SBYL U15s
Larne v Dungoyne
After a slow start to this one, the team settled well and began to play like they are capable of. They enjoyed a few strikes from distance, with Leah quickly finding the back of the net. There were also some near misses from Taylor, Lucy and Maggie as Larne made sure they kept up the pressure. The opposition was forced to play long balls, showing how relentless the girls fought against them.
The team were in pole position as the match wore on, with a flurry of goals from Chloe Morrow making sure it was Larne’s game. Some excellent crossing from Eimear Ward helped Leah bag another goal.
Dungoyne finished the game strongly, with Larne dealing well with the late pressure they had to withstand.
Overall, it was a great performance from all the girls, who worked hard to keep a clean sheet.
Special mentions must go to Nikita Hill, Jodie Ferguson and Sophie Jenkins for their performances on the day.
U17s Cup Semi-final
Larne v Cliftonville
The girls were very unlucky to lose this one on penalties. Despite a relatively slow start, the girls controlled the game, winning the first balls and with some great passing. The Larne defence worked hard under pressure at times in the first half and managed to take the lead when Mia Snoddy scored from the edge of the box.
The second half continued to be a physical battle, with both teams desperate for a goal. Cliftonville then equalised with a soft effort rolling into the goal. Larne came back fighting and missed from the penalty spot in a chance to retake the lead.
On the day the Larne girls went into this one missing their regular goalkeeper, so thanks must go to Morgan and Riley for stepping up to the challenge. Special mention in particular to Morgan who saved some cracking saves in the penalty shootout.
The player of the Match was Mia O’Flaherty for her excellent play throughout the match.
SBYL U13s
Larne v HW Girls
It was a tough lesson for the girls in this game. They were fantastic in the first half, and in the first ten minutes of the second half, as they controlled the game. They created plenty of chances, but just couldn’t find the finishing touch.
Goals arrived early in the second half from Sophie and Anna Grace. After this, however, the team dropped their levels and lost some focus, which brought the opposition back into it.
The team were hugely disappointed after the game with what had happened and recognized themselves the mistakes they had made. It was a tough loss to take but the girls will be stronger for it and will learn valuable lessons from it.
SBYL U12s
Larne vs Bloomfield
Despite an evenly-match first half, Bloomfield scored first in this one from a corner kick.
Into the second half, Larne upped the tempo and got rewarded with a great goal from Sofia Hamill, while Bloomfield’s second goal came as a result of an OG from a corner.
The girls kept on battling and Ellie McKnight then scored direct from a corner herself. The girls kept on pushing for the winner, but Bloomfield broke free with just minutes to go and got a goal.
The girls gave their all and deserved something from the game, but they can be proud of their efforts. Special mention to Player of the Match, Sofia Hamill.
2013
Larne v Ballyclare
This was a good performance from the team, a game where they showed up eager to play. There was some good play through the midfield where the girls got into promising positions, especially Farah who came inside from her wide position to score two well-taken goals to put us in a comfortable lead after the first third of play.
The team began the second half well and got into plenty of shooting positions but just couldn’t extend their lead, with Emma going close on a few occasions. Erin, in goals, didn’t have too much to do, primarily because of the excellent defending in front of her with Larah and Leah snuffing out danger and closing down the Ballyclare attackers brilliantly. When they did break through Erin stood firm and saved well.
The final third was like the others with Ava, Lily, Annie, Emma, Bailey, and Jessica all working hard to win the ball and making positive decisions to get into the Ballyclare half and create goal-scoring opportunities. Jessica finished well to fire us into the lead, with Ballyclare scoring in the last kick of the game to provide a consolation goal.
The girls all did well – reflecting on what they are doing in training every week. It was great to see and hear the girls communicate with each other and create goal-scoring opportunities with great passages of play.
While played everyone, Larah and Leah were both were rocks at the back. Their great defensive display made the game look comfortable. For Player of the Match, it goes to Larah for her excellent performance.
SBYL U11s
Larne v Ballynahinch Olympic
This was a very close match for the team. The girls took a while to settle into the game but they started to play as they are capable of as the first half got underway.
Once they got their passing game going space opened up for Orla to slot home an opener in the bottom corner to take the lead. A bit of confusion in defence then allowed Ballynahinch equalise. After this, the tempo was with Larne and with great work from Amber, Anna, and Orla the ball made its way to Roxy, who fired Larne back in front.
There were some great players in the Ballynahinch team and they came out firing in the second half, getting a goal back shortly after the restart. However, Larne continued to do well themselves and some well-worked passing from Paisleigh and Annie worked the ball to Orla, who added a goal herself.
Ballynahinch scored again on the 15-minute mark, but the girls fought back to work the ball into space wide for Orla to score from a tight angle. Despite letting the opposition get one more before the whistle from a well-taken strike from their brilliant winger, we saw the game out in their half.
This was a tough battle physically for the team, with some big performances across the park to win the game.
With some great performances across the board, Roxxy Robb and Orla Curneen were simply fantastic from start to finish.
Vallery V36 2013s
Larne v Barn
There was a great start from the Larne girls in this one, as the team dominated the first quarter and took a narrow lead.
In the second quarter Barn came out strongly, pressed hard, and got an early goal back. The team switched up the play a bit and grabbed the lead again with a goal from Ava McAllister. However, again Barn hit back with another one straight after this.
In the last quarter of the game, the Inver girls conceded an OG which handed the game to Barn. The girls continued to fight hard and overall it was a very good battle for the team. It was encouraging to see the team working off their own initiative and communicating well with each other.
Player of the Match goes to Arriane McClure for being our solid rock in defence as always.
