Last week South had an excellent first half and were 2-0 up at the break, but lost shape in the second half, conceded 3 goals, and salvaged a point with Sarah’s short corner strike on the final whistle. Lou encouraged the team to play like that first half, but this time for the whole game. It was a much tougher game, but still a strong first half performance by South. We came under a lot of pressure, with the ball spending far more time in our D than Ely’s, testing the skill and resilience of the defenders who all worked their socks off with multiple clearances and tackles. We made good use of the wide and deep pass-outs from 16s to counter Ely’s strong press. There were many short corners, but we kept the ball out of the net. There were some forays up the pitch, with good runs up the line from both Sophies and a brilliant work rate from Holly. We were pleased to have our clean sheet at half time, and eagerly restored our energy levels with Haribos (Supermix preferred over Goldbears this week). 
The battle continued in the second half. Ely pushed harder, desperate to break the deadlock, and the scoring began. Both teams fought tenaciously in the South D – South clearing, Ely sending it back in. South still had some ventures into the D, using width to push the ball up the line, and some powerful crosses by Char. Final score was 5-nil. Including a wonderful run and strike by an Ely player, and a very unfortunate ball that bounced off a South foot in the D and looped into the goal. A strong team performance in which everyone should be proud of their work rate, though gutting to lose after holding so long. Special thanks go to Josh for stepping in at the last minute to umpire, and to heroic Hattie for turning up to play when she probably should have been at home in bed. And also to the excellent Ely baker who supplemented teas with home made brownies and muffins for all!