Team FAST were back in action after a long break and one would expect the team to be a bit rusty, however, the girls looked sharp as ever and eager to get the better of Footie First who had previously held FAST to a 2-2 draw.
This time around Footie First had their full squad present for the game whereas FAST had couple of players missing (Anuja) through injury and (Utsavi) through illness forcing the coaches to change things up with the starting line up. Fortunately for them they had a very versatile group of players at their disposal and did not hesitate to make the tough call. Although Nyesha was present for the game and who is a regular in the starting 5, was asked to start from the bench as she was not 100 percent due to a niggling injury.
Harshini and Alisha started the game from the back with Shivika in goal and Kiara and Vedika leading the attack. In the previous game, Footie First played very slowly knowing that they weren't matched with FAST and they executed their game plan well eventually finishing the game with a 2-2 draw. This time around, FAST weren't going to make the same mistake again and piled on the pressure from the start of the game. Vedika came close to scoring the first goal of the game when she picked up a long throw from Shivika only to be denied from Footie First keeper from close range. A few minutes later and a quick one-two between Harshini and Shivika from within their own half beat the Footie First attacker wherein Harshini set herself up and let one fly scoring a cracker of a goal from distance giving her team an early lead. She almost doubled the lead with her presence of mind when the Footie First keeper was half way down the pitch and out of goal and Harshini neatly lobbed one over the keeper only to be denied by the crossbar. FAST soon found their rhythm and began playing their natural game by moving the ball around and making it difficult for their opponents to settle down. The second goal eventually came when Nyesha picked up a poor pass from the Footie First defender and sent it out wide to Harshini making a quick pass to Kiara who calmly placed the ball in the bottom corner of the goal making it 2-0. The girls continued to take control of the game neutralizing any threat at goal from the Footie First attackers. Substitutes Reet and Yana made sure the score line remained the same and also showed promise going forward in attack. The first half came to an end with a comfortable 2-0 lead.
The second half got off to a shaky start with Shivika almost giving the ball away to the opponents striker just outside her own box but quickly recovered keeping the score intact. While Kiara ad Vedika were combining well upfront keeping the defenders on their toes, it was Harshini and Alisha dictating the pace of the game from the back and eventually combined well with the former setting up the latter to score the third goal of the game. Alisha scored her first goal of the game with a neat shot taken from distance leaving the keeper to pick up the ball from her own goal. The fourth goal followed quickly with some brilliant display of football wherein Vedika could have finished off the move herself but a poor first touch took the ball away from goal which she recovered and nicely set up Harshini for her second goal of the game.
The team continued to work their way in and around the opponents defence with Harshini having one goal in mind which was to shoot on sight, however, this time around it was a simple tap with an assist coming from Yana. A well deserved hat trick for Harshini. With 5 goals up the team seemed to be cruising to victory, however a lapse in concentration from keeper Shivika let one past her from a poorly taken shot of the Footie First forward making it 5-1. However, the team responded quickly from the restart of the game with Nyesha making a forward pass to Vedika who then turned and took a shot at goal scoring from close range. With time almost up, a comeback from Footie First seemed unlikely with the referee eventually blowing the whistle to signal the end of the game.
Goal scorers; Harshini - 3 Alisha - 1 Kiara - 1 Vedika - 1
Assists; Vedika - 1 Harshini - 1 Yana - 1 Nyesha - 1
Star of the match - Alisha.
