L9s & Sirens 1 – 4 Wimbledon L8s
By Jo Moores
Ladies 9s & Sirens Combine to Take on Wimbledon
Squad: too numerous to name
Umpires: Dave and Wendy
With a combined squad of 18 we were able to offer two players in each half to Wimbledon who were only able to muster 10 with no GK, but another youthful bunch.
The mood started sombre after the sad news of the death of HM Queen Elizabeth II last week, and we paid our respects with a minute’s silence before pushback and black armbands all round.
For H1, Dawn in a defensive sweeper role and Jo M as forward were loaned as spares to Wimbledon, but with youth on their side we only gave them enough for one sub. Both sides started H1 enthusiastically with good passing and use of the newly surfaced Pitch 1, however with 11 outfield players it was always going to feel a little like Wimbledon had an extra person on the pitch. It wasn’t long before they opened the scoring with an impressive shot on goal. However with Wimbledon’s lack of GK, Surbiton always fancied their chances at sneaking one past the last defender. Sadly it was not to be in H1 and Wimbledon cemented their lead with a second goal, from stand in attacker Jo M who was promptly chastised by Val for an over-enthusiastic celebration.
H2 started with a switch of players from Surbiton into the Wimbledon side, with Jackie taking over as sweeper together with Maddie in midfield. Enthusiastic positivity to overturn the 2-0 deficit with three winning goals were sadly not to be with Wimbledon scoring a further two. Surbiton kept their structure strong, their heads held high and there were numerous attempts on goal with at least one ricocheting off the right hand post, and many screams of frustration as the ball skimmed past the posts several times.
Surbiton made good use of the wings and tried to throw their arsenal of skills into scoring goals, and were finally rewarded with a well-timed mid-D deflection from Jo M to bring the final score to 1-4. This time celebrations were welcomed by all!
Sadly we were not to contribute to the Ryder Cup scoring this week. Thanks to Captain Cuddy for her early morning foray into Lidl for Pain au Chocolat match tea. Thanks to Tracey for managing the FIVE subs in each half.
No POM this week, which also means no Moist Mug award. But watch this space, Sirens have been busy over the summer to find a worthy replacement for DOD!