L1 v Kingston upon Hull

The first friendly game of a season is always a challenge to perform well at, and especially with a transformed team, new coach and formation and only 3 hours training under our belt, we entered the game against Kingston-Upon-Hull Ladies with the attitude to learn and to enjoy. However, every single member of Chapeltown Ladies 1's rose to the challenge and we performed well above expectations to finish with a solid 2-2 draw

It was an unexpected and delayed start for the Ladies 1st due to the lack of opposition, that damn M62! After an extended warm up, we could no longer postpone the match so half an hour late the game started; a full chap side, only half a team for Kingston upon Hull.

Chap started strong, kept great possession and used the space wisely. Being the lovely people we are, we thoughtfully allowed long corners instead of shorts so we "didn't kill anyone" due to the keepers absence.

After a short burst of attack from the opposition, Chap regained possession and allowed a break for Amie G, who didn't disappoint. Amie fired the ball past the last defenders stick and into the back of the net.

Reinforcements from Kingston upon Hull arrived meaning the other side had a set of fresh legs for the second half. A quick and informative team talk from Tom lead us into the second half with confidence (perhaps not Arg with her egg on her arm after a rather hard ball to the elbow).

With a full team of the opposition now, the game was fully on for the second half! We battled and battled throughout and never settled for a lost ball. Our quick passes and linking play tired and confused our opposition, giving Chapeltown plenty of ball possession. We focused on our movement off the ball just as much as on the ball, meaning space opened up for the potential of more goals. A quickly took free hit from the opposition resulted in Hull scoring from a back post touch in. After Hull equalised to make it 1-1, Sophie Greenfield ecstatically scored Chapeltown's second goal of the game to give us a narrow lead once again. We won a number of short corners, lending us the chance to practice and improve from Wednesday's training. We battled through a torrential downpour, which left every one of us looking like we had just got out of the shower rather than playing hockey, but I guess that's hockey weather for you! With only a few minutes to go, Hull unfortunately scored the final goal of the match, bringing the final score back to a draw of 2-2. This was a brilliant result for Chapeltown though; we gave our all and rose to what the challenge of a new team look and formation brought. This amazingly executed game has given us a solid base to only improve from for the rest of the season. Now bring on our next "friendly" against Chapeltown Men's 3's next week! The game is on:)

Written by Megan Howford, Ellie Bradley, Cerys Christlo and Hannah Hinchliffe