Barking & Dagenham 3-1 St Albans

A BLISTERING START FROM in-form Barking & Dagenham all but put to bed their latest London Girls’ League fixture with St Albans, as they smashed three goals in the first four minutes thanks to Jasmine Amrane’s brace and Tolu Elufowoju’s fourteenth of the season. A deserved late first half consolation for the visitors provided hope, but a controlled second half display from the district girls saw out time with relative comfort as they ended the game on top, securing progression to the Super Six after Easter.

For the first two minutes, it was the visitors who were the brighter as Barking & Dagenham stood off, allowing them room to play and penetrate the home side’s box without any real resulting opportunity.

Drilled

However, Chloe Ajewole’s innocuous long-throw caught the St Albans’ backline unawares, with Elufowoju stealing in to hold up play before laying off to Amrane. The Gascoigne playmaker pounced, drilling the ball into the bottom corner and past the unsighted keeper with a low drive from the edge of the penalty area for 1-0.

Then, from the restart it was two: Amelia Hussain wrestled back possession from the kick-off and centred for Elufowoju. The skipper intelligently laid the ball off for a second time, with Amrane on the charge. Her first attempt was blocked, but the second was clinical – and Barking & Dagenham were cock-a-hoop.

And just when it looked like it couldn’t get any worse for the visitors, Elufowoju rubbed salt into their substantial wounds with a stunning solo goal. Leading from the front, the top scorer seized upon a hesitant defence to snatch the ball on the half-way line before sprinting clear and arrowing a pinpoint finish into the bottom corner from twenty yards just as the final St Albans challenge was about to come in.

Close

There could have been more.

In the seventh minute, Ajewole’s long ball down the centre sent Elufowoju clear, only for the ball to shank wide.

And two minutes later, Amrane came close to a hat-trick with a dangerous blast from the edge of the box.

But as the half wore on, St Albans steadied the ship and began to offer a threat of their own.

In the final twenty minutes of the opening period, just Raima Hossain’s toe-poke on the angle and Sasha Stoute’s run and drive threatened to extend the lead.

So when instead St Albans pulled one back via a penalty with two minutes to go until the break, it was no great surprise – and just reward for the visitors resilience and determination.

Challenges

In the second half, with Elufowoju picking up a knock, Dominyka Petrauskaite deputised up front and immediately brought a new set of challenges to the St Albans rearguard.

First of all, Amrane and midfield sidekick Atene Skendelis buzzed back the ball from a goal-kick, fashioning an opening chance for the Richard Alibon forward, who was forced wide at the last second to improve the angle for the grateful keeper.

And then Petrauskaite turned provider, tee-ing up Amrane for a further attempt eight minutes later.

The fleet-footed Hossain proved a menace down the right, sprinting clear several times to feed Petrauskaite who was somehow prevented from converting her third of the season through a succession of late blocks, fine saves and bad luck.

As the game reached its conclusion, St Albans still offered plenty of threat on the break – but a steadfast display from Ajewole, Laura Ameny and Rusne Rimkeviciute meant that Francisca Arhin remained largely untroubled in the home goal, fielding through balls and organising her defence with relative ease.

Threat

Instead, it was the hosts who threatened to add to their tally.

By now, Elufowoju returned to the action and wrought havoc down the left. With Petrauskaite proving indispensable up top, the Rush Green forward revelled in an unfamiliar role, providing another angle of attack and tying up defenders to create space for others.

First, Petrauskaite scuffed a shot from the captain’s composed cross straight into the keeper’s arms.

Then, Amrane, Skendelis and Hossain all had chances to stretch the lead further.

However, despite their dominance, no further goals were added. But none were needed.

The result means that Barking & Dagenham’s remarkable unbeaten run in the competition has now entered a seventh year, stretching back to 11^th February 2017 when eventual national champions Haringey walked away with a narrow 1-0 win amidst heavy snow at May & Baker. Since then, the district side have racked up twenty-seven wins and nine draws with sixty-five different players passing through their ranks.

If they can maintain their current standards, and continue to show such sharpness at both ends of the pitch, there is every chance that this current incarnation of the district team can once again go on to lift an unprecedented fifth London Girls’ League title in succession.

Barking & Dagenham: Ajewole (George Carey), Skendelis (Godwin), Williams (Goresbrook), Arhin (Northbury), Hossain (Northbury), Hussain (Richard Alibon) Petrauskaite (Richard Alibon), Elufowoju (Rush Green), Stoute (Rush Green), Rimkeviciute (William Bellamy), Amrane (Gascoigne), Ameny (Valence)