10 October 2016
The U14s secured a credible 1-1 draw against a strong Cheadle Hulme side who dominated large periods of the game as a much changed KGS side struggled to keep possession. Despite their dominance and attacking play, Cheadle Hulme struggled to break through a disciplined and committed KGS defence. Imogen Moss, Olivia Bickerstaff, Jemima Towers and Alesha Mansfield worked tirelessly to repel the Cheadle attacks and were well supported by the midfield of Lily Butcher, Anna Wilkinson, Beth Dowbiggin and Hannah Doyle. When Cheadle did manage to break through the KGS defence they were thwarted by an inspired Mia Brennand who made numerous spectacular saves.
Cheadle took the lead in the first half as they worked the ball well into the D to leave their centre forward with a tap in at the far post. KGS hit back just before the half time break as Lizzie Coulston showed great pace and then great composure to break away from the Cheadle defence before slotting the ball calmly into the bottom corner. In the second half, KGS continued to pressure the Cheadle players with both Margaret Hodgson and Charlotte Cross working hard at left forward to prevent Cheadle launching another wave of attack. Despite coming under heavy pressure for most of the second half, the KGS girls held on for an impressive draw.
This was a truly gutsy performance that demonstrated the ‘never say die’ attitude of all the girls who participated and they thoroughly deserved to draw the game.
U12 Hockey
The U12 teams had their first fixtures on Saturday against Cheadle Hulme. The A team dominated from the first whistle and converted their first goal within the first few seconds of the match! They continued to play the ball around opening up spaces all over the pitch to enable them to convert more and more goals. The final score was 11-0 to KGS, a great start to what we are sure will be a successful season.
The B team also had a positive start to their season with this being the first competitive match for some players. They controlled the ball well and made some excellent tackles in defence. Cheadle opened the score with a great goal from a short corner rebound.
The KGS girls didn't give up and applied pressure to the Cheadle defence resulting in a goal from Hollie John leaving the final score at 1-1.
U15 lost 1-0
The U15's battled superbly against last year’s National finalists Cheadle Hulme. They had to defend for much of the first half but they were calm composed and disciplined. The Kirkham girls played with real grit and determination and the score was 0-0 at half time. In the second half the girls played with real guts and started to threaten the Cheadle defence! The game became end to end and opened up, unfortunately Cheadle made a piecing counter attack with 3 minutes to go and scored to put Cheadle 1-0 up. The
Kirkham girls were gutted to concede so late in the game after a fantastic effort.
Well done girls for a terrific game, this team are getting stronger and stronger every week!
1st XI Won 2-1
Kirkham 1st XI had a slow start against a strong Cheadle side however after 10 minutes the girls settled and started to play. They defended superbly as a complete unit, disciplined, calm and composed. Freya Bennett was extremely strong in goal organising the defence, captain Amelia Dalzelle was a real force at the back together with Freya Powell, Molly Bedford and Amy Barrow. The midfield worked tirelessly up and down the pitch, Charlotte McDonald dominated in the centre of the pitch, Evie Turner made numerous dynamic runs on the right, Lucie Ethell was rock solid on the right and Maddie Fox proved her versatility as she moved wherever she was needed and was a real asset to the team!
Alex Harwood and Lauren Williamson made piercing runs and Hannah Mears caused chaos up front! Kirkham went 1.0 up in the first half with a superbly worked short corner and goal from Amelia Dalzelle.
The second half Cheadle hit them hard and the game was end to end. Kirkham continued to battle playing some terrific hockey and scored a second goal from another short corner, Amelia Dalzelle fired the ball into the bottom corner, 2-0 up! Cheadle came back hard and pulled one back late in the second half. Final score at the end of this terrific game was 2-1 to KGS!
U13 XI Hockey v Cheadle Hulme Won 2-1
This was a match of two halves. In the first half KGS were slow to respond. In the second half, they showed what they made of! Our U13 hockey team had a shaky start to this week’s game against Cheadle. Players were slow to respond when possession went from attack to defence and vice versa. This meant we didn’t get back quickly enough to defend or close down the opposition when possession was lost. Defence drifted into other players’ space leaving gaps on the pitch which Cheadle took advantage of. This allowed Cheadle to score the first goal, when the Cheadle forwards broke away and the KGS defence were outnumbered in the ‘D’. However, once KGS had equalised with a goal on the left post made by Kirsty Williams, the team seemed to settle and start to work together.
Towards the end of the first half and into the second, KGS demonstrated what they were really capable of. Beth Dowbiggin, as CM, Libby Baxter as CD and Izzy Kane as SW provided a strong spine down the middle from where they made great passes out to the midfield, Isabella Harkins RM and Aggie Barker Mills, LM. The mids in turn made runs and passes to the forward line and Lexie Fraser at RF in particular, looked dangerous, displaying great skill and speed to outwit the Cheadle defence and make crosses into the ‘D’. KGS went up 2 – 1 by converting a short corner, struck beautifully by Beth from top ‘D’. If the U13 can maintain and develop the level of play they showed in the second half, they will have a successful season. Well done to all the girls.
