CAFC Women 5-0 Beecholme Belles – Match Report
A Georgie Edwards brace sealed an emphatic 5-0 victory over Beecholme Belles in their historic Surrey Premier Division curtain raiser.
It was a real captain’s contribution from Edwards, who opened the scoring with a scintillating long-range strike before a well-taken one-on-one to cap off a sunny Sunday afternoon win. There were a couple of changes for Aaron Lamont’s side. Between the sticks, Shakara Brown made way for Georgina Solley owing to injury, while Lara Rogriguez was the new face at the back preferred to Lily Davies. Ella Bond and India Cox were unavailable, so Kenza Gueriani and Honey Dulley occupied Sarah Chapman’s flanks.
As expected, it was a fast start from our ladies when the first sight of goal fell the way of Sarah Chapman inside the first minute, but her effort was tame. That being said, the Belles sent an immediate reply. Maisie Cade was sent clear away; however, Robins centre-back Tanya Dady disrupted her progress bringing down the attacker as Reds supporters waited with bated breath to see what card the referee brandished. Thankfully, after much deliberation, he produced a yellow card and Amy Potkins’ free kick failed to trouble Solley in goal.
In the early stages, Carshalton set the tempo and controlled proceedings, but their frustrations grew when they struggled to get the likes of Chappers, Honey Dulley, and Gueriani in behind, which meant, the nerves set in, the game opened up and a cagey affair ensued entering into the first third of the half.
Potkins’ ball over the top came agonisingly close to sending Belle’s striker Newton clear through, reaching Solley before she could latch onto it. Edwards was causing a few problems with her set pieces, a delivery from the left flank grazing the bar. Following that, a Carshalton deep cross to the back post was palmed away from danger by the visitors shot-stopper Nianh Kelly before Chapman endeavoured to keep the attack alive beating a couple of defenders with some tricky footwork until the Belles cleared.
Moments later, Rodriguez won a foul in the centre of the final third and Edwards’ set piece was just too high for Chapman who could not divert her header goalwards.
Lamont’s quintessential high press was paying off as it forced the turnover on the edge of the penalty area and the ball was eventually laid into the path of midfielder Emily McCarthy, who failed to generate enough power to threaten Kelly.
The majority of the chances had fallen the way of the robins; however, the Belles were almost presented with an avenue back into the match, against the run of play. A defensive mix-up between experienced centre-half Dady and goalkeeper Solley saw the pair caught playing out, but they were sparred their blushes when the forward fired over.
The first real chance of the match did not come until just after the 20-minute mark. Beating her defender for pace, Chapman latched onto a lofted pass in behind and stabbed a boot at it to be denied by the legs of Nelly, who was extremely quick off her line.
30 minutes in and finally Carshalton got their just deserts, and it was a captain’s contribution. Chapman was alert enough to intercept a loose throw and the ball was worked from left to right to find Edwards. Manoeuvring herself around the defender, she took a look up, and as the goal came into sight, let fly an audacious long-range strike, which was struck so sweetly that it powered through the hands of Kelly into the roof of the net. There was a heart-in-mouth moment when Dady’s miscued pass almost teed Cade up for a one-on-one with Solley.
Up the other end, Chappers, growing in confidence, drove into the box and delayed her pass just long enough to drag the defender over and leave Dulley free in the centre of the box. The number 10 laid it off for the young winger to come on to and strike from close range, but the keeper’s outstretched right arm denied her.
A couple of minutes from the break Carshalton had forged a two-goal cushion in the most unlikely fashion. Demi-Lee Allen’s inswinging corner to the front post evaded everyone, including the Belles in blue and somehow found its way straight into the back of the net. A cagey first 45 concluded and while our girls looked a little nervous in spells they ended the half as the team in the ascendancy.
Anna Tilley departed for Kanita Throp in the second half and she almost made an instant impact a few minutes in. Wonderful footwork allowed Throp to slalom skip past two or three defenders, one on one she attempted to whip it around Nelly; however, the goalkeeper made another good stop. It was so close to some solo brilliance.
At it again, Throp’s corner was met by the head of Gueriani and cleared off the line before an attempted clearance seemingly rattled the bar. Not long after, Edwards’ close-range header forced a smart reaction save from Nelly. Pushing to extend their advantage, Carshalton got a well-deserved third goal of the afternoon when Allen’s searching left-sided cross was spilt by Nelly and fell kindly to Dulley to calmly turn in the rebound.
On the hour, Heather Eade made it four with her first touch after coming on as a substitute. One-on-one with Nelly, Eade composed herself before expertly guiding the ball beyond the visitor’s shot-stopper. Mid-way through, given the deficit, Lamont decided to introduce the likes of Lily Davies, Evie Nevitt, and Daisy Olley to proceedings as Beecholme survived a succession of shots and crosses.
Eade, who narrowly missed out on a starting spot, a testament to the strength and depth of this talented group, came close to her brace when a couple of defence-splitting passes into the Belles penalty area were just out of her reach.
Despite the four-goal lead, Carshalton were showing no signs of letting up and pushed for a fifth. Dulley thought she had it when a well-struck half-volley nestled into the far corner, but the referee brought it back for offside. Eade carried the ball into the box unchallenged, manoeuvring herself into space on the edge of the box and finessed a shot on the half-turn into Kelly’s arms.
Throp, who was deserving of a goal following a stellar second half, flashed an effort goalbound on the half volley, dealt with comfortably by Kelly. Even though she had failed to get on the scoresheet, Throp contributed with an excellent assist to further peg back the Belles. The halftime substitute’s vision identified the run of Edwards and teed the ball up perfectly into her path for the captain to guide it past Nelly one-on-one.
The Robins ran out 5-0 winners and it was the perfect start for Lamont’s side. Despite the scoreline, Beecholme proved tough opponents and made it difficult for Carshalton, particularly in an evenly contested first half.
Teams
Beecholme Belles: Kelly, Jackson, Pinchbeck, Ward, Bowles, Spooner, Potkins, Lewis, Cade, Mair, Newton
Carshalton Athletic: Solley, Rodriguez, Allen, McCarthy, Edwards, Dady, Dulley, Williams, Chapman, Tilley, Gueriani
Goals: Georgie Edwards X2, Demi-Lee Allen, Heather Eade, Honey Dulley.
Up Next
We break for cup action next Sunday, September 15th, when our ladies face off against Guernsey at 02:30 PM in the First Round of the Isthmian Cup at Colston Avenue. Admission is free, as with all Women’s games, and we would love to see as many of you there as possible.
