the coaching. The extra help is very appreciated by manager Iain Bowker. Sally also ran for the first part of the season the Reserve team till it had to be withdrawn as player numbers fell due to a number of changing circumstances within the squad. The reserve though did win 2 of the 5 games that they played.

There has been success with the team still in the League Cup following their 8-2 victory over Salisbury Res when things starting to ‘click’ for the first time with the ladies playing good passing football especially on the counter attack. The ladies have also seen 6 players selected to representative sides, Sarah Stocker and Abbie Awdas for Dorset U18 and Kate Guthrie, Hannah Vincent Ruby Lowe and Charlotte Warne for Hampshire U18 along with Amber Madkour reaching the final selection round for the England University squad.

Going into the second half of the season the ladies are hoping to continue in the cup, improving their league form and gain the results that there last few performances have deserved.

Hampshire County Women’s League Div 1

Match Result: 0 - 2

Christchurch: Reed, Fell, Vincent, Toal, Russell, Madkour, Stocker, Warne, Devlin, Lowe, Guthrie, Skew, Lawrence, Weir

The ladies were pleased to get a game in on Sunday, their first since early December, and were up for starting the New Year off on a high. Christchurch started positively trying to get the ball down and play it around with success down the right flank with Madkour and Warne combining well. It was through this combination that Christchurch made their best chance with Madkour crossing from the right only for the Shanklin keeping getting a finger tip to it to divert it away from 3 waiting Christchurch players. Christchurch continued to pressure Shanklin with both Lowe and Devlin stretching their defence but without being able to create any clear chances. Christchurch’s defence was quite comfortable with what Shanklin could offer with Reed in goal controlling her defence and initiating moves from the back. Christchurch went into half time feeling that the game was there for them to take in the second half. It did not however start well with Shanklin scoring from 20 yards with a well struck shot to the bottom right corner. Christchurch tried to lift their game and respond but 10 minutes later a speculative looping shot from 30 yards dropped under the bar putting Shanklin 2 -0 up. Christchurch tried to rally with Stocker in the centre of midfield covering a lot of ground before the game became scrappy with no further clear chances for either team. Christchurch were disappointed with the result feeling that the game had been there for them to take especially in the first half.

Christchurch v Eastleigh

Match Result: 4 - 4

Christchurch went into their home game against Eastleigh with confidence knowing a win was easily on the cards. However, the game didn’t start as planned. With a re-shuffled team from injuries and a few new faces, Christchurch’s normally solid defence had a hard time against the pacey Eastleigh strikers. Eastleigh managed to work the ball around well and scored 4 before the half time whistle, with Christchurch not being able to reply. Christchurch did however have a few good chances, with Amber Madkour and Polly Wardle breaking through but for the defenders to track back and make last ditch tackles. Christchurch came out from half time with nothing to lose and knowing they had to throw everything forward to get anything out of the game. With the midfield of Tilly, Madkour, Bailey and Knight playing the ball around well, a cross from the right came from Wheal for Wardle to get on the end of and get one back for Christchurch. This raised the confidence of Christchurch, who continued to play the ball around well and with a poor back pass from an Eastleigh defender, Wardle chased onto the ball to beat the goalkeeper and last defender on the line to make it 4-2. Eastleigh then started to raise their game again and got a corner from working the ball around well. However stand in Christchurch keeper, Hayley Devlin caught the ball and kicked a long field ball to give an assist for Wardle to get on the end and slot past the Eastleigh keeper to make it 4-3. The comeback was now on and with only 10minutes left Christchurch were pushing everyone forward to try and get the equaliser. The defence of Burch, Foord, Whitehouse and Russell were once again solid and not letting anything through. It was again from an Eastleigh corner that Christchurch launched their attack. Another great catch from Devlin in goal, released the ball long up field to Wardle who caught the ball perfectly on volley to hit home across the goalkeeper and get her 4th of the game. It was now 4-4 and Christchurch had done the unthinkable. However it was not over yet. With 5 minutes left Christchurch could have easily won the game with Madkour endlessly running down the left, and with more clinical finishing Wardle could have won it for Christchurch when intercepting another poor Eastleigh back pass. However, Christchurch can take a lot of positives from the game. With great second half performances from everyone Christchurch will be looking to take these forward into their final game of the season and a return game against Eastleigh in a few weeks time.

Squad: H. Devlin, R. Buckland, C. Burch, A. Foord, L. Russell, K. Wheal, S. Tilly, A. Madkour, V. Bailey, P. Wardle, A. Moody.
 


Subs used: C. Whitehouse, H. Fell, B. Knight.