Fine Margins Make the Difference for GU14 Ospreys
By Manfred Lam
GU14 Ospreys 0 - 2 London Wayfarers GU14 A (H)
A winning margin of 460mm was the difference between the Ospreys’ Cup glory (or defeat) and the three point pick up from the same opponent, London Wayfarers, in the top of the table clash a week earlier.
A scrappy match from start to finish with both sides cancelling out each other’s endeavours. Both sides made the flanks the primary channel of creativities and opportunities. A lot of huffing and puffing, whilst the tempo was high. Our girls were pressured and given little time and space in their decision making let alone demonstrating their skill. Triangles and pivots were, to a certain extent, effective in dealing with tight-marking. Throughout the afternoon, Wayfarers outnumbered Osprey by 3 to 1 or 4 to 1 all over the pitch.
Despite a lack of continuous flow from either side, there were not too many stoppages. A notable breakaway on the 18th minute mark, from the middle of park with some nice link ups saw Dunshire-Moore have a shot at goal. Our backline overall was resolute, a consistent feature for most of season, held off most of Wayfarers’ challenges. Sweeney, our stand-in goalie did as much as she could.
Ospreys had the first genuine attempt in open play in the 34th minute but the effort was unrewarded. On the counter, Wayfarers took a 1-0 lead with a smash-and-grab goal out of nothing. The turning point of the match came at 47th minute with Henkes’ clean strike at goal (directly from a succession of short corners), leaving the opposition goalie no chance. The equaliser was ruled out as the ball went in above the permitted height of backboard (a mighty 460mm). Four minutes later, a scrabble inside the Osprey D effectively ended the contest.
Overall, there was little difference in two teams despite the headline score. The second half of League programme will kick off in a couple of week’s time and four points from the remaining two matches should validate some of good work carried out by Ospreys this season.
Player of the match: Charlotte B