11-man Kettering face tough opposition

Kettering Ladies XI finally kicked off their second half of the season with an away game to top of the league, Olton & West Warwick Ladies. 

Having only the bare 11 available again, player/coach Cath Irvin’s game plan was to hold shape and not to over-exert ourselves by chasing the ball around. This worked beautifully in the first half, with the team working tirelessly across the pitch to try to close as many gaps as possible. But Olton are not top of the league by luck and they moved the ball swiftly and picked out spaces with their effective movement, and for the first 20 minutes the Kettering side absorbed pressure, kept in the game by some fine saves from keeper Nik Baker. The last 15 of the first half saw Kettering gain possession of the ball further up field, winning a couple of short corners and free hits around the circle, which didn’t come to fruition but gave the side a glimmer of hope. A counter attack saw Olton win yet another short corner and frustratingly this found its way in just before the half time break. 

If score lines were more reflective of effort and heart then this game would have been in Kettering's pocket but the inevitable happened with the small squad and potential injury worries.

Olton started the second half even stronger and soon doubled their score. Kettering continued to dig deep, shown across the pitch, but particularly so by youngster Imogen Smith who showed great tenacity today playing against a very experienced and skilful player from the opposition. Frustratingly another two goals were conceded within short succession of each other; both fine finishes by the home side. The side then went down to 9 and a half players as injuries came into effect meaning a slight change of positions and formation. Kettering battled hard, even getting another couple of opportunities in front of the goal with both Mandy Starsmore-Young and Beth Winfield. But it wasn’t meant to be Kettering’s day today as another goal was scored against them from what should have been an impossible angle. 

Despite the loss, Kettering left the field feeling fairly upbeat as the performance and discipline the side showed was positive, and the support given across the pitch goes towards building the team spirit and confidence. It was not expected that the team would win this fixture based on the variables against them, but they showed up and despite what the score line says, gave Olton a good game.