1st XI girls Coopers v Campion

Cancelled…Rescheduled…New fixture!! After weeks of delays, gameday was finally here and I couldn’t wait. No pressure. No stakes. No risks. We embarked on our 20 minute journey to the school not knowing what to expect. When we finally reached our destination we were met with treacherous terrains. Each step forward felt as though we were sinking deeper and deeper closer to the earth's core. But nonetheless the game must go on.

The first half ended 1-0 but let's really get into the nitty gritty details. It was a slow start that made me question whether we would come out triumphant, but the team worked together for a difficult 30 minutes on a terrible pitch and still made it work. One girl even fell down and slipped, sliding down the pitch with her hair coated in mud. We waited patiently for our first goal to come with so many missed opportunities from Anastasia, Gabriella, Lucy and Didem but at the last minutes of the first half, Alina came through and scored a tap in just as we thought no goals would be scored. The excitement could be felt from miles away, well maybe not miles but you get the jist.

There was some amazing defending from Aamani, Nancy and Eleni and some techy game play from Bronte and Lily. But we can't forget our honourable mention of Cerys, our solid keeper with some amazing plays out from the back and amazing hands saving attempts left, right and centre from the opposition. After the strong performance displayed in the first half we had some team deliberation with Mr Hoult to figure out new formations and strategies. Second half came and went just like that, the pitch was choppy and destroyed so we only played 25 minutes give or take a few. Emily came on a real stallion on the pitch, an amazing player to change the speed of the game and that she did. Daisy also came on, she's agile, springy and motivated she was our goal keeper for the second half and she did not disappoint. Then came Izzy with her quick feet and winner mentality. We played even harder and with an assist from Gabriella Anastasia scored a blinder!! It was now 2-0. We were buzzing to say the least.

As we carried on battling, not only against Campion but the elements, the game was coming to a close. Then a foul committed against Emily resulted in a penalty where Lucy (Emily's older sister) stepped up. Right in the bottom right corner, back of their net we were 3-0 up with no pressure on our backs. As we carried on playing time was ticking and then we were informed by the opposition that if they scored a single goal their coach would buy them McDonalds. We could never deprive anyone of free Maccies so as the integral empathetic girls we are we allowed them to score their goal and claim their prize! Overall, the great game ended 3-1 and we couldn't be more impressed.

By Gabriella Taiwo