Bexley 0-4 Barking & Dagenham
IT’S TWO games, two wins, two clean sheets, thirteen goals and seven different scorers for Barking & Dagenham girls as their impressive start to the campaign continues. A composed second half performance against Bexley saw the district side progress to Round Two of the English Schools FA National Cup after strikes from Rihanna Zaman (2), Chi-Chi Musa-Onyeka and Ayasia Matabaro settled the tie.
It wasn’t all plain sailing for Barking & Dagenham as a well-organised Bexley defence kept them at bay for long periods.
In fact, the visitors had to be content with a series of half-chances, with Matabaro and Ganayat Jimoh fashioning the only attempts of note in the opening half-hour.
Comfortable
And it was Barking & Dagenham’s Dalia Wyszczelska who was the busier of the two keepers, albeit sweeping up loose balls into the box, passing out from the back and comfortably fielding attempts from distance.
All that changed shortly after the interval though when Tobe Edoka’s long-throw from the right caused panic in the penalty area for Zaman to nip in unmarked for a poacher’s finish.
And the second came from the same source when Edoka hurled another missile behind the home rearguard; this time Musa-Onyeka was the grateful beneficiary for her first district goal.
The goal of the game came shortly after when Matabaro received the ball in her own half, turned on the afterburners and flashed down the right wing before cutting inside to finish from the right-hand edge of the area.
Secured
With ten minutes remaining, the result was secured when a quickly-taken short corner saw Gracie Jones sweep the ball across into the danger zone. Rehema Okungu reacted quickest, looping a testing effort over the keeper which seemed to be dropping in; however, Zaman was on hand to remove all doubt and hungrily snaffle her fourth Barking & Dagenham goal.
There were further efforts from distance for skipper Marcheri Sherrif, who was once again dominant at the back, and debutante Marcella Sibbons-Setal.
But four was more than enough for Barking & Dagenham to march on, where they face either Croydon or Brighton on May 8th.
Barking & Dagenham: Tobechukwu Edoka (George Carey), Ganiyat Jimoh (Northbury), Gracie Jones (Grafton), Aysia Matabaro (Roding), Chi-Chi Musa-Onyeka (St Peter’s), Rehema Okungu (George Carey), Marcella Sibbons-Setal (Monteagle), Marcheri Sheriff (Grafton), Dalia Wyszczelska (Hunters Hall), Eva Young (Hunters Hall), Rihanna Zaman (Hunters Hall)