U14 SBYL
Larne 3 -1 Crumlin
The girls were back to a full-strength squad today and quickly put last week’s defeat behind them.
In the first half, the girls were fantastic right from the start. They played some great football and took control of the game early on. We kept it tight and compact when we didn’t have the ball and made the pitch as big as possible when we had the ball. With the game under control throughout the first half, the girls created several goalscoring opportunities as they kept pushing for the opening goal. The Crumlin keeper made some great saves but for other chances we either put the ball just wide or straight at the keeper. We opened the scoring through Anna Grace who scored from a tight angle which was quickly followed up by Sophie grabbing a second a few minutes later.
In the second half, we made quite a few changes to give all the girls as much game time as we could. As to be expected, the changes at the break disrupted the flow of the game and Crumlin managed to get a goal back. With a bit of a shuffle in positions, the girls were able to get back into our groove and take control of the game again which led to more goalscoring opportunities. Anna Grace got her second and our third of the game after she broke through the Crumlin defence and slotted the ball in the bottom corner out of the goalkeeper’s reach.
Comber Rec Ladies U17 0 – 1 Larne U16/17
In the first half, Larne had the better of the chances, with plenty of good passing play and movement. However, despite having lots of opportunities in front of goal, the team were struggling to find their composure in front of goal and the game remained scoreless at the break.
We started the second half by on the front foot, pushing forward and taking the game to the opposition. After a brilliant solo run from Eimear, she timed her pass perfectly to find Dee in space who beat the last defender and calmy finished to give Larne the lead in the game.
Despite having more goalscoring opportunities, the game was decided by a single goal and the girls picked up the victory. The work rate from everyone was undeniable with the team limiting Comber to very few chances throughout the game. At times, our decision-making let us down throughout the game, however, that gives us something to work on improving in training.
Zara McMullen enjoyed a great debut and there was constant improvement across the pitch from several players. Thanks also to Nikita and Melissa for volunteering and earning a clean sheet each in goal. The only negative was a nasty-looking ankle injury for Rachael – fingers crossed that it’s not as bad as it looked and she can recover quickly and get out on the pitch.
Larne U13s 9-0 Rathcoole
Straight from kick-off, the girls set about dominating the game and took it to the opposition. It only took six or seven minutes before the girls broke the deadlock with great play from all over the pitch.
Throughout the first half, the girls displayed some great passing moves and showed strength and determination in their 1v1 battles all over the pitch. After a dominant display and the girls created numerous goalscoring opportunities, they found themselves 7-0 up at the break.
At the start of the second half, we made several changes to ensure everyone got as many minutes as possible. Continuing to control the game, the girls were able to add another two goals during the second half to secure a 9-0 victory and a clean sheet.
