winning ways at Wigton
Wigton Moor Gala report
On Saturday 23rd June 2007, the girls of Crosspool Juniors Under 9s travelled to Wigton Moor to take part in their Gala.
Most of the Crosspool girls had been to the Wigton Moor ground a few weeks previously, for a friendly match that finished 2-2, although Crosspool had been without captain Eleanor Goodwin that day. Wigton have a great little ground in the leafy Alwoodley suburb of Leeds (not far from Roundhey), complete with a clubhouse serving bacon butties, tea & coffee, etc. This was clearly a substantial event, but since it was split over 3 days the facilities were well able to cope.
There were 6 teams contesting the Under 9 Girls competition: Crosspool, Wigton Moor, Kirkburton, Lumley Ladies and two Farsley Celtic teams (Girls & Foxes). Since they were all West Riding teams (apart from Lumley, who had travelled down from County Durham), they were unknown quantities to us apart from Wigton, whom we knew to be a strong team, although we had played Kirkburton’s Under 10s and beaten them in a futsal competition a few weeks ago.
We played Farsley Celtic Girls first. This proved to be a good way to start the day, as the Farsley teams were mostly Under 8s, although they had played last season in the West Riding U9 league. The Crosspool girls played very well in the first match and beat Farsley Girls 5-0, with goals coming from Sam, Eleanor (two) and Lucia. The Farsley girls played the game in a great spirit and never gave up, but couldn’t match the Crosspool girls.
Next up were the other Farsley team, the Foxes, who were despatched 2-0 with both goals scored by Sam. Again the Farsley girls played well and showed a fine attitude, but the Crosspool girls were now looking a little off their best, with very little of the fine passing and use of space that marks this Crosspool team out when it is playing at its best.
It was becoming clear from the other results that the teams that were the real threat were Wigton and Kirkburton, and Kirkburton were next for the Crosspool girls. This was a real battle, with Kirkburton proving a strong and well organised team who played with a real physical presence. In particular, they had a girl wearing 15 who was an absolute dynamo – up and down the pitch non-stop, putting in strong challenges (somewhat over-firm at times, but not in a nasty way) and playing with real purpose and ability. In this match she was up against Sam Tierney much of the time, and this was a real battle of contrasts. Each of the two players had her moments in this contest, but it was Sam who had the last word on this occasion, scoring the only goal of the game. Again, Crosspool were not at their best, but did just about enough to justify the 1-0 win.
The fourth match of the league stage saw Crosspool taking on Lumley, and again Crosspool were not really firing on all cylinders, although a goal in each half from Katie and Megan gave them the victory.
The final match of the league stage was against Wigton, with the winner taking top spot and the loser settling for second, and a tough semi-final against Kirkburton. The Crosspool girls were very much below par in the first half and conceded their first goal of the Gala to the very good Wigton side. This seemed to fire up our girls a little and in the second period Crosspool were camped in the Wigton half, but Wigton defended too well and no further goals were scored. A first defeat, and perhaps a costly one!
The first semi-final was Crosspool v Kirkburton, and the West Riding girls came roaring out for this match! If they’d seemed like a good side the first time we’d played them, this time they were a real handful. Their coach had obviously got them well fired up, and it was fortunate that the Crosspool girls finally (perhaps in response) started to really show some of what they were capable of. The Kirkburton number 15 was now duelling alternately with Sam and with Eleanor, and both Crosspool girls gave as good as they got. The battle with Eleanor in particular was really fascinating to watch, with little quarter given by either girl. Both teams played much better than they had in the first match, and it has to be said that Kirkburton will probably feel, with some justice, that they had the better of the game this time. However, the difference between the teams was a fantastic strike by Eleanor in extra time for the only goal of the game, and a great performance in goal by Megan, including one particularly vital save.
In the other semi-final Wigton were pushed hard by Farsley Celtic Girls, who played the best game they’d played all day, but lost by the odd goal in extra time. It was apparent that Farsley and Wigton are fierce local rivals, and the Farsley girls and parents had really wanted to give Wigton a fight. That, they surely did do!
So, the final was to be (as we had suspected at the start might be the case) Crosspool against the home team, Wigton Moor. Crosspool were now fired up, believed they had had the better of the previous meeting between the teams, and had the advantage of having played their semi-final before the Wigton girls played theirs. The Wigton girls, on the other hand, knew from the league stage that they could beat Crosspool.
Fortunately, although the Wigton girls played well, the Crosspool girls were now playing at their full capacity, and two cracking goals, one from Sam and one from Eleanor, gave us the trophy 2-0.
This was a very enjoyable, well run Gala, and with the rain unexpectedly holding off all day, a great time was had by all. The Crosspool team was: Megan Crehan, Laura Ridal, Ayesha Khan, Lucia Wood-Bonelli, Lucy Cousins, Katie Plush, Eleanor Goodwin, Sam Tierney. All the girls had their moments. Ayesha made some great tackles and also distributed the ball well across the back of midfield, Laura played her usual rock-solid game as the last line of defence, Lucia played well in various positions, and continued to suggest that she will be a fine addition to the team for next season, Katie showed some fine wing play and Lucy tackled well and played some great passes. Special mentions this time go to Sam Tierney and Eleanor Goodwin for excellent determined play, and 9 goals between them, and to Megan Crehan for two vital clean sheets in goal for the semi-final and the final.
Full results:
Crosspool Juniors 5-0 Farsley Celtic Girls
Farsley Celtic Foxes 0-1 Kirkburton Girls
Lumley Ladies 0-2 Wigton Moor
Crosspool Juniors 2-0 Farsley Celtic Foxes
Farsley Celtic Girls 0-0 Lumley Ladies
Wigton Moor 1-1 Kirkburton Girls
Lumley Ladies 1-1 Farsley Celtic Foxes
Crosspool Juniors 1-0 Kirkburton Girls
Farsley Celtic Girls 0-2 Wigton Moor
Crosspool Juniors 2-0 Lumley Ladies
Wigton Moor 4-0 Farsley Celtic Foxes
Farsley Celtic Girls 0-2 Kirkburton Girls
Crosspool Juniors 0-1 Wigton Moor
Lumley Ladies 0-2 Kirkburton Girls
Farsley Celtic Girls 1-0 Farsley Celtic Foxes
Final standings after league stage:
Wigton Moor Pld 5 won 4 drawn 1 for 10 against 1 Pts: 13
Crosspool Juniors Pld 5 won 4 lost 1 for 10 against 1 Pts: 12
Kirkburton Girls Pld 5 won 3 drawn 1 lost 1 for 6 against 2 Pts: 10
Farsley Celtic Girls Pld 5 won 1 drawn 1 lost 3 for 1 against 9 Pts: 4
Lumley Ladies Pld 5 won 0 drawn 2 lost 3 for 1 against 7 Pts: 2
Farsley Celtic Foxes Pld 5 won 0 drawn 1 lost 4 for 1 against 9 Pts: 1
Semi-finals:
Crosspool Juniors 1-0aet Kirkburton Girls
Farsley Celtic Girls 0-1aet Wigton Moor
Final:
Crosspool Juniors 2-0 Wigton Moor
On Saturday 23rd June 2007, the girls of Crosspool Juniors Under 9s travelled to Wigton Moor to take part in their Gala.
Most of the Crosspool girls had been to the Wigton Moor ground a few weeks previously, for a friendly match that finished 2-2, although Crosspool had been without captain Eleanor Goodwin that day. Wigton have a great little ground in the leafy Alwoodley suburb of Leeds (not far from Roundhey), complete with a clubhouse serving bacon butties, tea & coffee, etc. This was clearly a substantial event, but since it was split over 3 days the facilities were well able to cope.
There were 6 teams contesting the Under 9 Girls competition: Crosspool, Wigton Moor, Kirkburton, Lumley Ladies and two Farsley Celtic teams (Girls & Foxes). Since they were all West Riding teams (apart from Lumley, who had travelled down from County Durham), they were unknown quantities to us apart from Wigton, whom we knew to be a strong team, although we had played Kirkburton’s Under 10s and beaten them in a futsal competition a few weeks ago.
We played Farsley Celtic Girls first. This proved to be a good way to start the day, as the Farsley teams were mostly Under 8s, although they had played last season in the West Riding U9 league. The Crosspool girls played very well in the first match and beat Farsley Girls 5-0, with goals coming from Sam, Eleanor (two) and Lucia. The Farsley girls played the game in a great spirit and never gave up, but couldn’t match the Crosspool girls.
Next up were the other Farsley team, the Foxes, who were despatched 2-0 with both goals scored by Sam. Again the Farsley girls played well and showed a fine attitude, but the Crosspool girls were now looking a little off their best, with very little of the fine passing and use of space that marks this Crosspool team out when it is playing at its best.
It was becoming clear from the other results that the teams that were the real threat were Wigton and Kirkburton, and Kirkburton were next for the Crosspool girls. This was a real battle, with Kirkburton proving a strong and well organised team who played with a real physical presence. In particular, they had a girl wearing 15 who was an absolute dynamo – up and down the pitch non-stop, putting in strong challenges (somewhat over-firm at times, but not in a nasty way) and playing with real purpose and ability. In this match she was up against Sam Tierney much of the time, and this was a real battle of contrasts. Each of the two players had her moments in this contest, but it was Sam who had the last word on this occasion, scoring the only goal of the game. Again, Crosspool were not at their best, but did just about enough to justify the 1-0 win.
The fourth match of the league stage saw Crosspool taking on Lumley, and again Crosspool were not really firing on all cylinders, although a goal in each half from Katie and Megan gave them the victory.
The final match of the league stage was against Wigton, with the winner taking top spot and the loser settling for second, and a tough semi-final against Kirkburton. The Crosspool girls were very much below par in the first half and conceded their first goal of the Gala to the very good Wigton side. This seemed to fire up our girls a little and in the second period Crosspool were camped in the Wigton half, but Wigton defended too well and no further goals were scored. A first defeat, and perhaps a costly one!
The first semi-final was Crosspool v Kirkburton, and the West Riding girls came roaring out for this match! If they’d seemed like a good side the first time we’d played them, this time they were a real handful. Their coach had obviously got them well fired up, and it was fortunate that the Crosspool girls finally (perhaps in response) started to really show some of what they were capable of. The Kirkburton number 15 was now duelling alternately with Sam and with Eleanor, and both Crosspool girls gave as good as they got. The battle with Eleanor in particular was really fascinating to watch, with little quarter given by either girl. Both teams played much better than they had in the first match, and it has to be said that Kirkburton will probably feel, with some justice, that they had the better of the game this time. However, the difference between the teams was a fantastic strike by Eleanor in extra time for the only goal of the game, and a great performance in goal by Megan, including one particularly vital save.
In the other semi-final Wigton were pushed hard by Farsley Celtic Girls, who played the best game they’d played all day, but lost by the odd goal in extra time. It was apparent that Farsley and Wigton are fierce local rivals, and the Farsley girls and parents had really wanted to give Wigton a fight. That, they surely did do!
So, the final was to be (as we had suspected at the start might be the case) Crosspool against the home team, Wigton Moor. Crosspool were now fired up, believed they had had the better of the previous meeting between the teams, and had the advantage of having played their semi-final before the Wigton girls played theirs. The Wigton girls, on the other hand, knew from the league stage that they could beat Crosspool.
Fortunately, although the Wigton girls played well, the Crosspool girls were now playing at their full capacity, and two cracking goals, one from Sam and one from Eleanor, gave us the trophy 2-0.
This was a very enjoyable, well run Gala, and with the rain unexpectedly holding off all day, a great time was had by all. The Crosspool team was: Megan Crehan, Laura Ridal, Ayesha Khan, Lucia Wood-Bonelli, Lucy Cousins, Katie Plush, Eleanor Goodwin, Sam Tierney. All the girls had their moments. Ayesha made some great tackles and also distributed the ball well across the back of midfield, Laura played her usual rock-solid game as the last line of defence, Lucia played well in various positions, and continued to suggest that she will be a fine addition to the team for next season, Katie showed some fine wing play and Lucy tackled well and played some great passes. Special mentions this time go to Sam Tierney and Eleanor Goodwin for excellent determined play, and 9 goals between them, and to Megan Crehan for two vital clean sheets in goal for the semi-final and the final.
Full results:
Crosspool Juniors 5-0 Farsley Celtic Girls
Farsley Celtic Foxes 0-1 Kirkburton Girls
Lumley Ladies 0-2 Wigton Moor
Crosspool Juniors 2-0 Farsley Celtic Foxes
Farsley Celtic Girls 0-0 Lumley Ladies
Wigton Moor 1-1 Kirkburton Girls
Lumley Ladies 1-1 Farsley Celtic Foxes
Crosspool Juniors 1-0 Kirkburton Girls
Farsley Celtic Girls 0-2 Wigton Moor
Crosspool Juniors 2-0 Lumley Ladies
Wigton Moor 4-0 Farsley Celtic Foxes
Farsley Celtic Girls 0-2 Kirkburton Girls
Crosspool Juniors 0-1 Wigton Moor
Lumley Ladies 0-2 Kirkburton Girls
Farsley Celtic Girls 1-0 Farsley Celtic Foxes
Final standings after league stage:
Wigton Moor Pld 5 won 4 drawn 1 for 10 against 1 Pts: 13
Crosspool Juniors Pld 5 won 4 lost 1 for 10 against 1 Pts: 12
Kirkburton Girls Pld 5 won 3 drawn 1 lost 1 for 6 against 2 Pts: 10
Farsley Celtic Girls Pld 5 won 1 drawn 1 lost 3 for 1 against 9 Pts: 4
Lumley Ladies Pld 5 won 0 drawn 2 lost 3 for 1 against 7 Pts: 2
Farsley Celtic Foxes Pld 5 won 0 drawn 1 lost 4 for 1 against 9 Pts: 1
Semi-finals:
Crosspool Juniors 1-0aet Kirkburton Girls
Farsley Celtic Girls 0-1aet Wigton Moor
Final:
Crosspool Juniors 2-0 Wigton Moor