Spurs Ladies Under-11s today had a game a little closer to home than the last two and arrived at Enfield Rangers’ home ground with the sun shining for a lunch time quarter final match.  Daniela Charles was in goal, Megan Jones and Rebecca Lane (Laney) in defence, Jacqueline McLucas in her central position with Charlie-Leigh Dixon, Rebecca Mills and captain Ellis Lunn in midfield completing the starting line-up.  Lauren Howland and Alice Simmonds waited their turn on the sidelines.  Ronnell Humes joined the team at half-time. 

The game kicked off with the Spurs girls unusually sluggish and not looking on their usual top form.  Whether it was the late kick off or the warm weather, who knows, but the game didn’t get going for some time. 

With the pitch being smaller than usual, it seemed the ball spent more time off the pitch than on it at times, which was frustrating for the girls, as they couldn’t get into their usual stride.  Spurs continuously brought the ball up the pitch, but couldn’t break through the Enfield Rangers defence.  It wasn’t until the dying minutes of the first half that Spurs finally managed to score, when Charlie got on the end of a high cross from Ellis and the first attempt hit the bar and hovered dangerously the wrong side of the line, but Charlie ensured it went in the net by bending over and heading it into the goal ! 

The second half kicked off much the same as the first ,but with Nell now on the pitch, the pace started to pick up a bit.  Spurs next goal came from Alice, who, desperate to score last week, certainly wasn’t going to miss an opportunity this week. So, when she picked up a loose ball well outside the area, she fired it towards the goal and although the keeper got a touch, everyone held their breath until it finally fell into the net, ensuring Alice got her first goal of the season.  (Sorry you missed it John !)

Spurs last goal of the game came from another unstoppable strike from outside the box, but this time from Nell out on the wing, ensuring Spurs went through to the semi finals with a 3-0 win. 

Unable to make a decision, the whole team, all of which got to play today, were awarded Player of the Match. 

diane lunn

tottenham hotspur : -  (rolling subs used)

lauren howland

luton town  3    enfield town  2    
st. albans city  0    qpr  8   
hampstead  -        denham united  -   

Spurs Ladies today played Crystal Palace in the London Youth FA Cup Final at Mile End Stadium.  With Alice Simmonds unable to play today due to bridesmaid duties, the rest of the team were excited, although a little nervous and looked very smart in the team line-up.  Daniela Charles was in goal, Megan Jones and Rebecca Lane (Laney) in defence, Jacqueline McLucas in her central position with Charlie-Leigh Dixon, Ronnell Humes and Ellis Lunn (captain) in midfield completing the starting line-up.  Lauren Howland, Rebecca Mills and Natasha Smits were on the bench. 

The game kicked off and, with only 30 seconds on the clock, Crystal Palace took Spurs by surprise and fired a shot across Daniela and into the corner of the goal.  A little unsettled by this, Spurs now knew it was going to be a tough game and had to get rid of any ‘big match’ nerves.  Crystal Palace continued to dominate the game and Spurs had to defend deep.  It looked as if Spurs would equalise when Nell made a break up the pitch, but her strike hit the crossbar.  Shortly after, following a goal-mouth scramble Daniela went down with a head injury, but after a worrying few minutes and some treatment she got up to carry on. 

Natasha Smits came on to give Megan, who was playing brilliantly in defence, a breather.  Spurs’ patience and determination finally paid off following a goal kick, which in true Daniela style, flew up the pitch.  Nell picked it up and passed to Ellis in the centre who ran with the ball, with a Crystal Palace defender on her heels, but getting her shot in, she buried the ball in the back of the net. 

With the score now equal, Spurs were back in the game, but still Palace looked the stronger team with shots on goal left, right and centre, keeping Daniela well and truly on her toes.  Despite Daniela’s valiant efforts, Crystal Palace managed to score again, this time from one of numerous throw-ins which were causing Spurs all sorts of trouble.  A Palace player managed to get her head to the ball and headed it into the goal, again putting Spurs behind.  

Again, it looked as if Spurs would equalise when Nell managed to get close with a header, but his time it hit the post and bounced away.  The half time whistle blew with Spurs 2-1 down. 

The second half kicked off and Charlie came off and was replaced by Bex, joining the rest of her team, who were still having to defend hard against their attacking opponents.  Laney and Megan were putting in a sterling performance in defence with the midfielders and Jac having to move up the pitch to help out.  Spurs got a lucky break when Palace scored an own goal bringing Spurs equal once again.  Nell came off for a rest and was replaced by Lauren. 

The score remained equal until the final whistle, which meant extra time.  Nell and Charlie came back on the pitch once the game had restarted, replacing Lauren and Bex who had given the game 100%.  With renewed energy and fresh legs, Charlie and Nell were strong on the field and it wasn’t long before this paid off.  Nell picked up the ball on the edge of the box, turned and shot the ball into the net, putting Spurs in the lead for the first time.  The rest of extra time was full of twists and turns with the ball going end to end.  Dani was pulling out all the stops and was saving shot after shot from Palace.  However, three minutes before the end, Nell made a break up the pitch and scored the final goal of the game. 

The whole team played a great game and despite strong opposition didn’t give up.  A fantastic result for the girls and it was a very proud moment for their coach, manager, parents and supporters, all of whom were recovering from near heart-attacks, to see co-Captains Ellis and Jac lift the cup for the team. 

Daniela Charles was awarded Player of the Match as without her in goal, it could have been a very different result ! 

diane lunn

tottenham hotspur : -  (rolling subs used)

lauren howland

enfield town  -    
enfield rangers  -    
bedmond ajax  -    
luton town  -   
qpr  -   
st. albans city  -   
denham united  -   
hampstead  -       

game awarded to thlfc 

enfield town  -    
enfield rangers  -    
bedmond ajax  -    
luton town  -   
qpr  -   
st. albans city  -   
denham united  -   
hampstead  -       

Grateful to see the sun shining again at last, Spurs Ladies today travelled the now familiar journey to play Denham United.  Spurs lined up to start the match with Daniela Charles in goal, Alice Simmonds and Rebecca Lane (Laney) in defence, captain Jacqueline McLucas in centre mid with Charlie-Leigh Dixon, Ronnell Humes and Ellis Lunn in midfield.  Lauren Howland, Rebecca Mills (Bex) and Megan Jones waited on the touchline. 

The game kicked off and although Tottenham looked to dominate, Denham were closing them down at every opportunity.  Spurs had to work hard to get their chances, not finding the game as easy as perhaps they’d thought it might be, and despite a couple of goal mouth scrambles early on and some near shots, it took a while for the first goal to come.  Jac took a throw which found Charlie on the edge of the box, she turned and took a shot, putting the ball between the keeper's legs and into the net.  Spurs had at last taken the lead which lifted the girls’ spirits and it wasn’t too long before Ellis managed to add to the score sheet.  Jac took a corner and despite Denham’s efforts, Ellis got her foot to it and lifted it over the keeper's head giving Spurs a two goal lead. 

The second half saw Bex take up her position on the pitch, giving Charlie, who had played a strong first half, a rest.  Despite two early on-target shots from Spurs the score remained unchanged.  However, it wasn’t long before Spurs were back in action when Ellis bought the ball up the wing and crossed it into the box where Bex connected with the ball and put it into the corner of the net.  Boosted by this goal, Bex who has continually improved throughout the season, continued to battle throughout the second half, chasing down and working hard on the wing.  Nell was also making her presence felt and was strong as ever on the pitch. 

Daniela had a really quiet match with Denham not managing to get a shot on goal due to a combination of the great defensive skills from Megan, Alice and Laney.  Ellis took a rest with Lauren taking up her position, shortly followed by Jac coming off.  Megan moved up into Jac’s position and Alice returned to the field in defence.  Megan adjusted to her new position well and worked hard, getting her positioning just right and putting in some great passes to the rest of the team.  Lauren worked well on the wing, again creating some good opportunities for her team mates.  Last change of the day saw Charlie making a return to the field, giving Nell a well-earned breather.  

Despite some great effort from Spurs in the last 10 minutes with the girls passing well and keeping majority possession, the score remained unchanged and Spurs took the three points giving Spurs a definite second place in the league.  Megan was awarded Player of the Match.

diane lunn

tottenham hotspur : -  (rolling subs used)

lauren howland

enfield town  -    
enfield rangers  -    
bedmond ajax  -    
luton town  -   
qpr  -   
st. albans city  -   
denham united  -   
hampstead  -       

Today Spurs Ladies Under-11s again travelled North to play Luton in the HCGFL cup semi-final.  After a thorough stretch-out and warm up, a focused Spurs team lined up to start the match with Daniela Charles in goal (only just making it after having her fingers shut in the car boot !), Alice Simmonds and Rebecca Lane (Laney) in defence, Jacqueline McLucas in centre mid with Ronnell Humes, Megan Jones, and captain Ellis Lunn across midfield.  Lauren Howland, Rebecca Mills (Bex) and Charlie-Leigh Dixon waited on the touchline. 

The game kicked off to a slow start with both teams taking equal possession and the ball being played end to end and neither teams getting close to scoring.  Spurs couldn’t seem to get into their stride.  This was until Dani took one of famous great goal kicks which travelled the length of the pitch.  Nell, at the other end of the pitch, ran to catch up with it and went with it into the box.  The ball bounced over the keeper, who had come out to meet it, leaving Nell an empty goal to knock the ball into and Dani celebrating at the other end of the pitch ! 

It was then all change on the pitch within the space of ten minutes with Ellis the first to come off after getting winded and Charlie-Leigh taking her place.  Five minutes later, Nell went down with an ankle injury and Ellis returned to the pitch to replace Nell.  Not long after it was Laney who had a foot injury and was replaced on the pitch by Bex. 

The whistle blew for half time with Spurs still in the lead.  It had been a frustrating first half with Luton winning a lot of the balls and Spurs having to chase.  However, with words of advice at half time to ‘step up their game’, the girls returned to the pitch for the second half.  Megan was now back in her usual defensive position, after playing a strong game in midfield during the first half and Nell was also back in position.  Spurs definitely heeded the advice and looked stronger in the second half and worked hard to get the second goal.  It wasn’t long before it looked as if they had it, when the goal keeper fumbled the ball from a first attempt and Ellis picked up the rebound and took a shot which although was goal-bound, Charlie-Leigh was standing on the line and blocked the shot, forcing the ball out back into play. 

Spurs quickly bounced back from this and continued to attack the ball and it wasn’t long before Spurs got another chance, again with the keeper not quite getting hold of the ball, Ellis took advantage of this error and just as she took her shot, resulting in the ball hitting the back of the net, the whistle blew to signal a foul on the goalie, disallowing the goal. 

Spurs continued to look strong with Jac working continually hard across the pitch, winning the ball on plenty of occasions and any chances by Luton to get near the goal were foiled by Megan, Laney and Alice, leaving Dani to just scoop to ball to safety. 

Their patience and determination finally paid off and the second goal finally came resulting from some great passing between the girls.  Ellis brought the ball up the wing and passed it back into Megan in the centre, who although she could have taken a shot, passed it to out Nell on the edge of the box.  She took a shot across the keeper and scored in the back corner of the net, putting Spurs two goals up. 

Rebecca Mills came back on the pitch to replace Ellis who again had been injured and Lauren got her chance in the game giving Nell a well deserved breather.  Both girls gave their all to the game in the last ten minutes, working together and it looked as if this teamwork might pay off when following a pass through from Lauren, Bex took the ball down the pitch but unfortunately her shot went wide.  Just before the final whistle it was Lauren who took a shot, but this was well saved by the Luton keeper. 

The whole team were praised for their teamwork and hard work out on the pitch today putting them through to the final against the other semi-final winners QPR.  Megan, who has come a long way this season, was again awarded Player of the Match for putting in a solid performance both in midfield and defence.

diane lunn

tottenham hotspur : -  (rolling subs used)

lauren howland

enfield town  -    
enfield rangers  -    
bedmond ajax  -    
qpr  -   
st. albans city  -   
denham united  -   
hampstead  -       

With QPR now stepping up the pressure, they managed to break through, and had a run at the Spurs area, with Jacqueline McLucas hot on their heels, were met with an equally strong defence with Rebecca Lane (Laney) and Alice Simmonds working well to clear the ball. With all the girls chasing and closing the opposition down, especially Jacqueline and Megan in midfield, Spurs managed to keep the ball possession even, until the ever present danger of the QPR forwards finally managing to break through and had their first shot at goal, but Daniela Charles with a fantastic dive kept the ball out of the goal. 

With Ronnell Humes coming on up front to give Lauren a rest, the girls continued and with the last strike at the Spurs goal in the first half, It was Laney who intercepted the ball and sent it over the cross bar from a great header. 

Spurs weren’t going to let QPR have an easy game, and giving it their all, especially on such a warm day dug deep and were the more dominant team in the last ten minutes of the game, forcing the QPR keeper to make a magnificent save. It was now Ronnell who ran up the pitch, beating the defence and the keeper with a great shot, but unluckily the ball just going wide by a few inches. 

The half time whistle blew and the score was still 0-0.  

With the second half now to play, the game restarted with QPR hungry for their first goal and making the Spurs girls play a more defensive game, with Alice putting in a strong tackle to stop the danger and the girls were keeping the QPR forwards out and forcing them to shoot from outside the area. The first goal of the day went to QPR with a powerful strike from outside the area just beating Dan as she dived across the goal.  

Again the girls showed their true spirit and battled on, and with Ellis Lunn shouting advice and encouragement to her team mates from the side line whilst recovering from an injury received last week.  With Lauren replacing Bex to give her a well earned rest, the girls pushed forward again and with Lauren now passing through to Ronnell, who again took a shot at goal but again was denied by the QPR keeper. 

QPR’s final goal came as a result of a corner, but Spurs would not let this dampen their spirit and continued to put pressure on QPR and again being the more dominant team in the last half of the game, but despite their efforts could not get the ball into the back of the net. 

Well done to all the girls for putting in a fantastic performance and again reducing the score from the previous game against QPR and congratulations to Jacqueline, who was awarded player of the match for putting in such a strong performance on the pitch. 

mark howland

tottenham hotspur : -  (rolling subs used)

lauren howland

enfield town  -    
enfield rangers  -    
bedmond ajax  -    
luton town  -   
st. albans city  -   
denham united  -   
hampstead  -       

After a long spell of away matches, Spurs Ladies today finally returned to their home ground to host Luton for their last league match.  Daniela Charles took her place in goal, Alice Simmonds and Rebecca Lane (Laney) in defence, Jacqueline McLucas was today joined by Megan Jones in centre mid with Ronnell Humes and Ellis Lunn, the captain, in midfield.  Lauren Howland, Rebecca Mills (Bex) and Charlie-Leigh Dixon waited on the touchline. 

Although the outcome of the game wouldn’t affect the runners-up position they’d already achieved, the girls weren’t going to sit back.  The game kicked off and within 30 seconds of the whistle blowing Spurs had taken the ball up the pitch and Nell took a shot from the side which Ellis picked up on the rebound and in front of the keeper, put the ball past her into the net.  It was the first of what would be many goals for Spurs and it wasn’t long before the next one came with Nell scoring, following a great ball passed through from Alice in defence.  Spurs were definitely looking the stronger team with lovely passing and good teamwork. 

With two goals in the bag, Nell came off for a rest and Charlie-Leigh took up her position and it wasn’t long before she got on the score sheet following a corner from Megan.  The score was now 3-0 and Spurs were looking comfortable.  Bex came onto the field, giving Ellis, who was suffering a stitch, a break and it wasn’t long before she got involved passing the ball through to Charlie who took the ball down the centre of the field and released a shot straight into the keepers arms. 

Laney, who had chased down Luton several times, was next to be subbed, with Lauren coming on in midfield and Bex moving up into a defensive position.  Just before the half time whistle there was a goal mouth scramble and despite five shots from the Spurs girls, all from different angles on the goal, the shots were blocked each time and the score remained the same going into half time. 

The game re-started with no changes to the line up but Luton came back looking stronger and unfortunately Megan’s defensive header put the ball in her own goal, putting Luton on the score-sheet.  Luton continued to fight back getting more opportunities on goal, giving Dani a busier second half than the first. 

Despite Luton’s attack, Spurs scored again following the keeper fumbling the ball and Nell taking advantage putting the ball in the net again. 

With a couple more substitutions Ellis and Charlie-Leigh were back in the game replacing Megan and Jac.  With Jac not on the pitch to take a Spurs corner, Ellis stepped up and placed the ball well, in front of the goal and Lauren was on hand to nudge it over the line, giving Spurs their fifth goal of the day. 

Ellis came off again with Jac coming back on the pitch.  With Dani, still having to make saves at the other end of the pitch, Luton were still trying to get back in the game.  However, Spurs hadn’t finished and following a cross into the box from Nell, Bex was in the right position to bounce the ball off the side of her foot into the net.  The final whistle blew with the score 6-1. 

The girls had played a strong game and had enjoyed every minute and went on to celebrate their league runners-up position in style involving a bottle of non-alcoholic fizz !!  Ellis was awarded Player of the Match for a strong game. 

diane lunn

tottenham hotspur : -  (rolling subs used)

lauren howland

enfield town  -    
enfield rangers  -    
bedmond ajax  -    
luton town  -   
qpr  -   
st. albans city  -   
denham united  -   
hampstead  -       

Spurs Ladies today played host to QPR for the final game of the season, the League Cup Final.  The Spurs girls chose to wear their blue tops for this match, as they’d brought them luck against Crystal Palace in the London Cup Final. The team lined up using last week’s starting formation with Daniela Charles in goal, Rebecca Lane (Laney) and Alice Simmonds in defence, Megan Jones joining Jacqueline McLucas (captain) in centre midfield and Ronnell Humes and Ellis Lunn in midfield. 

From the first whistle, QPR lived up to their reputation and immediately went on the attack with Spurs having to defend.  Unfortunately Spurs couldn’t keep QPR at bay today and after 10 minutes, and three attempts on goal, they had scored their first goal.  Within minutes, QPR scored again, this time with a shot from the half way line. Spurs showed their disappointment at going behind so soon and from then on seemed to lose their energy and just couldn’t make their usual impact on the game. 

Just before QPR scored again, Nell was carried off the pitch with an ankle injury and Charlie-Leigh Dixon came on to replace her.  Megan was working hard in defence, closing QPR down.  Jac unfortunately took the full force of the ball in her face and had to come off the pitch with a nose-bleed and Rebecca Mills stepped into her position and she immediately made an impact, working hard to dispossess QPR at any opportunity. 

The half time whistle blew with QPR holding a three goal lead.  Jac was fit enough to return to the pitch at half time.  However, shortly after the game re-commenced QPR had another shot on goal, but this time it went wide. 

Dani was having to make some brave saves to stop QPR from adding to their tally and at the other end Spurs could not convert any opportunities into goals.  It wasn’t long before QPR scored again, bringing the score to 4-0.  Ellis came off for a break and Lauren Howland came on eager to make a difference and it was Lauren who finally got a shot on goal for Spurs, but unfortunately it was saved.  Nell was fit enough to re-join the game and she continued where she had left off, causing QPR problems.

When QPR made the attack to score their next goal, Dani bravely came out of the goal and made a valiant effort to save the ball, but unfortunately suffered a shoulder injury and had to come off the pitch.  Laney stepped up to take the goalie gloves and went on to make a couple of great saves, although unfortunately before the final whistle QPR managed to up their score by two goals to 6-0. 

Spurs Ladies finished League Runners-up and League Cup Runners-up and can be very proud of what they have achieved this season.  Next season will be a whole new game for the girls with a bigger pitch, larger team and that dreaded off-side rule to learn ! 

Well done girls, it’s been a great season and you’ve made your Manager, Coaches, parents, grand-parents and supporters very proud. 

diane lunn

tottenham hotspur : -  (rolling subs used)

lauren howland

enfield town  -    
enfield rangers  -    
bedmond ajax  -    
luton town  -   
qpr  -   
st. albans city  -   
denham united  -   
hampstead  -       

awaiting match report. 

diane lunn

tottenham hotspur : -  (rolling subs used)

lauren howland

enfield town  -    
enfield rangers  -    
bedmond ajax  -    
luton town  -   
qpr  -   
st. albans city  -   
denham united  -   
hampstead  -