Match report by Kevin Gillespie, thank you 😊
It was a hot afternoon in Southend and Bishops Stortford 6s had a new lineup for the first match of the season. In the pre-match talk, Claire emphasised the press and it soon payed off. The opposition were pinned back by a series of intercepts. The commitment was huge with Kim first to the ball on several occasions and Liv attacking the 16 taker hard (and needing her ankle iced in the process). Léa pushed a few passes up which were well defended. After about 19 mins, Amelia gathered just inside the half way line and drove brilliantly to score a deserved opener. Soon after, Liv forced a short corner but the shot was well saved. Soon after Beth and Liv fixed a long corner and then combined for Liv to score an excellent second. There was one Southend attack, stopped by Gemma and Marshalled out by Claire H. After the water break, Kim had a great shot saved. The half finished with more great pressure from Beth.
The second half started quietly but Grace and Rachel combined to put on some pressure with Emily close with a shot as well. Southend launched their best attack and it produced a save from Emma and a clearance from Eliza. Liv then won the ball high and Léa and Amelia combined for a shot that just went wide. The pressure from Stortford continued and Claire’s shot just slid wide. Amelia then fed Léa whose initial shot was saved but followed up on her first shot to make it 3-0. With the match almost secure, Beth played it out of the back to Amelia who found Liv who rounded a defender and the keeper to bag a brace and the PoM award, which was fully deserved. The final minutes played out on a great 4-0 win.
