Gastele have spent the season battling against relegation from Division 2b whilst Drakaina have been pushing for promotion. And that was still the case when the two OTF sides kicked off at The Lemon Grove. But whilst the hosts were fifth and The Dragons second, a recent slow down at the top of the table and upturn for Gastele meant there were just three points between them.
It wasn’t all that clear during the first half whether the gap would be growing again and essentially evaporating as the signals were confused. Gastele had the only chance of the period, Odette Diarra drawing a save from Anastasia Shkolnikova on 33 minutes, but the visitors having over 60% possession.
Things became clearer after the break as Jdsx’s charges upped their share of the ball and began to create openings. The first of these was straight from the restart, Fernanda Perdao crashing a powerful curling drive onto the bar. Shkolnikova was called into action again just before the hour when a free-kick was chipped up for Gunilla Melkersson to head, but the stopper warded it off.
Jessica Dickson flashed a powerful long range shot centimetres wide in the 71st minute as Gastele continued to threaten, with Fran Drouer bursting clear and lobbing over Shkolnikova and also the bar five minutes later. The pressure was now coming in waves, a free-kick being dinked for Diarra to half-volley just seconds after Drouer’s chance, but Diarra’s radar was off. That wasn’t the case in the 80th minute though (three minutes after the miss) when she coolly sidefooted home the opener that the glut of chances had made seemed inevitable.
Etienne’s side only had one brief glimpse of goal in the match, which came two minutes after the opener. Susanna Barry was oh-so-close to snatching an undeserved leveller as she burst clear and lobbed Roza Belova only to see the ball drop agonisingly slowly and skim the bar before landing on the roof of the net.
1-0 was not really a fair reflection on Gastele’s dominance of the day, so the Greeks could have few complaints when another cool finish, Veta Luengo carefully placing her header from a corner into, er, the corner of the goal, made it two with 89 on the clock.
That goal ended the game as a contest, both sides walking through stoppage time. The effect on the table was quite dramatic, and also mundane at the same time. The dullness was in terms of positions, the only team to change places being Drakaina, who slipped from second to third on goal difference. The excitement stemming from how ridiculously close things now are – new second place team November Revolution are level on points with Gastele in fifth! The gap above these four teams to leaders FC Sprezzatura is five points, though the Dragons can cut that back to two with a win on Tuesday, whilst the advantage the same sides have over the bottom three is four points, which Gastele will be looking to extend when they visit sixth-placed outfit Chelsea Ladies FC .
There was a lot going on in 2b, and also a fair amount in Division 3e where Viking South Utsira, who sat seventh, travelled to North-West Germany to take on BV Cloppenburg, who were one point and place better off.
It was a must win for both teams, but only Cloppenburg seemed to have got the message as they attack from the opening whistle and caught The Blood Eagles still asleep in their eyrie with a goal in the first 30 seconds. Viking were still in dozy form for the rest of the opening half and fell further behind on 35 minutes.
The second half was better for Velvet Android’s outfit (it could hardly have been worse!), reducing further home chances to just one and getting a goal back on 77 minutes through Emilie Klovning’s burst through and finish. No equaliser was forthcoming though as Viking continued to slump towards relegation.
The Blood Eagles only realistic chance of survival is winning both their remaining games. Which would be great escape if it happened as it would be a remarkable turn-around from their present run of one point from their last five league games. The deep run in the Cup seems to have come at a serious cost…
[b]Coxy Ladies Wulpen[/b, pushing for promotion, hosted relegation battlers Dial L for Ladies on Matchday 12. But after recent reverses, Waders boss Janik was taking nothing for granted about this match-up.
That is why he looked so crestfallen when Aurelie Wostijn’s 11th minute ‘opener’ was waved off by Wanda Rinn. However he shouldn’t have worried as Wostijn was still the first to get her name on the scoresheet, just with a ‘34’ after it as she headed home Jessica Kabasele’s cross.
Wulpen gradually turned up the wick after the break, having more of the ball and creating a steady trickle of chances. Well maybe a bit more than a trickle, though less than a stream. Either way Kabasele turning home the second of the match from a corner in the 79th minute had been presaged by other opportunities for that killer second.
That secured the win which kept Coxy Ladies second in Division 4i. And now just two points behind leaders Spicks Killiettes after the Ayrshire outfit were held to a draw. Which is striking distance for when the teams meet on Matchday 13. However Wulpen also need to look over their shoulders; Cup semi-finalists Busby Babes are just a point adrift of them in third.
Bombay Green Rockets were looking to build upon a big win last week when they visited FC Dench Ladies. And, who knows, maybe get leapfrog themselves into play-off contention with a win over the third-placed side, who were only four points ahead of The Pyrotechnicians.
Or maybe not. Because on this day it was Dench providing the oohs and aahs. The hosts were two ahead by the interval as HKS5’s side struggled to cope with the high flyers. A third just before the hour sealed the deal for the National Treasurers.
Last week bottom side soon-to-be-former AK Heartbreakerz held out until the hour mark before their mid-table foes Allstar 002 made a breakthrough. But surely Mortal Joe’s young charges were not going to manage similar against league leaders Invincible Shaolin? Were they?
The home crowd troop to the Heart Stadium out of obligation. Their side would be behind soon enough. It was just a matter of Shaolin creating some chances. In time. Surely. But not in the first half as the sides reached the interval scoreless and chanceless.
It was even like the hosts had been dominated; possession was 55-45% against only. And now the excitement was growing rapidly, even though the hosts chances of going ahead were hindered by an injury to forward Vivianne Messing, who was replaced by a defender without a goal yet in her career as there was no attacking cover on the bench. And on time ticked. 50 minutes, 55, the hour mark all passed and with it the previous best for the season. 65. 70. 75. 8… Oh No! Finally, cruelly, the visitors lived up to their name by making and taking a chance.
And that was that. Heartbreakerz were not going to score so another defeat was in the books. But if one was looking for green shoots, a 1-0 defeat to a side with 8 wins from 12, and who won the first encounter of the two sides 5-0, is a pretty good sign for the future.
The defeat technically confirmed Heartbreakerz bottom placed finish in Division 5:1 this season. Meanwhile Bombay stay fifth despite their loss as the side a point below, Arsenal LFC, were also beaten.
A vital win last week had boosted LNWR Locomotive survival hopes. Could they do it again at Watergate Bay Surfers to close another three point gap on a side above?
The first half gave grounds for cautious optimism for Steamers boss Viktor Boskovic. His side were in the game, albeit with slightly less of the ball than their hosts. This was still the case as the match passed the hour mark, but the next ten minutes proved to be LNWR’s downfall as they conceded twice.
Injury reduced Watergate to ten players five minutes from time and The Steamers took advantage, midfielder Gia Diana firing home a corner for her first goal after over two complete seasons at the club. However the strike was overdue both in the length of time it had taken Diana to get off the mark in a Locomotive shirt and in its placement in this game as it arrived in the 89th minute. The grandstand finish didn’t really have time to develop.
And with that The Steamers were back to square one as elsewhere Wælcyrie Girls won their match. The Mollington Street side once again find themselves sixth in Division 5:16, three points from safety and having to win their next match.
Ullapool Northern Star were looking to get their play-off push back on track after defeat last week as they travelled to relegation-haunted Murcielago.
But that wouldn’t be how things worked out for Delicatemoth’s side as they turned in a weirdly flat performance. The hosts ran affairs from start to nearly finish. About the only thing for Northern Star to hand their hat on was Murcielago had not turned their dominance into any more than a 1-0 lead as the last ten minutes approached.
That gave an opening, if only Ullapool could get a view of the whites of the posts. Such as the chance that fell Mary-Leslie Mair’s way 10 minutes from time, for example. One she buried with glee. A point utterly stolen was suddenly on their cards. And then it was off again as the hosts were shocked into another flurry and scored again. And this time added a third to build the two-goal cushion they should really have had rather earlier.
Disappointing for the Scots? Yes, very. A disaster that ends their chances? No, not at all. The sides that began the day second and third also lost. DM’s charges have slipped to fifth, but are still only two points from their target of second.
It wasn’t all that clear during the first half whether the gap would be growing again and essentially evaporating as the signals were confused. Gastele had the only chance of the period, Odette Diarra drawing a save from Anastasia Shkolnikova on 33 minutes, but the visitors having over 60% possession.
Things became clearer after the break as Jdsx’s charges upped their share of the ball and began to create openings. The first of these was straight from the restart, Fernanda Perdao crashing a powerful curling drive onto the bar. Shkolnikova was called into action again just before the hour when a free-kick was chipped up for Gunilla Melkersson to head, but the stopper warded it off.
Jessica Dickson flashed a powerful long range shot centimetres wide in the 71st minute as Gastele continued to threaten, with Fran Drouer bursting clear and lobbing over Shkolnikova and also the bar five minutes later. The pressure was now coming in waves, a free-kick being dinked for Diarra to half-volley just seconds after Drouer’s chance, but Diarra’s radar was off. That wasn’t the case in the 80th minute though (three minutes after the miss) when she coolly sidefooted home the opener that the glut of chances had made seemed inevitable.
Etienne’s side only had one brief glimpse of goal in the match, which came two minutes after the opener. Susanna Barry was oh-so-close to snatching an undeserved leveller as she burst clear and lobbed Roza Belova only to see the ball drop agonisingly slowly and skim the bar before landing on the roof of the net.
1-0 was not really a fair reflection on Gastele’s dominance of the day, so the Greeks could have few complaints when another cool finish, Veta Luengo carefully placing her header from a corner into, er, the corner of the goal, made it two with 89 on the clock.
That goal ended the game as a contest, both sides walking through stoppage time. The effect on the table was quite dramatic, and also mundane at the same time. The dullness was in terms of positions, the only team to change places being Drakaina, who slipped from second to third on goal difference. The excitement stemming from how ridiculously close things now are – new second place team November Revolution are level on points with Gastele in fifth! The gap above these four teams to leaders FC Sprezzatura is five points, though the Dragons can cut that back to two with a win on Tuesday, whilst the advantage the same sides have over the bottom three is four points, which Gastele will be looking to extend when they visit sixth-placed outfit Chelsea Ladies FC .
There was a lot going on in 2b, and also a fair amount in Division 3e where Viking South Utsira, who sat seventh, travelled to North-West Germany to take on BV Cloppenburg, who were one point and place better off.
It was a must win for both teams, but only Cloppenburg seemed to have got the message as they attack from the opening whistle and caught The Blood Eagles still asleep in their eyrie with a goal in the first 30 seconds. Viking were still in dozy form for the rest of the opening half and fell further behind on 35 minutes.
The second half was better for Velvet Android’s outfit (it could hardly have been worse!), reducing further home chances to just one and getting a goal back on 77 minutes through Emilie Klovning’s burst through and finish. No equaliser was forthcoming though as Viking continued to slump towards relegation.
The Blood Eagles only realistic chance of survival is winning both their remaining games. Which would be great escape if it happened as it would be a remarkable turn-around from their present run of one point from their last five league games. The deep run in the Cup seems to have come at a serious cost…
[b]Coxy Ladies Wulpen[/b, pushing for promotion, hosted relegation battlers Dial L for Ladies on Matchday 12. But after recent reverses, Waders boss Janik was taking nothing for granted about this match-up.
That is why he looked so crestfallen when Aurelie Wostijn’s 11th minute ‘opener’ was waved off by Wanda Rinn. However he shouldn’t have worried as Wostijn was still the first to get her name on the scoresheet, just with a ‘34’ after it as she headed home Jessica Kabasele’s cross.
Wulpen gradually turned up the wick after the break, having more of the ball and creating a steady trickle of chances. Well maybe a bit more than a trickle, though less than a stream. Either way Kabasele turning home the second of the match from a corner in the 79th minute had been presaged by other opportunities for that killer second.
That secured the win which kept Coxy Ladies second in Division 4i. And now just two points behind leaders Spicks Killiettes after the Ayrshire outfit were held to a draw. Which is striking distance for when the teams meet on Matchday 13. However Wulpen also need to look over their shoulders; Cup semi-finalists Busby Babes are just a point adrift of them in third.
Bombay Green Rockets were looking to build upon a big win last week when they visited FC Dench Ladies. And, who knows, maybe get leapfrog themselves into play-off contention with a win over the third-placed side, who were only four points ahead of The Pyrotechnicians.
Or maybe not. Because on this day it was Dench providing the oohs and aahs. The hosts were two ahead by the interval as HKS5’s side struggled to cope with the high flyers. A third just before the hour sealed the deal for the National Treasurers.
Last week bottom side soon-to-be-former AK Heartbreakerz held out until the hour mark before their mid-table foes Allstar 002 made a breakthrough. But surely Mortal Joe’s young charges were not going to manage similar against league leaders Invincible Shaolin? Were they?
The home crowd troop to the Heart Stadium out of obligation. Their side would be behind soon enough. It was just a matter of Shaolin creating some chances. In time. Surely. But not in the first half as the sides reached the interval scoreless and chanceless.
It was even like the hosts had been dominated; possession was 55-45% against only. And now the excitement was growing rapidly, even though the hosts chances of going ahead were hindered by an injury to forward Vivianne Messing, who was replaced by a defender without a goal yet in her career as there was no attacking cover on the bench. And on time ticked. 50 minutes, 55, the hour mark all passed and with it the previous best for the season. 65. 70. 75. 8… Oh No! Finally, cruelly, the visitors lived up to their name by making and taking a chance.
And that was that. Heartbreakerz were not going to score so another defeat was in the books. But if one was looking for green shoots, a 1-0 defeat to a side with 8 wins from 12, and who won the first encounter of the two sides 5-0, is a pretty good sign for the future.
The defeat technically confirmed Heartbreakerz bottom placed finish in Division 5:1 this season. Meanwhile Bombay stay fifth despite their loss as the side a point below, Arsenal LFC, were also beaten.
A vital win last week had boosted LNWR Locomotive survival hopes. Could they do it again at Watergate Bay Surfers to close another three point gap on a side above?
The first half gave grounds for cautious optimism for Steamers boss Viktor Boskovic. His side were in the game, albeit with slightly less of the ball than their hosts. This was still the case as the match passed the hour mark, but the next ten minutes proved to be LNWR’s downfall as they conceded twice.
Injury reduced Watergate to ten players five minutes from time and The Steamers took advantage, midfielder Gia Diana firing home a corner for her first goal after over two complete seasons at the club. However the strike was overdue both in the length of time it had taken Diana to get off the mark in a Locomotive shirt and in its placement in this game as it arrived in the 89th minute. The grandstand finish didn’t really have time to develop.
And with that The Steamers were back to square one as elsewhere Wælcyrie Girls won their match. The Mollington Street side once again find themselves sixth in Division 5:16, three points from safety and having to win their next match.
Ullapool Northern Star were looking to get their play-off push back on track after defeat last week as they travelled to relegation-haunted Murcielago.
But that wouldn’t be how things worked out for Delicatemoth’s side as they turned in a weirdly flat performance. The hosts ran affairs from start to nearly finish. About the only thing for Northern Star to hand their hat on was Murcielago had not turned their dominance into any more than a 1-0 lead as the last ten minutes approached.
That gave an opening, if only Ullapool could get a view of the whites of the posts. Such as the chance that fell Mary-Leslie Mair’s way 10 minutes from time, for example. One she buried with glee. A point utterly stolen was suddenly on their cards. And then it was off again as the hosts were shocked into another flurry and scored again. And this time added a third to build the two-goal cushion they should really have had rather earlier.
Disappointing for the Scots? Yes, very. A disaster that ends their chances? No, not at all. The sides that began the day second and third also lost. DM’s charges have slipped to fifth, but are still only two points from their target of second.
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