Chesterfield Ladies were defeated 3-2 by Arnold Eagles Women at Hollinwood Lane on Sunday afternoon in the quarter-final of the East Midlands Women’s League Cup.
Mike Noon’s side exited the competition with their heads held high though following a gutsy and spirited effort which saw eight changes made from the previous game and a host of U18 players making senior debuts with the knowledge that two hugely important league games are coming up soon in the race for the title.
Goals in the last five minutes of the match from Louisa Anderson and teenage debutant Freya Holman set up a grandstand finale and almost resulted in an astonishing comeback to take the cup tie into extra-time.
The hosts were certainly the better side in the first half and scored two goals inside the opening 20 minutes to take firm control of the match. Striker Natasha Leach took advantage of some hesitant defending to power the ball home from close range to give Arnold the lead after 16 minutes played. The hosts then doubled their advantage just four minutes later when Leach’s 12 yard effort beat goalkeeper Louise Apperley at her near post.
Arnold could have added a third in the 26th minute when a headed effort following a whipped-in free-kick was steered narrowly wide of the target. The ball found the back of the net again nine minutes later but to Chesterfield’s relief the assistant referee had his flag raised for offside.
Chesterfield’s main threat in the first half came from the hard work of forward Lucy Graham. Graham, making her first ever start for the Blues senior side, was tireless in chasing opponents down and forcing their defence into rushed passes. Graham’s powerful runs and willingness to take players on and sprint past them also caused Arnold’s defence problems on the right flank. The final ball was just lacking though as soon as the Blues reached the opposition penalty area and that allowed Arnold to maintain their healthy lead at half-time.
It didn’t take the hosts long though to score a third goal after the interval. It took just 90 seconds from the re-start for Natasha Leach to smash the ball home confidently and secure her hat-trick.
At that point it looked as if it could be a very long second half to endure for Chesterfield Ladies. However, full credit must be given to the team’s youngsters in not allowing their heads to drop and making sure that the game continued to be a competitive, hard-fought affair.
As the second half progressed, the Blues side really began to click and started to threaten more in the final third. Substitute Annie Davidson saw a long-range effort loop onto the roof of the net in the 54th minute while centre-half Louisa Anderson saw a 12 yard header agonisingly roll just wide of the post nine minutes later.
With five minutes remaining, full-back Lily Naylor almost capped off a very encouraging Blues debut when her 12 yard shot was expertly tipped around the post by the Arnold goalkeeper.
Chesterfield finally scored a well deserved goal in the 87th minute when an unmarked Louisa Anderson headed home from an excellent corner to secure her second goal of the season. It looked to be just a consolation effort for the Blues but the remainder of the game was a dramatic affair.
Substitute Freya Holman was allowed time and space at the start of stoppage time to fire an effort on target inside the penalty area and she slotted the ball superbly past the keeper to make it 3-2.
The Blues threw everything at a nervy Arnold side in the last couple of minutes of injury time but sadly ran out of time and the final whistle marked Chesterfield’s exit from the competition at the quarter-final stage.
Rarely can a defeat be looked at so positively, but manager Mike Noon was delighted with the overall performance of such a young and inexperienced side at senior level. The future certainly looks very bright for a whole host of U18 players at the club but the focus now shifts onto two enormous upcoming league games against Lincoln United Women and Mansfield Town Ladies.
Chesterfield Ladies team: Apperley, Ratcliffe, Naylor, Anderson (capt.), Hopkinson, Pascoe, Falleth, Phillips, Frances-Creaser, Purdy, Graham.
Used substitutes: Davidson, Holman, Shand.
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