Macclesfield ladies 4’s 5 Whitchurch ladies 3’s 2

An excellent match to watch with end-to-end play from the start. Lots of great opportunities for both teams. Tilly Windsor scored for Whitchurch in the first half and Freya kellett in the second half. Some excellent passes and communication on the pitch and lots of support from the sideline was appreciated.

Special mentions this week for Sue Read, Jan Teggin and Mel Reid are the glue that holds the team together and all three of them had a smashing match and also guiding the newer players to improve.

Newcomers Megan Hayward and Isla Hearn also excelled this week with some spectacular tackles and great endurance with no subs. Isla Gregory, Tilly Windsor, Esme  Mackreth and Freya Kellet all made some, at times seeming inhuman, runs and won some key tackles. And not forgetting Lexi Morgan and Alice Snaith who put up a great fight in defence.

Player of the match Freya Kellett

Whitchurch ladies 1s 2 Clwb Hoci Eirias ladies 1 5

Whitchurch ladies 1s suffered a 5-2 defeat against Clwb hoci Eirias in a tough home game on Saturday. The away team dominated the first half, scoring a goal early in the game and putting Whitchurch under pressure.

Whitchurch fought back with Lisa Sullivan scoring a solo goal after stealing the ball from an Eirias defender and running into the dee to slot it past the keeper. Eirias followed this with 3 more goals to further their lead in the first half.

Early in the second half, Katie Laffey added another goal for Whitchurch from a strike off a penalty corner, but it was not enough to prevent Eirias from sealing the win with a fifth goal in the final minutes. Whitchurch will look to bounce back in their next few games.

Winnington Park Men’s 3 2 Whitchurch Men’s 2s 3

Following on from good performances in recent weeks Whitchurch travelled to Winnington with a high expectation of gaining points.

Whitchurch pressured from the off, attacking down the wings through Cian Hirst and Oliver Edwards resulting in Will Edwards getting his first goal to give Whitchurch the lead.

Whitchurch were guilty of some complacency, ill-discipline and the loss of Ollie Hogg through injury caused some disorganisation which Winnington took full advantage of to take a lead into the break.

Captain Neil Jones’s halftime talk focussed on work rate and keeping the play as simple as possible, and this seemed to stir Whitchurch into action.

In defence James Partington, Thomas Wyndham-Lewis and Lucas Hill stood firm sweeping up the Winnington attacks whilst Nik Moga, Liam Pallett and Archie Plews made themselves available in the midfield controlling the game and passing the ball around.

Whitchurch maintained possession but struggled to break down a stubborn Winnington defence and it took a 40-yard pass from Craig Hockenhull to be touched past the Winnington keeper by Will Edwards to break the deadlock and bring the scores level.

The game then opened as both teams pushed forward for the win and a crucial three points. Whitchurch broke down the left-hand side via Joe Sheridan who picked out the lead run of Airan Jones who slipped the ball inside to Will Edwards to complete his hattrick.

Winnington pushed for the equaliser in the final minutes of the game but Whitchurch held firm to secure a valuable three points.

Warrington Men’s 2s 0 Whitchurch Men’s 2s 3

Whitchurch travelled to Warrington for a rearranged fixture from before Christmas. The game started out with Warrington controlling play and dominating the younger Whitchurch team.

Whitchurch got drawn into the battle with Warrington in the first half which distracted Whitchurch from their normal passing game and it wasn’t until late in the half that Whitchurch took the lead through Will Edwards.

Captain Neil Jones gave a half time talk and the team responded in the second half. James Partington, Ollie Hogg and Lucas Hill in defence rode the tackles from the Warrington forwards and Whitchurch started to move the ball around in midfield through Nik Moga, Liam Pallet and Thomas Wyndham- Lewis this resulted in Craig Hockenhull picking out Will Edwards in the dee for his second.

Whitchurch started to have more time and space on the ball as Warrington tired and moved the ball quickly down both wings with Cian Hirst and Charlie Edwards causing the Warrington defenders many problems.

Whitchurch continued to push forward and both Joe Sheridan and Airan Jones were unlucky with shots on goal. It finally took some individual skill and luck by Oliver Edwards and Alfie Edwards down the right side of the pitch carving their way through the Warrington defence finally picking out Will Edwards in the dee and his shot took a wicked deflection in the air and over the stranded keeper.

Whitchurch finished the game with a clean sheet and a well-earned three points.

Winnington Park ladies development 3 Whitchurch ladies 3’s 1

This match was tough from start to finish with the ball travelling backwards and forwards up the pitch throughout. The girls were made to move by the opposition’s quick attackers. All the girls put in 100% and chased every opportunity. For the first time this season each tackle was faced with a little more force than usual and it proved fruitful as Whitchurch kept winning possession.

Whitchurch were 2-0 down at half time but the girls really pushed to keep in the game. With newcomer Megan Hayward scoring in the 66^th minute which was beautifully set up with a cross in from Izzy Gilbert and a sweeping ball behind the goalkeeper from Freya Kellett.

Goalie Alice Snaith was with her weight in gold again saving numerous strong shots on goal. The team is really bonding and some excellent passes were made accurately and created some good opportunities.

Whitchurch Ladies 1s 1 Wilmslow ladies 2s 3

Whitchurch took the game to Wilmslow from the off, passing and moving well around the pitch. Within 10 minutes, their dominance resulted in a short corner won by Lisa Sullivan running into the dee. Katie Laffey took a fantastic strike towards the corner of the goal only for it to be saved off the line by their defence.

Whitchurch carried on playing strongly all half with Hayley Kellett creating some great chances from her efforts in the middle of the pitch and Tilly James stopping numerous attacks down the right. Towards the end of the half, POM Hayleigh Busby made a stunning save off the line and the half ended at a very even 0-0.

In the second half, Whitchurch were caught out in the first 10 minutes. Wilmslow won a short corner and converted it after Whitchurch’s defender was penalised for running out too early. This made it tougher, but Whitchurch held their formation well. Caz Wynn kept them in the game with some fantastic saves! Unfortunately, Wilmslow were able to score from two more short corners against Whitchurch.

However, heads held high Whitchurch put pressure on the Wilmslow defence and through a run up the right by Cath Gresty, a pass through to Rachel Chesters and some one two’s between Jas Williams and Poppy Gilbert they created more chances. Poppy Huxley made some great runs up front and was unfortunate not to score as her flick hit the side netting. Minutes later, Holly Edwards narrowly missed out on a goal that almost crossed the line but a foul by Wilmslow resulted in a penalty flick. Poppy Gilbert stepped up and expertly flicked the ball into the top left corner. The game ended 3-1 but Whitchurch could take a lot of positives from how well they played.

Crewe Men’s 3s 5 Whitchurch Men’s 0

Whitchurch travelled away to take on the league leaders. From the start Crewe played the ball around and dominated possession but Whitchurch held firm frustrating the Crewe attacks.

Whitchurch broke against the run of play and Alfie Edwards shot just wide of the Crewe goal but Whitchurch chances were limited throughout the game

Whitchurch worked tirelessly throughout the game rolling players to maintain the level of effort, Craig Hockenhull, Airan Jones, Cian Hirst, Liam Pallet, Adam Rance and Nik Moga chasing down every Crewe attack.

Crewe were clinical and punished Whitchurch for any lapse of concentration or mistake and took a three-goal lead into the break.

The half time talk was positive and focused on doing the same things as the first half.

With the defence of Thomas Wyndham-Lewis, Lucas Hill, Archie Plews and Ollie Hogg making tackle after tackle Whitchurch stood firm for large parts of the game. With captain Neil Jones pulling off some excellent saves in goal.

Whitchurch put everything into the game and when James Partington produced a fine tackle followed by a collision of heads with the Crewe attacker and subsequently left the pitch the Whitchurch team re-organised and carried on.

Oliver and Charlie Edwards playing on the wings provided outlets to the pressured Whitchurch team holding the ball and providing opportunities to relieve the Crewe pressure.

Whitchurch finally broke through the Crewe defence and brought a fine double save from a Joe Sherridan shot and follow up from Cian Hirst.

At the end of the game Whitchurch again took many positives from their performance against a strong Crewe side and look forward to the remaining season as they continue to improve.

Whitchurch ladies 2s 6 Crewe ladies 3s 2

Whitchurch returned to winning ways this week with a fine victory over their local rivals.

The first half was a tight close affair as neither team managed to gain control of the game and it was very open and end to end. Heidi Groom managed to score a brace and the scores at the break were level.

Whitchurch re-organised their formation at half time bringing Cath Reece-Gresty back into defence alongside Gayle Ladd and this added more balance to the Whitchurch side.

Whitchurch seemed to have more time on the ball allowing the midfield of Massie Bennett, Eleanor Beecher and Julie Parsons to get their heads up and pick out passes to the forward players. Freya Gresty was found unmarked outside the dee and drove in and scored to give Whitchurch the lead.

Within minutes Gresty turned provider, picking out Lucy Chadwick on the back post who tapped into the Crewe goal.

Goalkeeper Phoebe Gregory was left with limited action as Martha Teggin and Hermione Ball swept up the Crewe attacks and gave the ball to Lucy Hearn to attack down the wing.

Whitchurch raised their game and further goals from Gresty and Groom took the game away from Crewe.

Whitchurch were pleased to be back to winning ways and ready for their next game.