28th October 2019
CTLFC Reserves 0
Almondsbury 1
Goalscorers:
Cheltenham:
Almondsbury: Hales 45+’
Cheltenham Town Ladies Development took a break from league football, as they hosted Almondsbury Women in the Bristol SoccerWorld Cup at Tewkesbury School.
The game was an almost carbon copy repeat of the last meeting between the two teams with a closely fought contest ending in a slim margin – just a single goal in it.
It was a close affair right from the off with both teams enjoying spells of possession with the ball but it was the visitors who took the lead in the first half, after a free kick was recycled back into the danger area and evaded everyone to nestle into the far corner.
The visitors then looked to defend their one goal lead, parking up just outside the box and absorbing any threat The Robins posed like a sponge.
Any Almondsbury advance was dealt with by the superb young centre-back partnership of Elle-Mae Simpson and Nicole Sullivan, with a combined age of 36 at the heart of the defence, with Anna Symanowski and Amie Boyce (pictured), both even younger, providing support from fullback, putting in a performance beyond their years, limiting Almondsbury’s chances on Alyta Norman’s goal.
At the other end, Holly Fenton, Naomii Marshall, Hannah Marshall and Diana Toth offered threats but struggled to break down a resilient defence.
Any way through that was found was met by the superb Almondsbury goalkeeper, who has won so many points for her team the season, acting as the much used last defence, a player they truly cannot afford to lose.
Late in the game, however, controversy arose as the goalkeeper was involved in a coming-together with Caitlin Marron as both competed for the ball, however the referee was quick to wave away suggestions of a foul.
With the match official deciding that only 40 minutes each way was acceptable, the referee brought a close but thrilling encounter to a close to round off a frustrating day for the Robins Reserves.
Cheltenham: A. Norman, A. Symanowski, E. Simpson, N. Sullivan, A. Boyce, H. Galpin, B. Young, H. Fenton, N. Marshall, D. Toth, H. Marshall.
