THE WIDTH OF A POST was all that denied Barking & Dagenham the inaugural Essex SFA girls’ district 7-a-side title as the borough U11s were made to settle for third place behind West Essex and eventual winners Thurrock. A brace of early victories stacked the odds heavily in Barking & Dagenham’s favour however a hat-trick of stalemates saw the crown slip from their grasp in agonising fashion.
Barking & Dagenham got off to a terrific start, sweeping aside Waltham Forest in the day’s opening game. First, Emily Brown slotted home Nour Khalfaoui’s centre to open her account for the tournament. Then, shortly after, it was Khalfaoui who powered an emphatic second with just a couple of minutes on the clock. Pahris Cotterell added a third from Aaliyah Young’s quickly taken throw and the first points were duly secured.
Record
A 5-0 trouncing of West Essex followed as Barking & Dagenham ran riot. Pahris Cotterell equalled Connie Waring’s all-time scorers record with under a minute played before Brown doubled the lead shortly after.
Khalfaoui then got in the act, scoring two of her own with only half the game played.
Ella Eskelson’s eighth of the season completed the rout and, with games being drawn elsewhere, Barking & Dagenham secured their place at the top of the table.
Back-to-back 0-0 draws against the nearest contenders Thurrock and West Essex left the title in Barking & Dagenham’s hands – as long as they could defeat strugglers Colchester & Blackwater in the final game.
For the entirity of the match, the district side laid seige to their opponents’ goal, peppering the target with efforts from all over the pitch.
Cotterell, Khalfaoui, Brown and Eskelson all had chances to score however, with all of Colchester & Blackwater’s team camped inside the penalty area, it was alomost impossible to find a way through.
Denied
With time running out, Khalfaoui manufactured a chance out of nothing, turning to strike a low drive against the post. The rebound fell to Eskelson whose effort was charged down from point-blank range. Layla Duffield on the follow-up then hit the loose ball against the opposite upright as an almighty scramble denied Barking & Dagenham once again.
At the other end, Kaydee Bhavnani saved smartly on a rare Colchester & Blackwater counter attack. Such was the dominance of Barking & Dagenham’s attacking play, this was the only time in the whole tournament she was required to make a save.
However, despite controlling possession and territory throughout, the single goal that would have been enough remained elusive.
Nevertheless, a fantastic display from the team will prime them for the future, as they go in search of glory once again in the Premier League Foundation tournament on 22nd April.
Barking & Dagenham: K Bhavnani (Parsloes); A Young (James Cambell); L Duffield, E Brown (Godwin); T Mutuale (Henry Green); P Cotterell (Manor Longbridge); E Eskelson, N Khalfaoui (Hunters Hall)