Croydon 1-0 Barking & Dagenham
IN A GAME LACKING goals, but packed with entertainment, Barking & Dagenham slipped to a narrow defeat after taking the game to hosts Croydon from first whistle to last. The visitors can count themselves incredibly unlucky not to come away from South London with more than just plaudits after one of their best displays of the season from front to back.
Barking & Dagenham began brightly, with Simonette Johnson holding up play confidently before spreading the ball wide to effervescent winger Malaika Uwandji to almost sneak a cheeky effort through the keeper’s legs after barely sixty seconds.
At the other end, keeper Emily Peka showed calm handling to deal with an early Croydon sighter as play switched from end-to-end in a pattern that continued throughout.
Scramble
From an Uwandji corner, the home side failed to clear their lines and George Carey’s Mariah Mateus almost capitalised, blazing over from eight yards to conclude a hesitant goalmouth scramble. A maiden district goal for Mateus would have been fitting, a great way to cap a commanding individual performance.
Meanwhile, skipper Jona Islami’s impeccably timed sliding tackle came to her side’s rescue midway through the half.
The visitors finished the half on top as Amelia Hussain strode out confidently from the back before sliding a pass to Uwandji who exchanged passes with Manor’s Keira Ly before the latter drew a near post save from the edge of the box.
Goalless at the break, it seemed only a matter of time before someone broke the deadlock – and it was Barking & Dagenham who came closest immediately after the restart when Ly almost profited following another melee in the box; the upright eventually coming to the rescue.
On to replace Peka, Grace Attwood-Adams was down sharply to smother a Croydon effort seven minutes into the half with both sides impressing on the break. In particular, the pace of Zainab Touray, Johnson and Uwandji more than kept their opponents on their toes.
Finale
And, as the game crept towards a thrilling finale, Barking & Dagenham were prevented from taking the lead in spectacular fashion. It was Johnson whose endless running pressed the Croydon backline into panic, forcing a high, looped ball into the path of an onrushing Uwandji.
From the edge of the box, the tricky forward drilled a precise volley that arrowed towards the bottom corner, only for a stretched right hand to tip the ball away at the last second and keep the score-line level.
That save proved crucial as, ninety seconds later, the Barking & Dagenham defences were eventually breached.
Islami’s Army had hitherto stood firm, with Mateus and Hussain both outstanding either side of the captain. But tiring legs in midfield responded slowly to the Croydon overload and a rare gap in the line provided the chance for the home side to edge ahead.
The final five minutes saw a flurry of chances for both sides as the visitors pushed bodies forward and the home side looked to settle it beyond doubt: Comfort Mazel, Touray and Ly all went close inside the box, but more precision was needed to bring the tie back level.
Instead, the result confirmed Barking & Dagenham’s second London Girls’ League 1-0 defeat of the season. But this was completely different from the last.
Whereas January’s home loss to Havering brought disappointment and frustration in equal measure, this one brought pride and admiration. The district side took the game to their opponents in fine style and can more than hold their heads up high as they played their part in what proved a fabulous game of football.
Barking & Dagenham: Emily Peka (Valence); Jona Islami (Roding); Gilda Hasani (Northbury); Paloma Correia (George Carey); Grace Attwood-Adams (The Leys); Malaika Uwandji (Roding); Amelia Hussain (Richard Alibon); Simonette Johnson (St Peter’s); Zainab Touray (Northbury); Maria Mateus (George Carey); Keira Ly (Manor); Comfort Mazel (Godwin)