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Sunday 02 November 2003
FA Nationwide Women's Premier League, Southern Division
| AFC Wimbledon |
3 |
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0 |
Merthyr Tydfil Ladies |
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Match report
AFC WIMBLEDON LADIES 3 MERTHYR TYDFIL LADIES 0
Merthyr, with a new manager at the helm, and recovering from a 9-1 battering at Chelsea with a draw last weekend against Ipswich, put out a very youthful side against the Dons.
AFC themselves where without inspirational captain Maria Bertelli, but bolstered by the return of Michelle Riley, Lauren Nuttall and Jane Walker-Smith, with Amy Price and Kylie Davies stepping down to the bench.
Dons controlled the game from the start, and remained in control for pretty much the entire ninety minutes, with Merthyr left to play hopeful balls over the top that were more than adequately dealt with by Rachel Axon, playing centre-back come sweeper.
It took the ladies just seven minutes to sculpt their first good chance, Beth Sims receiving the ball from Keisha Ramos to the left edge of the penalty area, cutting inside her marker and shooting low and hard at the keeper's right corner, but Kirstin Davies made the first of several fine saves to deny the goal. The breakthrough wasn't long coming though, on twenty minutes Sims broke into the box, cleverly beat two players and squared the ball to the back left edge of the box where Laura Smith was waiting to chest down and smash the ball in, her first goal of the season. Just before the half hour Ramos drove a twenty-five yard shot through a crowd of players, but Davies was again equal to the task and held on well. Merthyr's best chance of the game came immediately after, a ball over the top catching the Dons defenders square leaving Welsh under-19 international Jenna Hopkins clean through on goal, but Tracey Perry blocked well to keep AFC's nose in front at the interval.
Merthyr started the second half looking for an equaliser, and Emma White's drive only five minutes in looked to have done so, but Perry flung herself down to her right to produce the save of the season so far. The Welsh renaissance was short lived, however, as with fifty-three minutes on the clock a great cross whipped in from the right found Julie Bygrave's head, which in turn found the back of the net. Julie now has three goals in the three games she's played. Ten minutes later and a similar move found Nuttall flying in at the back post, but her side-foot effort scraped just wide. Kylie Davies, on as a sub for the injured Ramos, went on a flying run down the left, covering half the pitch before crossing for Sarah Mulligan, but her fierce shot was inches over. With time running out, Amy Price won the ball and fed Davies on the right, her cross found Laura Smith at the back edge of the box and she coolly lobbed the keeper to seal the points with her second goal of the game. With five minutes left, Mulligan and Price both had efforts cleared off the line, and with the final whistle imminent Sims found herself in on goal but dragged the shot wide of the post. |
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