West Kent 3-2 Barking & Dagenham
THREE GOALS IN THE first fifteen minutes of their latest London Girls’ League tie put Barking & Dagenham on the backfoot right from the start. However a stirring second-half fightback saw them come within a whisker of claiming a share of the spoils – which would have been just reward for a fightback of remarkable character.
Whilst the scoreline quickly tipped in the home side’s favour, it was Barking & Dagenham who actually created the first opportunity as Nour Khalfaoui’s throughball found opposite winger Pahris Cotterell. Sharp goalkeeping saw the district’s leading scorer’s effort blocked and the visitors looked bright and sharp going foward.
Calamitous
But poor marking at the other end of the pitch gifted West Kent the lead shortly afterwards before a brace of calamitous passes around their own penalty area saw Barking & Dagenham 3-0 down before they had barely had a chance to get going.
In response, a raft of first half changes saw Barking & Dagenham stem the tide before eventually crafting opportunities of their own.
First, Cotterell threatened once more, this time firing wide when put clean through by playmaker Emily Brown.
And it was Brown again who gained space in a dangerous area before teeing up Khalfaoui five yards out. Khalfaoui’s first-time-finish bobbled wide but belief had now returned to the visitors’ ranks.
Bamboozled
Brown got just reward for her endeavour when – on the stroke of half-time – she hit a speculative, scuffed left-foot drive from the edge of the box. Such was the eccentricity of the strike that the home keeper was utterly bamboozled, the ball pitching in the muddy surface like an off-break and cannoning over her shoulder to revive Barking & Dagenham hopes.
The visitors were now tighter at the back: Tina Mutuale was a tower of strength, winning tackle after tackle, inspiring her side with a whole-hearted display that was by far her best in a district shirt.
And, whilst West Kent remained a constant threat on the break, the physical toll of resistance eventually saw them wilt as the Barking & Dagenham onslaught remained relentless.
First, Grace Young saw an effort form the edge of the box well-saved before Khalfaoui’s rasping thunderbolt stung the keeper’s hands from long-range.
Intent
Layla Duffield’s long ball over the top saw Cotterell’s goalbound shot tipped over and the same player had a further attempt drift wide shortly after.
Brown and Coterell then combined well to set up Duffield moments before Barking & Dagenham’s attacking intent finally paid off.
When it came, it was Cotterell, switched to the right flank who skipped clear of two West Kent challenges before driving on to the byline. A flashing centre followed which was met on the volley by a brave Ella Eskelson, throwing herself into the danger-zone to turn the ball in for 3-2 with just five minutes left on the clock.
Barking & Dagenham continued to press and carved out two more good chances in the closing stages. The first fell to Mutuale who blasted over from distance after being picked out by Duffield’s perceptive corner.
And, when Brown was felled in midfield, the visitors’ final chance came from the resultant set-piece. Cotterell duly stepped up and hit a dipping, curled effort that clipped the outside of the post to signal the final goal-mouth action of the game.
An equaliser would have been just reward for the determination and reslience shown by Barking & Dagenham’s second half response however it was the host who hung on to claim the points.
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, G Young (Hunters Hall)