Tottenham Hotspur Ladies -

Under-11's reports 2003-04

Tottenham took the points at Garston with a convincing performance culminating with three second-half goals.

The first half saw a steady start with some good link up play from defence. Aimee Rose made some clever passes that produced efforts by Belinda Sugarman, Lindsey Cockle and Tayla Goodman that the goalkeeper saved well.

It looked like a stalemate looming in the second half as the Tottenham wave of attacks were proving fruitless. But credit to the girls as their persistence finally paid off when skipper Zoë Jackson took responsibility herself rifling home a shot from outside the area. 

That goal was soon followed by a Paige Barnard special. She strode from midfield and unleashed a fierce shot that had the goalkeeper rooted to the spot.

The two-goal cushion signalled a Spurs substitution and ‘super-sub’ Tayla Goodman proved her goal-scoring prowess for the second week running, tapping in from close range. 

Nicola Davey played well in her first full game and kept a clean sheet but was assisted by some superb defending from the impressive pairing of Jodie Fenn and Tessa Osborne.  

KEVIN FENN

Other results :
Watford A  3   Potters Bar Crusaders  1
Barking A  0    Watford A  3
QPR  7    Harvesters  0
Hitchin Belles Purples  0     Stevenage Borough Vixens  7

This local derby looked destined for stalemate, as a combination of solid defending by both teams kept this game goalless until five minutes from the end.

Tessa Osborne was again impressive at the back, thwarting several attacks with impeccable timing and awareness, whilst Lindsey Cockle was threatening the opposition at the other end with some neat close skills.

Olivia Rodney made the tackle of the game in the second half when she timed her challenge to perfection just as Enfield threatened.

Eleanda Taladianou was brought on to add a bit of bite to the midfield but the goal eventually came from a corner by Aimee Rose.  Her accurate delivery panicked the Enfield defence and Paige Barnard made the vital touch to push the ball over the line.

Tayla Goodman replaced the injured Lindsey Cockle as Enfield tried to claw their way back into the match, but it was skipper Zoë Jackson who calmed the nerves when her fine drive flew past the Enfield goalkeeper.

KEVIN FENN

Other results :
Watford A  4    Stevenage Borough Vixens  0
Harvesters  1    Barking A  0
QPR  3  Garston Blues  2
Potters Bar Crusaders  1    Hitchin Belles Purples  2     

With captain Zoë Jackson starting as sub., it was vice-captain Aimee Rose who took responsibility producing some fine interchanges and exhibiting her close skills. It was no surprise when she started the goal spree by running wide of the defenders and hitting an unstoppable shot.

Lindsey Cockle added another just before half time when her first time lob looped over the goalkeeper into the top of the net.

Eleanda Taladianou  played the anchor role in midfield and was extremely effective with some solid defending and precise delivery.

After the break Barking stepped up the pace and Nicola Davey produced a fine save tipping the ball over the bar. That should have been a warning to Tottenham but Barking caught Spurs napping and stole a goal soon afterwards.

A tactical change saw Tessa Osborne resume defensive responsibilities, with Zoë Jackson restored to the midfield and Spurs were rarely troubled from then on.

Lindsey Cockle bagged her second and third goals in quick succession, her hat-trick completed with a cheeky flick of the boot to deceive the goalkeeper.

Zoë Jackson sealed the victory with a fantastic first time strike that had the goalkeeper rooted to the spot.

A good team performance.  

KEVIN FENN

Other results :
Watford A  3    Garston Blues  0 
Harvesters  2    Hitchin Belles Purples  1
Enfield  2    Stevenage Borough Vixens  1
QPR  9    Potters Bar Crusaders  1

With Zoë Jackson out through injury, it was Paige Barnard who filled her role in midfield dominating the early exchanges and linking well with Aimee Rose.

It was unselfish play by Aimee Rose that led to Tottenham’s’ first chance when she squared a pass to Tayla Goodman, who narrowly missed.

The defence performed well with Jodie Fenn, Eleanda Taladianou, Belinda Sugarman and Olivia Rodney holding back the lively Harvesters attacks with some timely tackles and linking well with midfield. Nicola Davey played well in goal on a difficult surface and is improving with each week.

The first Spurs goal came soon after the substitutions were made with Lindsey Cockle finding space inside the box and beating the goalkeeper from close range.

Spurs found it tough on the heavy pitch and needed the security of a second goal. With the rain teeming down it was Aimee Rose who got the final touch to give Spurs the breathing space.

The final whistle brought relief to both the players and the rain-soaked supporters and whilst the mums were racing to Tescos for the Persil, the girls could take great heart from a solid performance.

KEVIN FENN

Other results :  
Watford A  1    QPR  1
Garston Purples  0   Garston Blues  0
Potters Bar Crusaders  1    Stevenage Borough Vixens  6   
Barking A  0    Enfield  2    

Spurs Ladies U11 marched onto the semi-finals of the London Youth Cup with a convincing 6-1 win over Griffin Sports on Sunday.

After going behind to 6-man Griffin Sports early on, Spurs quickly came back into the game with a well- taken effort from Lindsay Cockle. Paige Barnard then put Spurs 2-1 up when a low driven shot was deflected into the bottom left hand corner of the Griffins goal. Good inter team play before the break saw Sophie Petros bag two further goals. 

In the second half, Spurs continued where they had left off in the first, totally commanding long period of the game. Aimee Rose continued to show her great form this season with another two well taken goals.

Spurs will now face Athenlay on December 14th at Fred Knights in the semi-final.

GLENN WEAVER

A tight top of the table match was played in good style despite the appalling weather conditions, but two Tottenham goals gave them the win to stay ahead of the chasing pack by six points.  

It took Tottenham six minutes to take the lead, when a shot from the edge of the penalty area by Lindsey Cockle was saved by the Watford goalie, but she could not get to the bal before Aimee Rose smuggled the ball over the line to make it 1-0.

Spurs were playing well against a skillful Watford side and the Rose-Cockle partnership were opening up the Hornets defence on the break, while Ryah Vyse was making the left side of the pitch her own.  With Olivia Rodney, Paige Barnard and Jodie Fenn forming a strong defensive unit, Watford were restricted to long range efforts which Tessa Osborne handled confidently.

There were shots on goal from Eleanda Taladianou, Vyse, Rose and Cockle before the break, but none breached the Watford defence to go into the half-time break.

The second half was also nip and tuck, with chances at both ends, Watford hitting the post through their number 7, while Rose was denied by the keeper and Rose hit a shot just narrowly wide of the goal.  Lindsey Cockle was denied a goal when she turned her marker in the area and fired an effort on goal, while the Spurs side had to wait until ten minutes from the end to wrap up their victory.  A good move saw the ball moved from left to right and picking the ball up inside the penalty box, Ryah Vyse unleashed a firm shot that zipped past the keeper to make it 2-0.

As Watford tried to get back into the match, the Tottenham team needed some good interceptions and blocking from Jodie Fenn to stop Eleanda being troubled in goal.  Both Olivia and Paige worked hard to repel any Watford attacks.

Both teams put in a lot of effort and a great deal of good skill and passing on a muddy surface, but the taking of the two chances that were turned into goals made the difference between the sides in the end.

Other results :
Barking  0    Hitchin Belles Purples  1  
Garston Blues  1    Harvesters  6
Enfield  2    Potters Bar Crusaders  1
Stevenage Borough Vixens  0    QPR  3  

Tottenham adopted a 3-3-1 formation in this eight-a-side friendly with Tayla Goodman and Belinda Sugarman leading the attack in each half.  ‘Guesting’ for Spurs was Jemma Good who adopted a role in the centre of midfield.

Tottenham started well enough and were unlucky not to score in the opening minutes when shots from Zoe Jackson (back from injury) and Jemma Good went wide.

Just when Spurs had settled into the flow of the game, Harvesters took the lead when an intelligent ball caught the defence flat-footed and their striker beat Nicole Davey with a first time drive.

Jodie Fenn entered the fray when she was introduced as substitute and almost scored with a controlled chip that, unfortunately, did not outsmart the alert Harvesters goalkeeper.

Tayla Goodman did manage to prod the ball into the Harvesters net, but the referee adjudged that the ball was kicked out of the goalkeepers hands and was therefore disallowed.  Tessa Osborne and Paige Barnard were pushing up well supporting the attacks, but the Harvesters goalkeeper was playing a blinder and denied Tottenham an equaliser.

The second half saw Tottenham resume their passing game with Olivia Rodney prominent in defence and linking well with midfield.  Her determination was her greatest asset as she kept tackling and hassling the advancing strikers.

There were several opportunities for Tottenham to equalise before they fell further behind when a corner from Harvesters curled into the net above the defenders heads.

Tottenham gave the best possible response by forcing the play into their opponents half and it was Jemma Good who capitalised with a fine strike to bring Tottenham back into the game.

A wave of further attacks promised much, but the Harvesters goalkeeper denied Spurs yet again. With the last few seconds ticking away, Spurs pushed all outfield players up for a corner in an attempt to force the ball home.  Unfortunately it wasn’t to be.

All in all a good run out for the girls against a good opposition.

Other League results :
Potters Bar Crusaders  0    Barking A  1
Enfield  3    Hitchin Belles Purples  0

The defence was primed for an Enfield surge from the kick-off and the away team duly obliged pushing Tottenham immediately onto the back foot.

Spurs struggled to find their rhythm and were playing too deep in their half, but with a double substitution Spurs started to pick up and play their game.

Aimee Rose started to find space and threaten the Enfield defence linking well with Zoë Jackson and Lindsey Cockle as things started to look up for Tottenham.  A penalty appeal looked like a formality when Lindsey Cockle appeared to be fouled by the opposition. Unfortunately, the referee viewed the challenge as legal and waved play on, much to the disappointment of the team.

Half time came and went as Eleanda Taladianou resumed responsibility between the sticks supported by a back two of Jodie Fenn and Tessa Osborne. The three (wo)man midfield of Aimee Rose, Paige Barnard and Zoë Jackson forced the play into the oppositions’ half and Spurs capitalised when a fierce shot from Paige found Aimee Rose who beat the goalkeeper with an unstoppable shot. 

Spurs sensed that they could put the game beyond doubt as they picked up the tempo, but alas could not find the cushion of a second goal.

Instead the rain poured down and Spurs had successive injuries to Aimee Rose and Paige Barnard that forced them both off the field of play. Enfield sensed an opportunity and successive raids into the Tottenham box eventually brought the equaliser when two players were left unmarked in the area.

KEVIN FENN

Other results :
Watford A  -    Barking A  -
Harvesters  -    Stevenage Borough Vixens  -
QPR  -    Hitchin Belles Purples  -  
Garston Blues  -    Potters Bar Crusaders  -