When top of the table Charlton came to Bramall Lane on Sunday for our final home match of 2023, a scintillating contest was always a possibility. Whilst that initial hype around a match may not always live up to the billing, Sunday's contest did, and then some! United end 2023 on a four match unbeaten run and knowing that they go into the short break ahead of Spurs having played possibly our best performance of the season. So... How did it all pan out?
Two changes from the Rugby Borough fightback to report on. Fran Stenson returned between the sticks in very good news. However, as the injury gods giveth, they also taketh. Izzy Goodwin missed out after her hat trick in the cup with Sophie Haywood partnering Sigsworth and Rayner at the top end of the pitch. The match kicked off and, despite the loss of Goodwin, United looked very strong indeed in the early exchanges as we kept Charlton pinned in their own half for much of the first fifteen minutes without troubling old foe Rogers between the sticks too much. A corner just before the twenty minute mark saw the first opportunities of the game and they were very good ones indeed. A Jodie Hutton corner caused pinball in the Bramall Lane end box with Tara Bourne and Jess Sigsworth having effort cleared off the line by some impressive last ditch blocks from The Addicks defence. A couple of minutes later, and United would take advantage of a set piece to take the lead! Following a foul on the right hand corner of the Bramall Lane end, Jodie Hutton stepped up and whipped an effort straight past Rogers (there was some question over whether Tara had touched the ball on the way through) to get her third goal in four games! After the start United had made to the contest, the lead was very much deserved. The pressure continued from United with Charlton chasing shadows at times. There was a shout for a penalty on Sigsworth after she was brought down in the box with the ref waving away the protests. The second would come not long after and in spectacular style! Starting in our own half, just about every player in the United XI played a role in getting the ball up the pitch before Hutton tested Rogers from just inside the box. The Charlton keeper parried the ball straight into the path of Ash Hodson to slot home via a deflection off of the arm of a Charlton defender. It was scintillating stuff from United and going into the break with a 2-0 lead was very much well earned! The second period saw Charlton try and get themselves back into the contest but United held firm. Bex Rayner and Jodie Hutton were absolutely superb throughout the contest, but really showed up in the second period as we sustained pressure. Just after the hour however, our backline was breached with Addison pouncing on a bobbling ball to fire home past Stenson to halve the arrears. The work rate was high as United looked to hold onto the lead. Charlton were sniffing for an equaliser with some of our own last ditch defending before Stenson made a cracking save following a header. As the clock wound down and Charlton continued to press, it looked like a defiant United backline had done enough to secure what would have been a major three points against the team setting the pace in the division. However... After playing over the seven allotted minutes of added time, Charlton would get an equaliser in heart breaking fashion. The whistle went a few seconds after the restart and United could be proud of a superb performance that deserved three points. Despite the late heart break. United were superb on Sunday. The first half is up there with some of the best football we've played at The Lane since the permanent move back into the city boundaries. That first half especially was an absolute joy to watch as we simply played Charlton off of the park. The second half was less bombastic than the first, however the defensive effort was still very good as we restricted the visitors to very little. It was gutting to see Charlton get an equaliser but I guess that's the way the cookie crumbles in football. Special mention to Bex Rayner for a superb all around performance from our no.9. Bex ran herself into the ground for the team on Sunday, whilst still managing to incorporate her dazzling close dribbling and little flicks and tricks from her repertoire. Bex absolutely could play at a higher level (I think long term readers of these reviews will back up that assertion!) And hopefully she'll be doing that in a United shirt! Jodie Hutton was also superb, especially in the second period, but it was a real team effort. So even though there might be some slight disappointment at the result. It was still a very positive result all around at The Lane. Lots to build on in the new year. If we play like we did on Sunday, we'll be onto a winner! Until next time, UTB.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorHi my name is John and i will be giving my thoughts on the blades matches and all blades related news in this section Archives
November 2022
Categories |