The Ladies travelled to Maryport for their 1st game in three weeks with no fewer the 10 players unavailable to face Workington Reds on the dreaded astro. Carly Stevenson volunteered to stand in as keeper with regular stopper Lauren Crofts one of those unavailable.
The game got off to a tentative start as both teams battled to gain the upper hand. Newlaithes midfielder Claire Blackburn ran her socks of to close down the ball and win some good possession and on 10 minutes, she ran onto a deft through ball from Faye Comber to strike a firm, low cross from the right that flew in off a Reds defender. Ten minutes later and it was nearly two when Faye Comber smashed a free kick against the right hand upright from wide on the left then on 26 minutes Tasha Scott found herself through on goal only to pull her shot wide. Workington began to settle and they won a series of corners but the Newlaithes defence stood firm to deny the Reds any clear cut opportunities. Newlaithes left back, Chelsea Lightfoot was forced to leave the pitch on the half-hour after taking a knock to the back of her leg. Workington were beginning to turn the screw as Newlaithes struggled to clear their lines but still the defence held firm with Captain Jade Williams mopping up anything that came near - ably assisted by Sarah Currie and Gemma Dawber, they restricted Workington to several half-chances that were off target and the score remained 1-0 to Newlaithes at half-time.
Newlaithes had a scare right at the start of the 2nd half when Carly Stevenson saved well from close range. However seconds later, the Reds beat the off-side trap with a quality through ball to equalise with a tap in from close range. Newlaithes were now on the back foot with the Reds controlling midfield as once again, Newlaithes struggled to clear their lines. However credit to the Newlaithes defending as they weathered the storm and soaked up the pressure without the Reds creating any clear cut chances. On 70 minutes, Claire Blackburn took over in the Newlaithes goal to allow Carly Stevenson to take up her more familiar position in midfield and at the same time, Chelsea Norris replaced Faye Comber up front. Things started to look a little brighter for Newlathes until on 75 minutes, they were once again undone by a quality through ball and the Reds forward sprinted clear of the chasing pack to shoot across goal and into the bottom corner from the right-hand side of the area, to give Workington the lead. The Newlaithes reaction was exemplary as somehow, they dug deep and managed to find another gear. All of a sudden they were denying the Reds time on the ball and they were starting to win their fair share of 2nd ball - not only were the fresh legs of Carly Stevenson making a difference but the rest of the team seemed to rally around her and on 80 minutes she played the ball into the edge of the Workington area from wide on the left. Tasha Scott and Chelsea Norris won a tussle with a Reds defender and all of a sudden Chelsea found herself in space, in front of goal and everything seemed to go into slow motion as she calmly side footed the ball past the Reds keeper for the equaliser. Two minutes later and she flew in from nowhere to dispossess the Reds right back, midway inside the Reds half. She sprinted towards goal and checked before calmly lobbing the advancing Reds keeper from the left hand side of the area. Reds threw everything they could at Newlaithes but both team had put in such a supreme effort that the final ball just wasn't there and depite 5 minutes of stoppage time, Newlaithes held out for a stunning win.
It's fair to say that of the two teams, Workington played the better quality football in possession and for long periods, Newlaithes gave them too much space in midfield and they were unable to pick up any 2nd ball. Having said that, the Newlaithes players put in a monumental effort to keep Reds at bay and they showed great character to fight back after going 2-1 down with only 15 minutes left on the clock. Make no mistake, this was a massive 3 points within the context of the season and it keeps Newlaithes in touch with the league's front runners. Newlaithes player of the match was Jade Williams, who was rock solid at the back with some perfectly timed tackling. Special thanks to Carly Stevenson and Claire Blackburn for volunteering to cover in goals.
Next Sunday the Ladies play host to Carlisle City in the League Cup, 2pm kick-off at Rickerby Park.
