12.5.18 – Representative Match

Brent 0-5 Barking & Dagenham

Driving Run

AFTER A NIGHTMARE TRIP around the M25, Barking & Dagenham arrived two hours later than scheduled for their final away trip of the season, before stepping off the minibus and duly dispatching hosts Brent in fine style. Despite several changes to yet another reshuffled pack, the visitors showed why they have challenged for all the major silverware this season and sit top of the London Girls’ League.

Early on, Grace Young’s driving run down the left forced a corner which Emily Brown swung into the penalty area with venom. Panic ensued as the ball ricocheted around, with Miquellah Meade and Holly Anderson both denied by point-blank blocks.

Memorable

Intelligence

Drilled

The lead was taken in the fifth minute following measured build up play, again prompted by the intelligence of Young. Picking up a clearance deep within her own territory, her first-time left foot pass to Anderson was gathered just inside the Brent half. Showing great composure, the Grafton striker held up the ball before squaring to Brown who burst through the centre with purpose, drawing the attention of the Brent backline. As they advanced towards her, Brown then picked a pass behind the heels of a scrambled defence, putting Meade clean through. Her first touch was perfection, the second emphatic, as Meade drilled home her eighth of the season to cap off a memorable team goal.

The hosts’ narrow play and strong running forced Barking & Dagenham onto the backfoot for the rest of the first period – only Brown’s lung-bursting run from deep causing any real chance of note.

Lung-Bursting

However, on the stroke of half-time, the captain produced a moment of brilliance to double the advantage. Thirty yards out, Brown carefully placed the ball down for a free-kick: from the moment it left her foot, it was in – dipping and swerving over a crowded box and flying into the top corner for her twenty-sixth district goal.

 

Rasper

Meade showed her thirst for goal shortly after the second half began, rasping a fierce drive over the bar that would have burst the net had it found its target.

The same player shot wide minutes later when Brown slipped her in with yet another well-placed through ball.

Most-Improved

However, it was Brown herself who stretched the advantage, nodding home following Young’s dangerous throw into the box, to equal Pahris Cotterell’s all-time scoring record for the girls’ district team.

Ellie Mai Morgan found space twice on the left wing to fire first-time efforts narrowly wide.

At the other end, Maria Omotayo was regularly tested but showed great handling in the wet conditions to show why she is Barking & Dagenham’s most-improved player across the course of the season.

Meade received her reward for her earlier endeavours, converting a loose ball in a goalmouth scramble to make it four.

Sumptuous

11 This Campaign

And the scoring was completed with yet another fine finish. This time Young, now deployed in defence, brought the ball out with confidence before curling a sumptuous forty-yard pass behind the Brent rear-guard to send Anderson rushing through. The only way to score was if Anderson’s desire outweighed everyone else’s and if she could hit a first-time shot across goal whilst off-balance and moving at pace. Anderson duly obliged, netting her eleventh of the campaign and typifying the quality her team showed in front of goal.

Barking & Dagenham’s final game of the season will be at Barking Abbey school at 10:30 am on the 26th May. Victory over Southern Counties Cup winners Woking will hand them the coveted LGL title for the first time. On this form, they have every chance.

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Barking & Dagenham: Emily Brown (Godwin); Kirsten McNaughton (George Carey); Miquelleh Meade (Henry Green); Ianna Msekwa (George Carey); Ellie Mai Morgan (Henry Green); Maria Omotayo (Roding); Grace Young (Hunters Hall); Elishah Mintah Adarkwah (George Carey); Holly Anderson (Grafton)