Date

Result

Competition

Sat Sept 11

 Chester-le-Street 3  Leeds 1

 Inter-District 7 a Side

In addition to the traditional pre-season friendly the boys play against Leeds District, the girls began their campaign with a similar pre-season friendly against a Leeds team at Lumley Junior School, ith the game only being 7 a side as opposed to boys' 11 a side 

Having only got some of the girls together two days before the game, it was envisaged to be a tough encounter.  Nevertheless, C-L-S started the brighter and put Leeds under early pressure.  With some very strong and quick running, Anna Smith playing up front never gave the Leeds defence or keeper any time on the ball.  A strong midfield of Sarah Taylor, Hannah Catherine and Jade Hutchinson made sure there was constant pressure on the Leeds team and is was no surprise as player of the game, Jade, provided the cross from the left which caused problems in the Leeds defence.  A loose ball when Leeds failed to clear was picked up by Hannah Catherine whose strong first time shot found the net to put C-L-S 1-0 up.  Good work from the back two of Gemma Younger and Katie Wallace often frustrated the Leeds strikers and left the C-L-S keeper Eleanor Catherine with little to do.

 In the second period, Leeds came back stronger but some good passing play and moves from C-L-S again put pressure on Leeds.  A similar move down the left with yet another great run from Jade, found Sarah at the back post and her strongly hit shot put C-L-S 2-0 up.  With C-L-S having a squad of 11 for the game, they took full advantage of this with Anna Knowles, Lydia Bell, Neve Jackson and Holly Darkings  all playing their part when asked and were just as effective.  Leeds however, never gave up and pulled a goal back with a well taken goal.        

 With Hannah Catherine taking over in goal from her twin sister for the 3^rd period, Eleanor was now taking full advantage of this opportunity in midfield.  Within seconds from the start, Jade ran through a static Leeds defence and her crisp shot beat the keeper to take a 3-1 lead.  Leeds still came back strongly and good tackles from Lydia and Holly prevented any further progress from the opposition.  Hannah had to be at her best with a succession of Leeds corners, but her handling was impressive.  C-L-S defended the lead well and with no more goals ensured they were the victors with a 3-1 win.  A tight game but a well deserved victory.    

Date

Result

Competition

Chester-le-Street Top Group

Inter-District 7 a Side

Washington 0-1 Chester-le-Street

C-L-S Girls started their long awaited campaign against a fancied Washington team and were quickly out of the blocks applyingearly pressure on Washington.  Some strong midfield play from Sarah, Hannah and Jade with good work upfront from Anna kept Washington pinned in their own half for much of the early play.  Any Washington attacks were marshalled well by Katy and Bethany in defence and with Eleanor’s safe hands in goal, Washington’s chances were limited.  A C-L-S corner was whipped in low by Jade and Hannah pounced and hit a first time shot into the back of the net to give C-L-S a deserved lead.  Despite more C-L-S pressure, there were some close calls but no further goals as the 10 minute game soon came to end.

 Sunderland 0-0 Chester-le-Street

 Having lost to Sunderland in an earlier friendly, C-L-S were well prepared for this encounter.  With Bethany and Anna rested, Gemma and Holly slotted into the defence and striker’s roles respectively and as expected it was Sunderland who applied the early pressure.  C-L-S had a more defensive role to play in this game and again the strong midfield of Sarah, Hannah and Jade were more than accomplished when helping their defence.  Despite several shots reigning down on the C-L-S goal, some great handling and position play from Eleanor thwarted the attacks and with one great save in particular, Eleanor pushed a fierce shot over the bar.   C-L-S did have their chances but with the Sunderland’s defence and keeper in good form, Holly and the C-L-S midfield were kept at bay.  With end to end play in the closing stages, a goal was possible from either team but it finished goal-less with some excellent play from both teams.

 Chester-le-Street 1-0 Darlington

 With Darlington having won their 1^st two games, one of them against Sunderland, they looked a lively and well organised passing team.  With only 1 change from the previous game, Neve replacing Holly up front, C-L-S were again well prepared  and were soon on the attack forcing an early corner which Darlington cleared.  End to end play ensued with both teams looking likely to score.  Another C-L-S corner by Jade was drilled across the Darlington goal and again Hannah was on hand to angle the ball first time into the net to give C-L-S a 1-0 lead.  Despite instant pressure from Darlington, the C-L-S defence held out well and some good passing moves enabled some quick counter attacking by C-L-S, who went close a couple of times, but there was no further goals.

 South Tyneside 0-1 Chester-le-Street

 The final game saw Bethany and Anna return to the side replacing Gemma and Neve, but with the girls tiring, more frequent substitutions will be required.  Good pressure from both teams could have resulted in goals but the defences and keepers held firm.  Some good saves from Eleanor gave the team more and more confidence and with Jade running at the opposition at every opportunity, more chances came for C-L-S.  Some good work and a cross from Sarah resulted in a loose ball in the area and Jade pounced quicker to drill the ball past the South Tyneside Keeper to put C-L-S 1-0 up.  With Holly and Neve replacing Hannah and Anna midway in the game, the pace of the game did not reduce as both teams looked to add to the goal tally.  With Katy again dominating the defence as she did all night, South Tyneside’s chances were limited and C-L-S held out for another deserved win.

With the next encounter due on the 1^st December and still a long way to go, C-L-S currently sit proudly at the top of the pile after an excellent night’s work.

Well done girls.        

Date

Result

Competition

Chester-le-Street Top Group Again

Inter-District 7 a Side

Accumulative Table

Washington 0-2 Chester-le-Street

A very strong wind threatened to spoil the event tonight and it would favour, allegedly, any team winning the toss as they would choose to play with the wind at their backs.  C-L-S Girls lost the toss and were up against it from the start. Despite some early Washington pressure, C-L-S kept the ball down and with Jade running clear of the chasing defenders, C-L-S were 1-0 in frontas she slotted the ball past the advancing keeper.  A similar move minutes later resulted in Jade again accelerating past defenders to find the corner of the net to put C-L-S 2-0 in front.  With Sarah and Hannah controlling the midfield and Anna going close a couple of times, C-L-S could have scored more.  In the absence of Eleanor and Bethany, a reshuffle was called for with Jenny deputising in goal who did well to keep a clean sheet as Gemma and Katy ensured Jenny had good cover.

 Sunderland 0-1 Chester-le-Street

 Having lost the toss, C-L-S were again up against a strong wind and a strong Sunderland team.  Jenny had more to do in this game and was quickly in the action pulling off some good saves.  Gemma and Katy held out in defence despite being put under a lot of pressure and were supported well in midfield by Jade, Sarah and Hannah.  Anna played a lone role up front for most of the time but often troubled the Sunderland defence and keeper.  Some good work from Hannah found Jade in space who unselfishly played a through ball to Anna who outran the defenders with her shot beating the keeper in the far corner of the net to put C-L-S 1-0 up.  Holly and Neve were also soon in the thick of it as Sunderland tried hard to find the equaliser, but found these two in good form.  A hard fought game with a well earned victory.    

 Chester-le-Street 1-0 Darlington

 For the first time, C-L-S had the wind at their backs but still had to work hard against a useful Darlington outfit.  Despite the wind advantage, it was very much an even game with Darlington having a lot of the ball.  Neve and Gemma stayed firm at the back again supported well by the usual midfield trio of Sarah, Hannah and Jade.  Some good midfield play again released Anna who again outran the defence and found the bottom corner of the Darlington net to give C-L-S a 1-0 lead.  With Holly on for Anna, C-L-S continued to press forward and could have added to their score but the Darlington keeper was in good form.  

 South Tyneside 0-0 Chester-le-Street

 Facing the strong wind again, C-L-S were up against a weakened South Tyneside team who were supported by 2 Sunderland players to make up the numbers.  In the second round of the night when C-L-S did not have a game, both Neve and Holly kindly volunteered to play for them and have to say that they played very well.  Other teams also made up the numbers for them during the course of the evening.  Having won their previous games, C-L-S were expecting another victory but South Tyneside had other ideas, and made it very difficult for them.  Nevertheless, C-L-S had the opportunities to win the game, as shots hit defenders and the goalkeeper and bounced clear. Despite a lot of C-L-S pressure, the game ended goalless.  It was another clean sheet on the night for the C-L-S goalkeeper, but this time it was Jenny who was making her debut for the team.

      With the next encounter due on the 2^nd March, C-L-S currently sit proudly at the top of the pile, some 8 points clear, after an excellent night’s work. Well done again girls.        

Wed March 1

Chester-le-Street Top Again

Inter-District 7-a-Side

Wed June 8

Chester-le-Street Champions

Inter-District 7-a-Side

 With South Tyneside only having 3 players, they still participated in tonights round of matches borrowing from the other teams, and their games were only regarded as friendlies.  Very commendable for turning up with vastly reduced numbers and full marks for making a fist of it.  

 Washington 0-2 Chester-le-Street

With this being the final round of games and with a 10 lead going into tonight, the girls were determined to maintain their position at the top of the League.  Neither team took advantage in the early stages but half way into the game, Jade picked the ball up in midfield and dribbled through the defence to slip the ball past the keeper to give C-L-S a 1-0 lead and settle the nerves.  Minutes later Jade again found herself clear of the defence and put C-L-S 2-0 up.  With Beth and Katie solid in defence, they made sure Jenny had little work to do in goal.  The hard working Sarah and Anna in midfield kept the team ticking over with Holly working the Washington defence at every opportunity.  Neve, Eleanor and Gemma proved their worth and slotted neatly into the side with Hannah being a mere spectator all evening due to her recovering from a broken wrist.  With Summer football looming for the girls in the near weeks, I’m sure Hannah will be itching to get going again.  A good all round performance girls.  Well done.           

 Sunderland 0-1 Chester-le-Street

Games against Sunderland are always expected to be tough and this was no different.  With the same starting line up with the exception of Eleanor starting up front, both teams looked lively and threatened to score.  Some last ditch defending from Katie and Beth and good strong blocking, C-L-S gained the upper hand and looked dangerous on the break.  Eleanor was causing problems for the Sunderland defence but it was Jade who again broke the deadlock as she outran the defence and beat the keeper to put C-L-S 1-0 up.  Jenny was soon in the action as Sunderland looked for the equaliser, but she dived on the ball to smother the danger.  Sarah and Anna continued to work hard with good effect as did Neve, Gemma and Holly when they got their chance.  Hannah continued to “gee up” the troops on the touchline.  Another good performance and a well deserved victory.

 Chester-le-Street 1-0 Darlington

 With Anna, Eleanor and Sarah rested for the start of this game, C-L-S looked as strong as ever and had Darlington pegged back for long periods.  With the Darlington keeper in good form, she saves numerous shots from Jade, Beth, Holly and Neve as C-L-S kept pushing forward.  Nevertheless, Gemma and Katie had to be alert, as did Jenny, as Darlington looked to counter attack at every opportunity.  A through ball from Jade found Neve free of the defence, and her pace from the chasing pack gave her a little time to place her shot past the advancing keeper to give C-L-S a 1-0 lead which they held on to till the end.  With confidence oozing from the team, their performance were getting better and better.  Another good result girls with Hannah desperate to get on.     

 South Tyneside 0-1 Chester-le-Street

 It may have been a friendly but C-L-S were desperate not to lose with the knowledge that they had won the Inter District League.  They looked relaxed but confident and started the game well pressing South Tyneside into their own half.  Some great interlink play between Jade and Eleanor had the spectators on the edge of their seats as the ball rolled on the wrong side of the post on a number of occasions.  Jenny covered her area well with the defence marshalled well by Beth and Gemma.  Sarah and Anna still worked tirelessly and when Holly, Katie and Neve had their opportunity to shine, they didn’t disappoint.  It was a joy to watch and was capped when some great control by Eleanor found herself in space with only the keeper to beat, but spotting Jade running in on the blind side, she delivered a slide-rule pass across the box for Jade to claim a well worked goal which gave C-L-S that 1-0 score to win the game.  Some fabulous play.  A joy to watch and a great night as C-L-S were deservedly crowned the Inter District Champions.  Hannah, you also played your part in the earlier games which is why the team was in such a good position at the start of play tonight.

 CHAMPIONS