Girls U15s Brooklands 14 - 14 Stockport
Sponsored by Deans Court Chambers
Scorers:
Lucy (The Rope Ripper) - 5
Mia - 2
Carys - 2
Jess (Hoover/Dyson) - 2
Eva - 3
Katie - 10 saves
Roster: Mia F, Eva H, Carys J (U13), Katie B, Millie S (U13), Poppy S, Fran B, Jess B, Lucy P, Amelie G, Effy H (U13)
The Sun was shining at Brooklands ready for a belting game of lacrosse. Unfortunately, illness took Beau off the roster and the U15s were left with 12 players against Brooklands 13.
Brooklands kindly agreed to a minutes Silence out of respect Stuart Dumbarton (previous U15 manager) who died recently. This was the first U15 since his passing. Stuart was a lovely fella and his death was a great shock to us all. He will be missed.
Brookland's had the stronger warm up and it looked like they would be off to a galloping start. As it happened, they couldn't keep up with Mia in the middle and she dominated from the opening whistle. Mia commanded on the draw and paved the way up front by nailing two in the first quarter. Eva was the quarterback up front and guided the attack while netting two herself. Carys got on the scoresheet early and slotted her first while Brooklands were looking trying to figure out what was happening. A well worked goal from Lucy, assisted by Effy, rocked the Brooklands defence. Katie had four saves in the first quarter alone frustrating the Brooklands attack. 0-6 first quarter.
Brooklands found some rhythm in the second quarter and pegged 4 back. The girls were working extremely hard all over the field with one less sub than the opposition. While thwarting off a Brooklands onslaught in defence, Mia went over on her ankle which didn't look or sound good. Supported by her team and Brooklands parents, Mia left the field and would take a trip to A&E (luckily not broken) and not play anymore in this game. Jess took over the draw position and followed in Mia's footsteps by bossing the centre position. Jess stepped up in more ways than one - she got two goals in the second quarter, won most of the draws and showed how to scoop the ball up like a pro! As a result, she gained the nickname 'Hoover' or 'Dyson' after the great Canadian player Jim 'Hoover' Veltman who was renowned for his amazing ability to pick up ground balls.
Lucy got a taste for the scoresheet and snagged two more and Carys got her second. Three of the five goals were assisted by Fran, Effy and Jess, showing the skill of the overall attack. Amelie, Poppy and Millie stood strong at the back while Brooklands did their best to get back in the fight. Second quarter 4-11.
The third quarter was a Brooklands freight train steaming its way to a 5-1 win with Eva picking up Stockport's 12th goal fed from the Hoover. The girls were getting tired as they were down to eleven players and the going was tough. Brooklands had stepped up the pace and they were desperate to make up the deficit. We switched up middies, defence and attack to spread the load and used a time out to have a well earned rest. The girls fought bravely but Brooklands weren't going away. After a relentless 15 minutes the score would be 9-12 - the Brooklands shadow looming over Stockport going into the final quarter. All momentum was with the home team.
Brooklands had the game in their sights, working to the strength of depth in numbers. The defence rallied and stopped numerous attempts on goal but the incessant barrage was taking its toll on the Stockport eleven. As Brooklands plugged it back, the looks were going around the Stockport team and the parents. Were we going to get turned over in the final quarter due to running out of steam? Brooklands brought it back level at 12 all and the girls had to dig deep. Lucy wasn't happy blasted home her fourth with a feed from Carys. Brooklands retaliated quickly and made it level at 13 all. The pressure was getting to the players and the spectators and it looked like it was going to stay a stalemate till the final whistle until the crushing blow of another Red & Green goal put Stockport on the losing end of the scoreboard for the first time in the game. The girls had done themselves proud and to lose like that while being two players down would be understandable in any game. But this wasn't any game, the girls were pumped and kept plugging away - senior hands Fran and Lucy took it to the wire and Lucy managed to beat the brooklands keep for one last time with a nifty assist from Fran just as the umpire blew for full time. 14-14.
An amazing show of perseverance and dedication throughout by both teams. A true sporting spectacle that was enjoyed by both teams showing class and great skill. Parents from both sides applauded all players with special congratulations for Katie in goal from the opposition crowd.
Thanks you to Brooklands for a great sporting game and to John Hall for umpiring.
