Good things come to those who wait....

Westbury Park Foxes U15 Girls 4

Portishead Town FC 2

(and FA People’s Cup regional winners…)

The "People's Champions" (West region...)

Almost a month had passed since the Foxes’ last league game, the hard fought win against Bradley Stoke. Nevertheless, half of the squad limbered up on Saturday by winning the West region of the BBC/FA People’s Cup, held at the WISE Campus. It wasn’t their problem that only one other team, Cheltenham Town FC, had bothered to enter. The organisers decided that the two teams should face off in one mega-five-a-side game, with rolling subs, lasting 40 minutes. Much to the surprise of Cheltenham, who appear to have fancied their chances of glory against an obscure suburban Bristol club with only one age group girls’ team, the Foxes romped to a 10-4 victory. Lulu set the tone, and possibly a club record, by scoring direct from the kick off. With strong performances from all 7, and Betty particularly outstanding in goal, it was another trophy for the packed “cabinet”. Onwards and upwards to the Southern finals in glamorous Basingstoke!

Lulu and ref Luke keep their eyes on the ball

The next day saw the visit of old rivals Portishead Town, the 2015 champions and still a formidable side. The Foxes had just edged the away fixture 1-0 with a Zoe penalty, and on a dry day with a bitter north wind at BAWA, a close game was expected .

So it proved. For the first 25 minutes or so……not a lot happened. Space was limited and neither side created much. Portishead’s pressing game was strong, and with the Foxes perhaps missing Georgia’s runs down the left, the game became a little narrow and congested. It looked like it would take a set piece special to break the deadlock.

Right on cue, Lulu swung in a dangerous corner, and in the ensuing scramble, it was Emily who swept in the opener from close range. As ever, that relaxed the ‘Hoops’ a little, and they began to enjoy some more possession. Olivia had come on early as a sub to give the ailing Ella a rest, and was quick to make a difference. Why not have a shot from distance? It wasn’t even one of her best, but it still had enough on it to Fox the Portishead keeper and give the home team the comfort of a two goal lead. When a typically combative run from Amelia down the right sent Zoe in to add number 3, the game looked reasonably comfortable. But with the wind picking up, and a slope to play up in the second half, it was as well to have that cushion.

Sure enough, Portishead came out firing in the second half, with the wind at their backs and a spring in their step. The Foxes found themselves pinned down in their own half for a long spell, conceding a string of corners and finding it difficult to clear their lines. The pressure told when a cut back from the left bounced off the post, only for the striker to net the rebound. At only 3-1 down and with some momentum, the away side were very much in the match. And then…..

What do these players now have in common? Jon Obi Mikel (Chelsea). Jesper Blomqvist (Man Utd). Alberto Aquilani (Liverpool). John Jensen (Arsenal). Molly (the Foxes). It was a long time coming. Some players, like Mikel, needed 250 games at Chelsea to do it just once. At times, when shots hit the post or drew spectacular saves in these five seasons, some thought this day might never come. But we never really lost faith in the Mollster. The Foxes relieved the Portishead pressure with a swift counter-attack, and suddenly Amelia was rampaging forward. She got ‘in behind’ on the left and swung in a gorgeous diagonal ball to the far post, where Molly was loitering onside. She still had some work to do, but calmly clipped it past the keeper for – yes! – a goal, to spark wild celebrations amongst players and parents. It could not have come at a better time, and effectively killed the Portishead comeback off.

From there the Foxes saw the game out in reasonable comfort, with play frequently broken up by successive throw ins and goals kicks, and fewer chances at either end. Portishead enjoyed one last hurrah, and perhaps the (second best) goal of the day, when a long 30 yarder late on looped on the wind over Betty, to make it 4-2.

It was a difficult day in many ways. The Foxes were down to a squad of 12, two of whom were not very well, and the icy wind made it difficult to get the game flowing. But credit is due to Portishead for another tough battle. On the Foxes’ side, apart from the momentous and historic occasion of Molly’s goal, there were battling performances from Abby and Millie in the heart of defence, and strong contributions from Ellie and Amelia through the midfield.

Great credit and thanks are also due to young referee Luke, whose handling of the game was impeccable and fair. It is sad when grown-up yet foul-mouthed adults have to be told off and put in their place by a more mature 15 year old, but he handled a brief interruption from one of his own officials with great authority.

With fixtures now piling up at the end the season, the Foxes hope to play Boco next week, if Hanham is not engulfed by Siberian weather in the next week. But we won’t have that problem at our (fingers crossed!) swanky new all-weather venue for next season….

Girl of the game: Molly (of course)

Captain of the week: Millie

Foxes grind out win in tough Bristol..actually, South Gloucestershire...derby

Westbury Park Foxes U15 Girls 3

Bradley Stoke YFC 1

[action pictures to follow once video stills processed....]

It only takes a sprinkling of rain, even in a mild January, to waterlog most of the pitches in Bristol. This weekend was originally scheduled to be the final round of fixtures in the U15 Bristol Girls League, but after a series of soggy postponements the Foxes still had six games to go.

So it was that the eagerly awaited return leg of the 'North Bristol Classico' was moved over the 'county line' to the Gloucestershire FA 3G pitch, just off the M5 at Almondsbury. Bradley Stoke had come close to a famous fightback in the previous meeting, and their good form had continued into 2018, running league leaders Keynsham very close in a 0-1 defeat. Yet the blues of 'Stoke', now sponsored by "Muzzy's Kebabs" had never recorded a league victory against the Foxes. With neighbours and schoolmates on both teams and in the grandstand, this was set to be a friendly but competitive fixture.

In an exciting first for Foxes football, which may have had something to do with GCSE PE, the whole match was being professionally video recorded. The budget did not quite extend to "video assistant referees" and instant replays, but the capable Archie would not need them as he took charge of the whistle once again.

With a bracing wind blowing across the speedy big pitch, conditions were difficult for both sides. Many through balls both ways were overhit, either running through to the keepers or going out for goal kicks, and the opening 20 minutes were tight. Both teams had a couple of sights of goal, with Betty tipping one shot round the post for a corner, and more than once having to be off her line smartly to clear or bravely gather at the striker's feet. But overall, the play was a little edgy and broken. The Foxes struggled to get much of a passing game going, due in no small part to the quick pressing of Stoke, and frequently resorted to balls down the channels in an effort to spring their opponents' highly effective offside trap.

The breakthrough came in slightly unexpected fashion, when a Bradley Stoke defender handled a chipped through ball just inside the box. Zoe blasted home the resulting penalty to calm the Foxes' nerves. Their play improved significantly after that, with the terrier-like Amelia chasing everything up front and posing a constant threat. Her efforts were justly rewarded close to half time, when some excellent pressure from Molly on the right forced a hasty pass back. The otherwise unflappable Stoke keeper made a rare error, slicing her clearance straight to 'Meli', who finished powerfully in the bottom corner.

A 2-0 halftime lead was a decent return from a difficult first half, but the coaches warned that just as in the previous match, Stoke were certain to come out firing after the break. And they did. Almost from the whistle they put pressure on the Foxes and pinned them in their own half for 10 minutes. Only a series of timely defensive interventions, and strong clearances of dangerous corners, kept the blue team at bay. Eventually, the pressure told, and when the Stoke striker rode a couple of missed tackles to finish from an acute angle, it was 'game on' once again.

The goal spurred the Foxes into action, and they began to move the ball nicely. With Lulu, Lauren and Ellie winning some of the 'second balls' they had been missing previously, the Foxes were able to launch several dangerous raids on both flanks. At various times it seemed that Ella, Zoe or Amelia were in, only for the final ball or shot to be safely gathered. The game could have been put to bed by any of these chances being taken, but at 2-1 Bradley Stoke were very much in it. As time went on, the slightly match-rusty Foxes began to concede control and space in midfield once again, and the 'visitors' began to exert pressure and create some half chances.

Then, in what was almost an eerie echo of the wonder goal in the previous fixture, a Stoke midfielder tried her luck with a high ball from outside the box, which always looked over but dipped at the last second. This time, rather than dropping in, it rebounded squarely off the crossbar to safety. Shortly afterwards, a potentially goal-making through ball to the quick Stoke striker saw her flagged for being marginally offside (correctly - as the video evidence will confirm).

With time running out, yet again Amelia chased an apparently lost cause down the left to win back possession. A Stoke player was temporarily winded by a ball to the chest, but play continued and the ball found Zoe on the edge of the box. After what had been an occasionally frustrating afternoon for her, Zoe powered into the box, beat her player and finished well to secure the points for the 'Hoops'.

The Foxes may have been suffering from a lack of match sharpness, on top of a number of niggling injuries and illnesses, but Bradley Stoke deserve great credit for the way in which they took the game to the champions. At times they cut through the midfield with pace and skill, and the defence were made to work extremely hard. This was one of those games in which the result was all-important, and perhaps exceeded the overall team performance. That said, there were some superb individual efforts, recorded for posterity (and GCSE assessment) by the camera. Emily was heroic in defence, and time and again Betty's handling and gathering was rock solid, but girl of the game by some distance was the tenacious and perpetually mobile Amelia.

This win probably (but no guarantees, no complacency, take each game as it comes etc.) secures a "buffet placing" (i.e. 1st or 2nd place) for a fifth consecutive year, a hugely impressive achievement for a team which has evolved considerably since those first competitive outings. There were only four players on the pitch today who have been present for all of those years - can you name them..?

The remaining postponed fixtures are still all to be arranged, but a potential Friday night league decider is scheduled under the floodlights of Keynsham on 9th March. While the GCSE cameras may not be there, Sky Sports may well be interested...

Girl of the Game: Amelia

Captain of the Week: Abby

A match! What's that? Foxes shake off the rust with winning start to year

Westbury Park Foxes U15 Girls 4

Whitchurch Sports 0

The Foxes model the new home shirts

Every season without fail, when the pampered millionaires of the Premier League moan about having to crawl out of their luxury beds and play 3 matches in 8 days over Christmas, there are "calls for a winter break".

The Foxes are, of course, ahead of the game in this respect. With their last match having been as long ago as 26th November 2017, they had practically forgotten what a full-sized pitch looked like. Two postponements, a 'bye week' and the intervening Christmas period gave the girls ample time to reflect on their stellar 2017, fuel up on food and drink and even frolic around in the brief dusting of snow over the holiday. They also fitted in a riotous Christmas activity fun day at Mojo Active, at which Millie showed a rare talent for 'football golf', and no-one showed much talent for 5-a-side while suspended upside down in plastic 'Zorbs'....

Zorb football at Mojo Active, December 2017

After a 2 week warm weather break in Lanzarote, to participate in a prestigious four-way tournament with Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Bristol Rovers...or maybe just a bit of training on the Downs...they were finally back into action on their home turf of BAWA, with a new year fixture against a much-improved Whitchurch side.

"Turf" might have been putting it a bit too highly. With a 'full house' of boys' teams on the front pitches, and some middle-aged men kicking lumps out of each other next to us, we were ushered onto the far away sloping bog, with scenic views of industrial buildings and a quantity of cigarette ends dumped in the goalmouth. No matter - with a full squad, resplendent in the shiny new kit [pictured] courtesy of our lovely new sponsor BPC (Bristol Property Centre) - for all your estate agency needs in Redland and the wider Bristol area-  the first match of 2018 was eagerly awaited.

Kicking off uphill and into a slight breeze in the first half, the Foxes' build up play was at times intricate and pleasing on the eye. Rhiannon, Lulu and Ella combined nicely on the right, while Emily and Ellie were frequently putting Georgia in down the left. There was just one problem. What were those big white wooden things with the fishing nets hanging on them? Might the object of the game be to hit the ball towards them in some way? Perhaps, but let's pass it around in the box a bit more, then politely let the Whitchurch keeper have some more touches and holds of the ball. As the half wore on, and the game remained goalless, the old saying in these parts - "the Foxes are always a lot better when they score an early goal" - began to enter the spectators' minds. Whitchurch had not created much, and either Abby or the offside flag were dealing with their occasional long balls forward, but the Foxes were not taking enough shots or gambling on rebounds. One counter-attack or rare error and they could be facing a very uncomfortable morning.

Then Georgia, showing no nerves despite her every move being filmed by Mum Karen for GCSE assessment purposes, took matters into her own hands. Breaking through once again on the left side, then cutting in onto her right foot, her first shot was bravely parried by the keeper, but she followed in to lash home the rebound - for a 1-0 lead and surely an A* (or an 8 or 9 in modern currency) for "taking the game by the scruff of the neck, while also displaying the advanced skills required by the syllabus".

The teams turned at half time with the Foxes just one goal to the good, but one sensed that the brave visitors had put in a lot of effort to keep it at that, and might tire in the mud in the second half. So it proved, as the Foxes gradually took control and began to break through with increasing menace and speed. Zoe, after a frustrating first half being heavily marked and shadowed, was finding more freedom, and was joined by the lively raids of Amelia and Molly. With attacks on both flanks, increasing midfield dominance provided by Lulu, Ellie and Olivia, and the speedy 'Mill-Ab-Rhi-Em' defence effortlessly mopping up any through balls then launching immediate counters, it was only a matter of time. The second goal came immediately after the visitors' most dangerous attack, when a rare beating of the defensive line forced Betty into a comfortable but important stop. From the roll out, a lightning succession of passes down the right between Abby, Rhiannon and Lulu sent Ella speeding in, to finish in style. Whitchurch heads never dropped, but as they became increasingly camped in their own half, facing a succession of corners, number three followed when Zoe deservedly slammed home from close range in the aftermath of an uncleared corner.

That seemed to kill the game as a contest, and the Foxes could relax into their game a little more, enjoying the increased time and space to make some very fine multi-pass moves and test the excellent Whitchurch keeper several times. The icing on the cake was provided when Abby, powering forward from the back, received a short pass in space just outside the box then leathered an unstoppable shot into the corner of the net.

The remainder of the game was played out without too much drama. More chances came and went, but a heavy beating would have been harsh on the visitors, who contributed greatly to an entertaining and sporting game, and were very much in contention for most of it.

So a winning and eventually comfortable start to 2018, but with quite a bit of fixture catching up to do before the season's end. There were many good performances throughout the team (immortalised on video by Karen, presumably with commemorative DVDs on sale later in the year), but for her usual ice-cool, strong and authoritative defensive mastery, capped with an outstanding goal, the first 2018 girl of the game was Abby.

Next match: AEK Boco (away)

Girl of the Game: Abby

Captain of the week: Lulu (despite her black shorts)

Foxes fragile at first, but find form to fend off feisty Fry by four

Westbury Park Foxes U15 Girls  4

Fry Club FC U15 Girls 0

Sunday 26th November 2017

A very difficult 'spot the ball' competition...

Cough! Splutter! Brrr! The Foxes' warm up did not sound too promising. With seemingly half the squad suffering from various stages of lurgey, and the usually fighting fit Ella and Ellie confined to the bench as a result, what would the doctor order? Eighty minutes on a muddy pitch, strafed by an icy south-westerly wind, of course.

The coaches hoped that once they crossed the barely-visible white line, the ailing Foxes would perk up and get into their usual stride. But illness/tiredness/'feeling a bit rubbish' was not a sufficient explanation for a curiously lethargic and directionless opening. Fry Club FC sit squarely in mid-table, but immediately showed real quality and purpose coming forward. First to almost every ball, and passing with ease through the Foxes midfield, they were distinctly on top. One looping effort rebounded off the junction of post and bar. The usually calm home coaching team were forced to be unusually critical and shouty during this spell, as the Foxes frequently failed to make challenges or even simple passes. Only some cool defending from Abby, and some even cooler defending and elegant strides forward from Lauren, kept the visitors in check and the game scoreless.

Finally, a direct through ball from Lulu found Zoe, who rounded her defender and appeared to have shot narrowly wide..hang on, there's a hole in the net and the ball's gone in and straight through it! The opening goal was somewhat against the run of play but all the more welcome for that. The coaches' exhortations - "keep hold of the ball!...just pass it!..you're standing still!..you're not playing well at all!" - appeared to have some effect, despite Lulu's quite reasonable counter-argument from the pitch that negative comments are not always helpful. The Foxes very gradually got the ball under control and began to launch combinations down the slightly-less-muddy flanks, with Georgia as always a lively raider on the left, and Olivia beginning to win the ball more in midfield to feed the front players. The second goal had an element of Fry misfortune about it. Zoe made another excellent run on to Georgia's pass. The finish was not one of her strongest, but squirmed under the unfortunate keeper to give the Foxes some breathing space just prior to half time.

As so often before, the coaches earned their corn with an inspirational half-time team talk, to a squad mostly wrapped in hoodies, coats and even tartan travelling blankets to keep out the cold.

 "The good news is that you're getting better, because it couldn't have been much worse in those opening 15 minutes!"

Harsh  - but fair, perhaps. In any event, it seemed to do the trick. The second half Foxes, now playing against the wind, were much more like their usual selves. Fry never stopped launching attacks, but the iron defence was mopping up everything, with Abby more than usually outstanding in her tackles and breakouts. Rhiannon, playing with cold wind-induced breathing difficulties, was increasingly able to glide forward on the right, while Emily on the left was exceptionally busy and always effective against the dangerous Fry attacks on the wing. If anything Lauren increased her touches and effectiveness as the half wore on, and finally the midfield short pass combinations which were missing in the first half began to appear as the Foxes got on top. Lulu and Olivia took control in the centre and began to drive the play forward, while Molly was an effective and constant nuisance to the Fry defence on the right. Ella and Ellie were able to shed their blankets, take deep breaths and come on for very effective brief spells as subs.

Emily tackles and clears

Goal number three came when a smart combination of passes released the ever-lively Amelia in the box. She took a nice touch, pirouetted on to her right foot and slammed home, effectively securing the win. Minutes later Zoe, released into the left side of the box by Georgia, appeared to be at an impossible angle for a right footer, but opened her body and side-footed it in by the near post, for a hard-earned but very well-deserved hat trick.

Fry, some of the toughest opponents faced all season, never stopped trying, passing and coming forward. Only some smart work from Betty, coming off her line to clear and impeccable in her handling and distribution, preserved the clean sheet, as the video evidence from the "GoPro" behind the goal will undoubtedly confirm. A final score of 4-0 was a little harsh on the visitors, but the Foxes could reflect on a satisfying win, achieved in tough conditions after a very difficult start.

The coaches' decision on "girl of the game" was a tough one. It was effectively jointly bestowed on hat-trick Zoe, ice cool Abby (at times quite literally, so cold did she look) and the always calm, decisive and intelligent Lauren, whose performance earns her the mention in the box below (and possession this week of the imaginary trophy...)

After a winter mini-break next weekend, the Foxes have two more home games in the run-up to Christmas, and may even fit in another morale-boosting and team-building Christmas fun activity. Yo ho ho! But first, get well soon to all ailing and injured Foxes - hot baths and warm onesies by the fire all round...

Girl of the game (official): Lauren

Virtual 'girl of the game' trophy

Captain of the week: Lulu