Ladies 2nd XI

Match Report

Slaz started brightly, putting Wakefield under early pressure and earning a short corner, although the chance went begging. The game quickly became end-to-end, with both sides creating opportunities and Slaz defending well to keep Wakefield out from their own short corner. Wakefield took the lead after seven minutes, working the ball nicely through midfield before finding the back of the net. Slaz responded well, with Izzy producing a brilliant goal-line clearance to deny Wakefield a second.

The equaliser soon followed! A great tackle from Courtney won possession back, Lucy fed the ball into Mia, who made no mistake to bring Slaz level at around the 12-minute mark. From there, Slaz grew into the game, linking up well across defence, midfield and attack, moving the ball around confidently and keeping Wakefield on their toes. Some excellent defending from the Slaz short-corner unit kept Wakefield at bay, including two more well-defended corners before the break.

Slaz came out for the second half determined to push on, applying plenty of pressure and making some strong tackles through Arina, Courtney and Jess. Mia produced a great interception from a Wakefield hit-out and was unlucky not to turn it into a goal. At the other end, Slaz won a short corner, with Stacey's excellent strike narrowly missing the target. Slaz continued to put Wakefield on the back foot, moving the ball well and looking dangerous going forward. As the game entered the final 10 minutes, however, Wakefield began to apply pressure of their own. Lauren was called into action with some great saves to keep Slaz in the game, while both teams continued to battle through some end-to-end hockey.

With seven minutes remaining, Wakefield were awarded a flick after Ni stopped the ball on the line with her foot. Lauren came up trumps once again with a fantastic save! Ni then made another important contribution, producing a great run-out to shut down a Wakefield short-corner opportunity. There was still time for some lovely attacking play, with Maisie causing problems down the line in what Courtney described as “sexy play”! Slaz won one final short corner with just two minutes left, but unfortunately couldn't find the winner.

A hard-fought 1–1 draw, with plenty of positives to take away. Slaz showed great teamwork, some excellent passing combinations and real determination at both ends of the pitch. Special credit to the defensive unit and Lauren for standing strong under late pressure, while Mia's well-worked equaliser ensured the points were shared.