FOR THE SECOND SEASON in succession, brilliant Barking & Dagenham reached the Southern Counties Cup final after a polished 2-0 victory over neighbours Thurrock. Two sublime finishes from skipper Ellie Morgan and Kaltrina Ibrahimi capped off a controlled and competitive first half performance to earn a lead that they never looked in danger of relinquishing.
The first attempt at goal came after just ten seconds when the hosts carelessly gave away possession in their own half. A surprise snap-shot from distance almost caught keeper Mei Wang off-guard, although she gathered the ball at the second attempt.
And that proved to be the only shot on target to trouble Wang for the rest of the half as the majority of play was conducted amongst a congested midfield, with neither side managing any real moments of quality in the opening stages.
Unleashed
That all changed in the ninth minute when Kayla Grain drilled a fierce pass from the left to Morgan around the edge of the penalty area. The captain cushioned the ball superbly with her mid-riff before unleashing a dipping half-volley on the turn over the visiting keeper. It was leading-scorer Morgan’s seventh – and best – of the season, leaving her one behind her tally for last season with many games still to come.
Seven minutes later and Barking & Dagenham doubled their advantage. This time, Grain picked out Lily-Mae Elsey on the right flank, who in turn showed great composure to beat her marker and race down the touchline until reaching the edge of the box. Elsey then picked out opposite winger Ibrahimi eight yards out, cutting in from the other side. Ibrahimi’s initial touch looked to have given the Thurrock keeper the chance she needed to close down the shot: instead, it created the space for Ibrahimi to find the bottom corner with a precise left-foot finish under pressure.
As the half wore on, it was the home side who continued to create chances.
First of all, Elsey picked out Ibrahimi in the box once more. This time though, the William Ford midfielder’s right-foot effort lacked the necessary power.
Denied
The smallest player on the pitch, Miquellah Meade, then saw a glancing header flash wide following Ibrahimi’s inswinging corner before Meade and Grain combined to play in Elsey. The Northbury wide-player’s first-time drilled effort whistled just the wrong side of the post and into the side netting, denying her what would have been a well-deserved third of the campaign.
At half-time, Barking & Dagenham knew that if they kept their concentration for the rest of the game, the result would be secured. And so it proved, as they executed their second-half plans with ruthless determination, with Elisha Mintah-Adarkwah and Kirsten McNaughton putting in a dominant display at the back.
Aisha Amao broke the offside trap late on and was unlucky to have her effort go wide with Wang well beaten.
And a stunning last-ditch tackle from Mintah-Adarkwah prevented a certain goal when Thurrock looked to have profited from McNaughton’s stumble.
Those were the only sniffs of goal Barking & Dagenham allowed however as they negotiated their way through the remaining minutes with calm defiance. It was a terrific team performance which sees them advance to the final against Gloucester on May 6th.
The two sides have met twice so far this season, with a win apiece. Barking & Dagenham will be hoping to claim the deciding rubber as theirs and make amends for last year’s extra-time defeat to Woking.
Barking & Dagenham: Mei Wang (Henry Green); Miquellah Meade (Henry Green); Kirsten McNaughton (George Carey); Ellie Mai Morgan (Henry Green); Violette Sharpe (Gascoigne); Jessie English (Roding); Kayla Grain (Richard Alibon); Lily-Mae Elsey (Northbury); Elishah-Oliviae Mintah Adarkwah (George Carey); Kaltrina Ibrahimi (William Ford); Kezia Owusu-Abeiye (Valence); Ruby Abela (Dorothy Barley)