This friendly match between two previously undefeated teams was much anticipated.  Spurs came back from their trip down the A13 with their reputation and record  intact, having secured a surprising comfortable win.  New girl Georgia Fairs [unnumbered] began her first match in a team without extra players for substitutes, as Spurs were without six members of their squad for various reasons.

All the scoring in this unusual match - eleven goals - came in the first half.

There was a flurry of early goals, the first from a centre by Georgia Miller which captain Phoebe Guiver hit home.  Then Georgia herself benefited from a penetrating dribble by Amy Runciman, as she beat three defenders before passing the ball in.   The home defence, which had conceded little all season, was then beaten again after six minutes when Phoebe had the ball laid back to her and hit the net with a strong shot.

Two more goals followed.  Louisa Fox collected a long pass and, with a good solo effort, ran forward to score and then Phoebe made it five - and three for herself - from a corner.

The Spurs defence to this point had been in overall control, but Thurrock were able to open their account with a goal against the run of play.

Ranks were quickly closed and goalie Lauren Holman rarely touched the ball again.  Jemma McCarthy, Alison Woodward, Helena Scotland, and Georgia Fairs closely marked the home attackers.  Thurrock used a following wind
to get the ball into the opposing half and the high bouncing ball did present some problems at first, but the players covered each other comprehensively.

The midfield was increasing dominant with Femi Elisery making some positive through-passes.  One of these resulted in another goal for Georgia Miller to score.   Next Lou repeated her previously effort with another solo run and goal.   Femi then got a pass from Phoebe to put the ball past the goalie and make it eight, before Georgia Miller consolidated a corner to complete her hat trick.  The scoring was completed when Amy took advantage of a poor goal-kick to net the ball.

10-1 at half time and in the second session Spurs defence assumed complete control.   Ally and Gemma  tightly marked the attackers until they gave up and went back to their own half.    Georgia Fairs and Helena meanwhile
were playing up field to support the forwards.  

With the wind against them and playing up a slight slope, Thurrock did not look like troubling Lauren in goal, they were pinned into their own half.

At the other end Charlee Vaz was foraging down the right wing and had the beating of the defenders.  With the others, she pummelled the home goal, but there was to be no more goals in the match.  There were corners aplenty and a few off-sides as well, but the game ended with Spurs still keeping up the pressure to no avail.

After the match, Femi commented, "It was good.  We played well and demonstrated how to play good football ".  Peter Maynard, coach, said "This was against the Essex champions, who have been playing strongly all the year, so all the team are to be congratulated."

ALAN WOODWARD

Cambridge City  -    
Tottenham Hotspur Whites  -    
Harvesters  -    
Enfield Town A  -    
Hemel Hempstead  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Luton Town  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -    

Spurs resumed their league programme with a home match against middle of the table Hemel but without regular goalkeeper  Naomi  Coulson,  Alison Woodward deputising.  Charlee Vaz was substitute at the start.

Showing the brilliant form of recent friendly games, the team quickly snapped into gear with a goal in the first minute by Louisa  Fox.  Soon after, a cross from a corner was headed on by captain Phoebe Guiver and Georgia Miller controlled the ball before firing it into the net.

The next goal was typical of the passing movement of the team - Samantha Delves passed to Jemma McCarthy, who sent it on to Georgia, then to Lou and finally Amy Runciman who scored with an unstoppable shot.  A demonstration of successful passing and one that was repeated many times.  There were two more goals before half time.  Amy and Lou both got their second, the latter being an excellent solo run with the ball before netting it.

The Spurs defence meanwhile was coping with the wind driven high balls and Ally got only one touch of the ball in these early stages.  Hemel were generally confined to their own half, as the defenders moved up quickly.  Helena Scotland intercepted numerous passes, as did Jemma and sent the ball back up field.  Monique Thompson managed to make her long throws against the elements and Femi Elisery was able to use her left foot to release the attackers.

Both Georgia and Chloe Smith were both making flourishing runs down their respective wings to send passes towards the hard pressed goalie and the whistle blew with Spurs still on the attack.

Five nil at the half time  and after the break Charlee Vaz came on with Monique going off.  During the second half, the weather got worse, with gale force gusts of wind and rain spitting down.  Spurs were relentless however and no sooner had play re-started than Lou notched up her hat-trick.  Next Chloe quickly opened her account with a clever shot into the corner of the net, as the visitors goal was peppered with attempts.  Phoebe marshalled the midfield and little escaped her attention, as Femi played on the left side with much the same effectiveness.

The defence was changed twice in this period with Monique coming on and Sam going off, then coming on again for Lou.  Jemma and Monique held the line firm as the pressure began to tell.  The wind prevented any clearance from the Hemel goal where the keeper, injured in a collision, was hard at work.  The visitors were pinned into the last third of the pitch and Ally in the Spurs goal was not called upon at all.

The corners and near misses came aplenty from Amy escaping the off-side trap, Georgia teasing her opponents with her quick darts down the touchline, Helena coming up from the back and Sam sending long balls into the goalmouth.  The following wind often took the ball out of play, but there was time for one last success. Charlee collected to ball, had her first attempt saved but from the re-bound shot past the keeper to make it eight.

At the whistle, Spurs had enjoyed much of the possession of the ball and their corner tally nearly reached double figures.  Charlee commented, "I thought the team as a whole played well, lots of passing and I was pleased to score my first goal."   Paul Fox, manager and coach, summed it up "It was a hard match on a cold day."  

Spurs stay top of the table over the Easter break.
 

ALAN WOODWARD

Cambridge City  -    
Tottenham Hotspur Whites  -    
Harvesters  -    
Enfield Town A  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Luton Town  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -    

EASTER 2008 SPORTS CLUB INTERNATIONAL TOURNAMENT

This contest - the third major one in three years - was based on Camber Sands over 22 and 23 March.  The weather was quite the worst this reporter has experienced in several years, being cold, with showers of rain, hail and snow, and very strong gusts of wind on the first day.  The pitch was heavy with mud.

There were five teams in our group and we played the others twice, eight games in all.  The duration was ten minutes each half, for the 7 a side teams.   Paul Fox, manager and coach, experimented with a rotational system which worked tolerable well, a tribute to the ten players.  In the last match, goalie Alison Woodward came out and opened the scoring, Louisa Fox putting on the green jersey.  Phoebe Guiver captained the team impeccably as usual.

In the matches against Footscray Lions, Eastbourne Borough, Pevensey and Westham JFC and Grasshoppers  Juniors FC, 38 goals were scored and 3 conceded. 
Spurs scorers were Chloe Smith 10; Amy Runciman 7; Georgia Miller 6; Hannah Mills, Phoebe Guiver and Louisa Fox  4 each; Alison Woodward 2 and one own goal. 
The defensive trio of Samantha Delves, Monique Thompson and Jemma McCarthy played solidly across the back, with little escaping their attention.

Winning seven matches and drawing one, the squad won their section comfortably, collecting their awards and Cup from the guest presenter Neil "Razor" Ruddock.  He was still as lively as ever. 

Pevensey and Westham JFC gave out small pennants to participant teams, a nice gesture. 

The girls deserve congratulations for a sterling performance in adverse conditions and should return to the League and Cup matches with determination.

Squad (using rolling substitutes) :
Alison Woodward, Samantha Delves, Monique Thompson, Jemma McCarthy, Phoebe Guiver [c], Louisa Fox, Chloe Smith, Georgia Miller, Hannah Mills, Amy Runciman.

ALAN WOODWARD

The team  entered  the last stages of the season with a quarter final Cup match against another well placed side, Cambridge City.  Charlee Vaz and Alison Woodward started as substitutes.

The scoring began quickly with the visitors being awarded a penalty which resulted in a goal after a minute.  After that, the play switched to the other end, as Spurs chalked up five goals before half time.  The first two were scored by Amy Runciman, the next from a penalty by Louisa Fox and another when the same player converted a through pass and rounded the keeper who had come right out.   Finally a poor goal kick out was collected by Chloe Smith to run in and score.

Spurs defence meanwhile was playing three across the pitch - Samantha Delves, Helena Scotland and Monique  Thompson  - with Jemma McCarthy as stand in goalkeeper.  After the opening minutes, she had little to do as the defenders cut out passes to keep the visitors pinned in their own half.  Georgia Miller and Chloe were repeatedly breaking down the left and right wings respectively, while Hannah Mills, captain Phoebe Guiver and Femi Elisery were probing the visitors defence.

5-1 at half time, after which Sam came off and Charlee Vaz came on.  Spurs, now playing a 3-5-2 formation, kept up the pressure and again began scoring.  Amy completed her hat trick on 32 minutes, before going off and allowing Ally on.  Lou got her hat-trick from a pass by Georgia then Phoebe scored two goals - one a long shot and secondly by heading in a rebound.   Chloe was injured and went off, with Sam returning and quickly scoring  from a clever corner by Lou.   Femi completed the goal tally when she intercepted a goal kick and sent the ball straight back to make it 11-1.

Ally had an unproductive afternoon but did force a brilliant save by the hard pressed keeper, and Hannah worked  tirelessly in midfield, but did not score.

At the other end, Jemma in goal did not touch the ball at all in the second half, Monique and Helena marshalled the defence with 100% efficiency, and the former's long throws-ins frequently took Cambridge by surprise.  Overall, they dominated their own territory, making practically no mistakes.

At the whistle, the Spurs girls were still passing and pressing forward.  They had won 10 corners without reply and enjoyed a majority of possession.  The team go forward to the semi finals with some confidence and retain their leadership of the league.

ALAN WOODWARD

Enfield Town A  14     Luton Town  0    
Queens Park Rangers  4     Tottenham Hotspur Whites  0    

Cambridge City  -    
Tottenham Hotspur Whites  -    
Harvesters  -    
Enfield Town A  -    
Hemel Hempstead  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -    

Gloucestershire turned out to be a good all round team with no obvious weaknesses.  Played over three sessions of 25 minutes, the game offered a chance to try new combinations and players.   Alison Woodward and Helena Scotland began as substitutes, Hannah Mills was injured.

It was 20 minutes before Spurs opened the scoring, with a well taken goal by Georgia Miller who collected the ball  and run strongly  forward before netting it.   The Spurs defenders - Naomi Coulson, playing outfield,  Monique  Thompson, Jemma McCarthy and Kelsey Barron - proved as difficult to penetrate as in previous matches and stand-in keeper Lauren Holman was not seriously troubled.  For the attack, both Chloe Smith and Louisa Fox went close after good work by Samantha Delves, but the score stayed at the single goal until the end of the first session.

The second period, with a changed formation, was more fruitful.  Ally scored two goals, though one could possibly  be an own goal, and Georgia added her second from a clever pass by Sam.   Finally Lou scored from a powerful long shot right on the whistle to make it five.  Defensively Jemma made a couple of crucial last ditch interventions, as did Helena Scotland and captain Phoebe Guiver was dominant in the middle of the field, getting everywhere

In the last third of the game, Gloucester staged a minor revival.  But first of all Chloe scored what some would regard as the best individual effort of the match with a high shot over the goalkeeper.  Spurs back three were coping with the occasional forays from Gloucester, but a quick breakaway did result in a goal for the visitors.  Otherwise various combinations of Kelsey, Monique, Naomi and Jemma were holding the line firmly and Helena was regularly venturing up field. Phoebe continued as midfield dynamo.

The scoring pattern was resumed.  Amy Runciman seized on a poor clearance from the keeper to make it seven and then Lou scored her second when she finished off a superb passing sequence that involved half the team.  Lastly, Amy put the ball away from a goalmouth scramble to finish the successes at 9-1.   Sam was injured at the end, joining Hannah on the bench.

Spurs had amassed a large number of corners with a solitary reply, with the ball possession count also just in their favour.    Lauren commented, "We played well, especially at the end, and I think I did alright in goal."   Paul Fox,  manager and coach, said, "It was a good competitive match."

Spurs go marching on to the season's end.

ALAN WOODWARD

Cambridge City  -    
Tottenham Hotspur Whites  -    
Harvesters  -    
Enfield Town A  -    
Hemel Hempstead  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Luton Town  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -    

ALAN WOODWARD

Cambridge City  -    
Luton Town  1     Tottenham Hotspur Whites  5    
Harvesters  -    
Enfield Town A  -    
Hemel Hempstead  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -    

This League Cup semi final match between the two strongest teams left in the competition was the scene of the first defeat this season for the Tottenham team.   Undefeated in League, Cup and friendlies, Spurs battled strongly and were only defeated by what can be described as a very disputed goal.   Alison Woodward and Femi Elisery began the match as substitutes and the game was well under way before the first goal.

This came as a result of a corner kick by Louisa Fox.  The centre was turned into the net by Hannah Mills to put the home team one nil up.  Shortly after this Amy Runciman went very close to scoring with a clever shot that went just over the bar.  All the time, Enfield were mounting consistent attacks on the home team and probably enjoyed a slight majority of possession.  They attacked relentlessly and Spurs were forced back to their own half.

The stars in this performance were the defence  - Samantha Delves, Helena Scotland, Monique Thompson and above all Jemma McCarthy, held back the attackers quite comprehensively.  The defenders were heading, tackling, intercepting and passing forward very effectively.  Goalkeeper Naomi Coulson had to make some important saves and the midfield duo of captain Phoebe Guiver and Lou were called back to assist.

The one area where Spurs were dangerous was in quick breaks into the Enfield half.  Both Chloe Smith and Georgia Miller down the right and left wings respectively were heading forages to the opposition bye-line, with the aid of some intricate short passing and determined running.  These kept the game in balance and at the break, the score was still 1-0.   Just before the whistle, Femi Elisery came on and Helena went off.

In the second half Enfield kept up the pressure.  Monique was kept busy with blocking moves and long throws, Sam was forced into some brave headers, but again it was Jemma who repeated provided several last ditch saves.  All the pressure was likely to be rewarded and the equaliser came from one of many corners, midway through the half.  One  all, but Femi was trying to make initiatives down the centre and Amy doing likewise, but both were repeatedly turned back by the visitors' defence.

The decisive moment in the game came when Enfield mounted another attack which Phoebe strongly resisted   The ball was outside the penalty area and was contested by two players using equal force and methods - a classic 50-50 ball.  Inexplicably, a free kick as awarded against Tottenham and the resulting shot was placed over the keeper into the net.   Prior to this, Naomi had made several crucial saves to thwart the visitors and she could not be blamed for the goal .

Despite this disputed decision Spurs mounted counter attacks, as Alison Woodward came on the replace Georgia.  A free-kick by Lou was somehow scrambled away and Chloe was only stopped on the line.  The game ended much as it had begun, with both sides pushing forward and very little to choose between them. 

Next week the League leaders return to the fight to keep the title.

ALAN WOODWARD

Cambridge City  -    
Tottenham Hotspur Whites  -    
Harvesters  -    
Enfield Town A  -    
Hemel Hempstead  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Luton Town  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -    

Alison Woodward began as substitute on a cold, rainy pitch at Luton.  

The scoring opened after 10 minutes when Georgia Miller side footed the ball into the net and that ended the goals for the first session, though Spurs did have two goals disallowed for offside from Hannah Mills and Georgia.  The visitors dominated this half with both Louisa Fox and Amy Runciman going close.

The defence comfortably contained Luton, with goalie Naomi Coulson having little to do.  Otherwise Samantha Delves, Monique Thompson and Helena Scotland gave solid support to Jemma McCarthy, marshalling the back four as usual.  The cover that the players gave each other kept the home team out of the penalty area for the rest of the half.

1 -0 at the break and after that Ally came on to replace Monique.  Spurs really applied the pressure now. 

After Chloe Smith narrowly missed and Amy headed over, there were goals in quick succession from Amy herself [2], Phoebe [2] and Chloe [2].  Georgia added her second as well to make it eight.  At least two of these came from poor goal kicks and Chloe also won the ball and scored after dispossessing a defender and running forward.  Perhaps the pick of the goals was a powerful volley from the edge of the box by Phoebe.

The defence was more successful this half.  Sam and Ally went forward as Luton were pinned back in the last third of the pitch, Ally also taking throw-ins in Monique's absence.  Helena and Lou sent in long shots that worried the opposing goalkeeper.  Jemma had a quieter half and Naomi was inactive for long periods.

At the end, Spurs had won five corners with one in reply and had the bulk of the possession.  Captain Phoebe Guiver commented, "We played well, but better in the second half.  I scored what I think was a good goal." 

Spurs remain at the top and look forward to the final match of the season.

ALAN WOODWARD

Cambridge City  -    
Tottenham Hotspur Whites  -    
Harvesters  -    
Enfield Town A  -    
Hemel Hempstead  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -    

This friendly match resulted in a narrow win for Spurs, which was a creditable result against a Centre of Excellence team.  Kelsey Barron and Naomi Coulson began the match as substitutes but there was no score in the first 20 minutes session.  In truth things were evenly balanced with Spurs perhaps having a majority of possession.  Louisa Fox and Amy Runciman went close, but the usual Spurs defensive formation played well enough to leave the goalie Lauren Holman not seriously troubled.  Jemma McCarthy and Helena Scotland stopped incoming forwards with timely tackles - Alison Woodward and Monique Thompson acting in support, with short passes

Both Georgia Miller and Chloe Smith were making successful runs down the wings.  The midfield of Samantha Delves and and captain Phoebe Guiver kept up feeding passes forward but at the first break it was still deadlock, at nil all.

Next Ally and Sam came off and  Kelsey and  Naomi came on.  The pressure was kept on, but it was finally Chloe who put the Blues ahead on 25 minutes, with a fine goal.  Georgia watched her header go just wide and her following shot do likewise and Lou was also unlucky.  Georgia was then injured and went off, to be replaced by Sam as the play went from one end to the other in quick succession.

The defence was holding firm.  Monique's long throw ins were a sources of constant confusion for Norwich, who were now mounting more and more attacks.  Remarkably few got through in fact, as Kelsey joined the defensive wall.

In the last session, after the second break, the visitors finally equalised with a scrambled goal off the post.  Ally came on as Naomi went off and joined the attack after 50 minutes.  Chloe was still getting to the by-line and her crosses caused all sorts of alarm.  Eventually, Sam made another of her surges forward, centred and Lou was there to turn the ball into the net.

The play intensified in the last five minutes, despite the tiredness that was all too apparent.  Phoebe was a tower of strength and Amy kept running into open positions.   Sam and Helena went forward for last pushes, as the Norwich forwards counter attacked.  Spurs defence was solid to the last whistle.  In the end the corner tally was about equal, with the home side just shading it in terms of possession.

In her comments, Ally said, "We should have talked more but the performance was reasonable considering yesterday's match and the temperature." 

Spurs could regard this as good preparation for the last fixture; a match to decide the League title against Enfield.

ALAN WOODWARD

This match between Tottenham Hotspur U12 Blues and Enfield Town Ladies U12 A was the championship decider between the top teams in Division One and a tight contest was anticipated.  That was what happened and the result was the first defeat for the U12s in the league this season, meaning that Enfield won the championship title.  Alison Woodward and Helena Scotland were the substitutes.

The visitors probably had the edge in the contest, as they scored an early goal and then went further ahead as a result of a disputed award - this time for a penalty.  Goalkeeper Naomi Coulson pulled off a magnificent save, but the rebound was converted to make it 0-2.  Spurs rallied and counter attacked energetically.  After Chloe Smith had sent over some dangerous centres and Louisa Fox and Amy Runciman went close, it was finally Hannah Mills who scored from a corner by Lou.  This was right on half time and the score was 1-2 at the break.

In the second half, Samantha Delves came off and Helena came on.  Before the new defence had time to settle in, Enfield widened the gap with another goal to make it 1-3, but the Spurs defence, around Jemma McCarthy and Monique  Thompson, held the line for much of the next session.  Captain Phoebe Guiver was very diligent in the midfield and Georgia Miller tried some runs down the left wing.  Both sides attacked and counter attacked quickly, with Chloe, Lou and Amy recording near misses.

As the end approached, this end-to-end play had its results.  On 61 minutes, Lou scored from a poor clearance, but Enfield retaliated immediately to make it 2-4.  At the final whistle of the season, Enfield had won the match and the league title, in a contest that was a credit to both teams.

The match was memorable in another way as it was the final league appearance of a Spurs team which had been together for several years; for some girls since the Under-9 Development Squad.  Of course, it had been added to and the end result was a team that had taken the skill of passing to a very high level.  It's achievements in both League and Cup and in numerous tournaments also reached a high level. 

The team will go on and next year is already being planned for - with a record like this, it deserves to.

ALAN WOODWARD

Cambridge City  -    
Tottenham Hotspur Whites  -    
Harvesters  -    
Hemel Hempstead  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Luton Town  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -    

-

Cambridge City  -    
Tottenham Hotspur Whites  -    
Harvesters  -    
Enfield Town A  -    
Hemel Hempstead  -    
Denham United  -    
Harpenden Blues  -    
Luton Town  -    
Queens Park Rangers  -