Post by Dave on Oct 23, 2022 17:52:13 GMT
Paignton Villa Ladies V Plainmoor Ladies 23rd October 2022
Match Referee Paul Sharples
Final Score Paignton Villa Ladies 1 Plainmoor Ladies 5
At five past two this afternoon I was asking myself if I was mad. Here I was on the touchline of a football pitch at Whiterock in the middle of a monsoon. Just thirty five minutes earlier I had the remote control in my hand looking for a good film on Prime Video. Central heating on as well, so how did I end up where I did? Just my crazy love for football I guess and my wish to see the new Paignton Villa ladies team progress.
You have to be impressed with the dedication to duty shown by so many of our local referees. Paul did the Waldon V WBB game yesterday in the rain and here he was on a Sunday afternoon getting soaking wet again. For me shooting in such heavy rain has produced some interesting shots, but I was glad for a much dryer second half.
I covered a number of Plainmoor Ladies games in 2015, it was good to see they still have the same manager who was as passionate today as he was back then. The then new Buckland Woman’s team were in their first season, a team made up of mostly former Torquay United Woman players. They had all walked away from the Torquay club for reasons I will not go into here.
Even while the Buckland team had so many players who had played in a higher league, as a new club they had to start at the bottom. With players like Laura Gough in the side they were banging in goals for fun. Often twenty plus in some games but the Plainmoor ladies did well to keep their home match score down to a eleven goals to one defeat. Big Roy was there that day, such was his love for Buckland Athletic and all the people who played for his club.
I found a nice bush to hide myself in as best as I could to try and keep as dry as possible. Paul got the game underway and it did not take long for Plainmoor to take the lead. Their number 10 was the player of the match for me. She picked up the ball just inside the Villa half. Poked the ball past her marker and ran past her at pace. She was now heading for goal and as she got into the Villa box, picked her spot and fired the ball home.
She played a big part in goal number two, the neatest inside pass played in number 18 on the right hand side of the Villa box. She fired a low shot across the Villa keeper into the far corner of the net.
The Villa side had a few new faces in it I have not seen before, as a team they were working hard and looked much improved on their last game I was at.
They then reduced Plainmoor’s lead back to a single goal. The ball had been played into the right hand side of the Plainmoor box. The keeper came rushing out and a Villa lady was rushing in. They both ended up in a heat and the ball flew back out of the box to the right hand side. Villa’s number 17 hit it from 25 yards out high into the roof of the net.The keeper had stayed down on the deck and needed treatment before she was able to carry on.
Could Villa get back onto level terms? Sadly not and their keeper made a good save low down but spilled the ball. The Plainmoor number 11 was there to tap the loose ball over the line.
Paul blew up for the end of the first half as the rain stopped and a better second half weather wise looked likely.
Villa were not able to create much in the second half and went further behind when their keeper made a poor kick out straight to the Plainmoor number 5. She was 20 yards out and hit a powerful high shot that proved to high for the Villa keeper into the roof of the net.
The Plainmoor number 10 then got her second goal of the match. Played into the right hand side of the Villa box she got a shot away that was blocked by the keeper. But the loose ball came back to number ten to fire home.
So the game ended and another defeat for the Villa ladies, but this is their very first season and the improvement is clear to see. It was good to see Plainmoor Ladies still going strong and looking a much improved side also.
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