Female football fever

Female football fever
I S S U E
4 4
1 5 T H
S E P T E M B E R
2 0 1 1
SPECIAL POINTS
OF INTEREST:
London PDC’s up & running
CAPITAL
GIRLS
LEAGUE
FESTIVAL
CONTINENTAL CUP
FINAL
FEMALE
LEVEL 1
INSIDE THIS
ISSUE:
Women Sport
2
Travel
Female Legends 4
Women’s FA
8
Cup 1st round
Girls Allowed—
10
Wandsworth
LFCA Dinner
13
Soho Theatre
14
London FA is pleased to be running two Player
Development Centres for girls’ during the 2011/2012
season. We have a PDC based at Whittington Park,
Islington to cover North London and a second PDC at
Eltham College, on the Greenwich border covering South
London.
The PDC will bridge the gap between grassroots football and Centre of
Excellence football, providing extra training and support on top of
players’ grassroots clubs. The PDC’s will run at U11/U13 and U15 age
groups as well as having a specific GK coach. All coaches are
appropriately qualified and have the opportunity to play in friendly
fixtures against other PDCs.
If you have any questions regarding these PDC’s or if you wish to
recommend a player for a trial please contact the following: North
London PDC – natalie.doyle@londonfa.com or South London PDC emma.barnes@londonfa.com
NORTH LONDON
SOUTH LONDON
Venue:
Whittington park, Holloway
Road, Islington, N19 3NP
Venue:
Eltham College, College
Meadows, Marvels Lane,
SE12 9PH
Time:
6.30—8pm
Time:
6—7.30pm
Day:
Friday
Day:
Thursday
Production
Female Level 1
15
Photo of the
month
16
PAGE 2
Women Sport Travel is one of the first sports tour operators committed to promoting and advancing
women’s football internationally. Responding to the
increasing desire by teams to travel, train and compete
overseas, Women Sport Travel is a fresh approach to
sports tourism. Not only are they creating opportunities for cross cultural exchange and adventure for sporting women, but their tours also
generate support for initiatives that work to empower women and girls through sport in
disadvantaged areas.
Women Sport Travel offers 8-10 day women’s football tours to South Africa as well as sport
development outreach projects and study tours. Packages incorporate a range of activities
training sessions with a top female South African coach, matches against local opposition,
sport development community outreach and sightseeing throughout Cape Town. Visiting
teams also enjoy bed and breakfast accommodation, safe transportation throughout the
tour, an experienced local guide and flexibility with
preferred travel dates.
A particularly remarkable feature of the tour is the
Sport Development Outreach Day which offers visiting teams the opportunity to participate in a community outreach project and learn about how sport
is used as a powerful tool to address social issues
within the context of poverty. Cape Town is a city of
stark inequalities- affluent suburbs lie in contrast to
poorer areas with high levels of unemployment, HIV/
AIDS, crime, gender-based discrimination and drugabuse. Visiting teams will be hosted by organisations
that work to address some of these issues through
sport.
Aside from football and outreach activities, teams
will have time to enjoy Cape Town’s spectacular
natural beauty. Whichever your preference, from
sunbathing on white-sand beaches to hiking on rug8 – 10 day Women’s Football Tours to
ged mountain trails, Women Sport Travel provides a
South Africa
guide and transportation at all times to ensure maxi- Training sessions with top female South
African coach
mum safety.
Matches against local opposition
A Women Sport Travel tour is the ultimate team adventure. If your team is interested in signing up,
Sport development community outreach
Sightseeing in Cape Town
please visit the website:
For the ultimate team adventure visit
www.womensporttravel.com and email
www.womensporttravel.com
info@womensporttravel.com
FEMALE FOOTBALL FEVE R
ISSUE 44
PAGE 3
OCT/NOV 2011
Mon
Schedule of Events
Tue
Wed
Thu
Each month we will
display a calendar with
forthcoming events.
So keep checking out this
page for more info.
17
18
19
20
Fri
Sat
Sun
14
15
16
21
22
23
28
29
30
04
05
06
Female Legends
@ Wimbledon
Goals
24
25
26
27
LFA Awards
Night @ Stamford Bridge
31
01
02
03
Girls Allowed
Festival,
Wandsworth
Rayo Vallecano
Vs Arsenal (a)
07
08
09
10
11
Arsenal Vs
Rayo Vallecano (h)
FOOTBALL REFEREE COURSE
COURSE DATES &TIMES:
9am till 5pm
Saturday 5th , 12th and 19th November
Age: 14+
Venue : Hall Place Sports Pavilion, Bourne Road, Bexley
12
Female Level
1 starts
13
PAGE 4
FEMALE LEGENDS
Over 25’s Tournament
'Female Legends' 25's and over Five a Side Football Programme have been running a series of tournaments at different venues throughout London, this year.
This is the second year that the programme has been running and the Wimbledon Goals Centre has been our venue in the South of the capital.
The last tournament of the year is taking place on Friday 21st October, from
6.30—8.30pm, and it is FREE to enter.
The events are affiliated by the London FA and although we appreciate that we
will again have different levels of participants, we are very keen to stress the
fun element of participating and would also stress the fact that it is a 25's and
over programme, and although we appreciate some teams might have 1 or 2
younger players, we ask you to keep them to a minimum.
Like last year, we welcome both teams of players to register, as well as individuals, where we will try our best to match them up with a team.
If you are interested in entering a team, all you have to do is contact Andy
Sheen—andysheen@activeambitions.org.uk
FEMALE FOOTBALL FEVER
ISSUE 44
PAGE 5
Capital Girls League Launch Day
This weekend saw the launch of
the Capital Girls League, the latest
joint venture between London
and Middlesex FA's, debuting with
a free Champions League themed
festival, and it was a great day for
all involved!
The festival included five U12
teams and six U10 teams travelling from all areas across North
London including the likes of
Hampstead, Brentford, Denham
United, Old Actonians, Ruislip
Rangers, Islington Borough and
Cantelowes. Also present to support the event was Arsenal Ladies
player Jordan Nobbs, who
brought with her the FA Womens
Super League (WSL) trophy and
Women's FA Cup that Arsenal
have added to their extensive collection this season.
The players started their day with
a group warm up lead by the
team of FA Tesco skills coaches,
which incorporated a mix of technical and fun skills to prepare the
players prior to their respective
games.
The U10s played 4 v 4 games and
the referees on the day, Katy Da-
vies and Lauren Warner, marked
each team for fair play with the
final award going to Hampstead
FC, who received medals distributed by Jordon Nobbs.
The U12s played in a competitive
7 v 7 tournament and referee Rob
Warner commented “I can’t believe some of the skills I’m seeing
out there. It really is impressive!”
Jordon stepped in to referee
some of the U12’s matches and
was delighted to witness the girls'
enthusiasm for the game with
players asking how to become
good enough to play for the likes
of Arsenal and maybe one day
England Ladies!
Between games players had the
opportunity to test their skills on
the speed gun and target goal
inflatable's, as well as visiting the
skills team for specialised coaching or cornering Jordon for questions, autographs or pictures with
the trophies.
The festival was topped off with
the girls receiving free tickets to
Arsenal Ladies UEFA Champions
League game against FC Bobruichanka of Belarus on 5th October
at Boreham Wood FC. Players also received goodie
bags which included an Arsenal Ladies poster, England
Ladies team postcard and
WSL giveaways. The final
prizes on the day saw the
winning team of the U12s
tournament, Islington Borough, receiving free training
kit for all
their players and a
select
twenty
players from the day were given a
brand new pair of astro trainers
which were well received by players and parents alike!
Natalie Doyle, Chair of the Capital
Girls League and Women's and
Girls' Officer for London FA commented "The launch of the latest
project between Middlesex and
London FA's was a great success!
It's fantastic to finally be able to
provide London and Middlesex
clubs with local playing opportunities. Special thanks on the day
go to Jordon Nobbs, the FA Tesco
Skills Team, Arsenal Ladies and
finally all players, coaches and
parents who came down early on
a Saturday morning!"
The Capital Girls League continues
on the 1st October with the first
fixtures in place for the U12s with
Brentford vs Ruislip Rangers; Islington Borough vs Cantelowes
and ReachOut vs Hampstead,
whilst the U10s will continue to
play in a non competitive 4 v 4
festival. The next themed festival
will have an England theme and
be held on 19th November 2011.
For more information on the
league and pictures from the
launch day please visit
www.capitalgirlsleague.com or
phone 02085151969.
PAGE 6
Late leveller denies Lions
17th September—Serbia 2—2 England
An Vesna Smiljkovic goal deep into added time denied England victory in their
opening Euro 2013 qualifier against Serbia.
Rachel Yankey had opened the scoring for England after just six minutes, thumping the ball home at the back post, and this lead was doubled midway through the
first half when Violeta Slovic inadvertently directed the ball into her own net. At
this stage England had looked comfortable and were in total control of proceedings. Serbia had a few fairly tame shots
at goal but the visitors went in 2-0 up at the break. It was a slightly more disjointed second half and Danka Podovac’s
free-kick ten minutes after the restart gave Serbia hope. They rallied and pushed for the equaliser and it came, agonisingly for the visitors, in the fourth minute of added time, through Smiljkovic’s 18-yard strike.
The hosts came out of the blocks the quickest, with Jovana Sretenovic looking bright and getting two shots away, both
of which lacked conviction. In that opening period Serbia also had a claim for a penalty turned down when Dunia Susi
slid to ground in the box to dispossess Sretenovic.
After that, though, England gained control and took the lead with their first meaningful attack. The ball was worked
from right to left via Susi, Karen Carney and Natasha Dowie, and Yankey arrived late at the far post to crack home the
opener with just over six minutes on the clock.
The Three Lionesses proceeded to control possession and made Serbia chase them in the 30 degree Belgrade heat with
a patient, passing game. They probed constantly, trying to create another opening, but the second goal actually came
courtesy of a set piece.
Carney swung a free-kick in from the left, Sophie Bradley’s header was well saved by goalkeeper Milena Vukovic, but
Ellen White stooped to head the loose ball back across goal. In an attempt to clear the danger Slovic turned the ball into
her own net.
These two relatively early setbacks appeared to deflate the Serbs and their next sight at goal didn’t come until the 28th
minute, through Podovac’s 25-yard free-kick, but it was straight at Rachel Brown. They had another strike at goal five
minutes before the break when Jovana Damnjanovic burst forward from left-back, though the ball sailed over the crossbar.
Powell made one change at the break, replacing Dowie with Rachel Williams, who was the top scorer in The FA WSL last
season with 14 goals. The opening chance of the second half fell to White, who somewhat snatched at her shot from 12
yards out after Rachel Unitt’s flick, from Carney’s corner, fell invitingly to the Arsenal youngster. Then, out of nowhere,
Serbia pulled a goal back, but credit must be given for a sweetly struck free-kick from about 25 yards out. Jill Scott, on
her 50th senior appearance, was adjudged to have fouled Milena Pesic and Podovac stepped up to curl the dead ball
right-footed accurately beyond Brown’s dive. England soon regained their composure and Yankey attempted to extend
the lead once more with an angled drive, only to see
Vukovic parry and then claim.
Williams had a great opportunity to score her first England
goal when she was found unmarked at the back post by
Carney’s deep free-kick. Her goalscoring touch evaded her
somewhat, though, and she headed over the bar.
England slightly lost their way midway through the half as
PAGE 7
Three Lions cruise to victory
22nd September—England 4—0 Slovenia
England recorded their first Euro 2013 qualifying victory with a comfortable 4-0
dismissal of Slovenia at the County Ground.
A third Arsenal goalscorer, Steph Houghton, made it 3-0 ten minutes into the
second half when she headed Yankey’s left-wing cross beyond Slovenian
goalkeeper Lucija Mori, but substitute Rachel Williams rolled home for number
four with just three minutes left.
It was an accomplished performance from England who dominated possession and goal chances and the victory will
give them a timely boost ahead of a potentially tricky trip to Holland next month.
A short corner was played to the Arsenal winger by Williams and Yankey took a touch before drilling the ball low,
across goal and into the far corner to give England the perfect start.
Karen Carney then had an effort saved from the edge of the box as the hosts took immediate control of the game.
This dominance was further rewarded in just the fifth minute when an unmarked White headed home Carney’s rightwing cross.
However, as outplayed as they had been, Slovenia had a presentable chance to halve the deficit when captain, and
record goalscorer, Mateja Zver played a through ball into the box for the advancing Snezana Malesevic. She had
more time than she thought and hit her effort straight at the hitherto untested Bardsley.
Just after the half hour mark, some intricate football between Carney, Williams and Scott set up White to have a
crack at goal but it was blocked bravely by Lucija Grad. And with half-time approaching, Yankey burst through the
middle before slipping a pass to the on-rushing Scott. The right-back took it first time on her weaker left foot and
Mori gathered.
With thoughts of Serbia’s improved second-half performance, and comeback, still fresh in their minds, England knew
they could not let up after the interval, as demonstrated by Rachel Unitt’s header wide from Carney’s corner in the
48th minute. Williams then rifled a low free-kick goalwards only for Mori to save and Yankey thumped a shot wide of
the near post. They were totally in control, just unable to convert more of their opportunities.
This all changed, however, in the 56th minute when Yankey brilliantly skipped past Slovenian right-back Grad and
delivered a delicious centre which Houghton gleefully headed home to make it 3-0.
The scoreline could have been healthier still had Mori not been alert to Williams’ cheeky near post flick from Yankey’s
corner.
Rachel Williams and Fern Whelan got the chance to impress from the bench when they replaced Yankey and Sophie
Bradley respectively and the former almost made an immediate
impact when meeting Carney’s right wing cross but Mori denied
England yet again.
But Mori could do nothing to stop Birmingham's Williams from
grabbing her first goal for England in simple fashion. A ball in from
Unitt was flicked on by Williams but looked to be head out of play.
But Clarke didn’t give up and hooked the ball pack into the path of
Williams who tapped in from six yards to seal a maiden victory of
the new campaign for Powell’s side.
FEMALE FOOTBALL FEVER
PAGE 8
Leyton Ladies Vs Haringey Borough Ladies
Women’s FA Cup—1st Round Qualifying—2nd October 2011
Leyton Ladies FC started their
FA Cup campaign strongly on
the last weekend of summer,
with proactive and positive
football displayed in the thirty
degree October heat to clinch a
win against league-below team
Haringey Borough.
The opening ten minutes saw
three solid attempts on goal,
assisted by strong work on the
right wing by Eleonora Vriend.
Good crossover play between
forwards Lizzie Tucker and Isabelle Tomkins led to a powerful
shot by Tucker heading straight
into the keepers’ hands. Haringey quickly responded and
were soon in the Leyton box,
where central defender Janice
Healy stood up to the physical
Haringey forwards with the
first of many clean slide tackles.
Newly positioned defender
Morag Mitchel-Carvalho successfully navigated the ball
away from the danger zone,
passing the ball through to
holding midfielder Yasemin
Cakli. Good one-two work and
build-up play between Cakli
and left winger Marta Choruzy
was cut short by a heavyfooted Haringey tackle.
Gaining possession, Haringey
launched an attack on the Leyton goal, but right back Alba
Dalmonego chased down the
ball and cleared to holding midfielder Lydia Cooper. Cooper
took the ball down the wing
and put in an accurate cross to
picked up by the Leyton defence, but a mix-up and lack
of communication led to Haringey fumbling the ball in to
the back of the net and taking
the lead after thirty minutes.
Finding themselves 1-0 down,
the fired-up Leyton side
fought back immediately. A
Leyton corner was taken well
by Mitchel-Carvalho, but was
cleared by the defence. Play
quickly switched to the opposite end of the field, with two
quick successive Haringey
corners. Cooper dispossessed
a Haringey midfielder in the
centre circle, took it around a
second player and then played
a perfect through ball to
Tucker. Finding herself one-on
-one with the keeper, Tucker
slotted the ball easily into the
back of the net to draw level.
Leyton kept up their attacking
play for the remainder of the
first half, with good interplay
between Cooper and Vriend
leading to a few promising
opportunities for Leyton.
Haringey started the second
half strongly, and a miskick by
Kirsty Berry led to a Haringey
shot grazing the side netting.
Leyton counter-attacked with
more good interplay between
Cooper and Vriend, who set
up Tucker for another great
attempt on goal – an ambitious chip on the keeper
which just lifted a little bit too
high, dipping over the crossbar for a goal kick.
Leyton continued
to attack, with
Cooper switching
play from left to
right then playing a
through ball to
Vriend. Vriend held
off the defence
well, taking the ball
around two players
before slotting the
ball past the
keeper to make it 2-1. Minutes
after this, captain Healy gave
away a free kick on the edge of
the box, a contentious decision
as Healy successfully and
cleanly got the ball. The free
kick was well taken by Haringey, but well gathered by Lavery, who cleared to ball quickly
with a powerful kick that took
the ball deep in to the Haringey
defence. A lovely flick on by
Tomkins set up Tucker, who
took it around the last defender and chipped the ball just
over the keeper’s reach and
into the back of the net, bringing the score up to 3-1.
Leyton opportunities were being created left right and centre. Tomkins had a great attempt on goal a few minutes
later, blasting a powerful high
shot that just edged above the
crossbar. Haringey fought back,
and had several attempts on
goal. Keeper Lavery pulled off a
string of good saves, blocking
Haringey and preventing them
from scoring several times.
Lavery found herself one-onone with the tall Haringey forward, and timed her approach
perfectly, blocking the shot and
keeping Haringey out. As the
game edged to a close, defender Dalmonego collided
with a Haringey player during a
tackle, and fell to the ground
injured. Dalmonego played on
for a minute until she was
forced to come off with a suspected broken collarbone. The
heat and exhaustion were taking their toll on both teams,
and the tempo slowed down a
lot in the remaining ten minutes, with a few chanced for
both Haringey and Leyton coming to nothing.
PAGE
9
PAGE 10
PAGE 11
Coaching Opportunities
Wandle Wanderers FC are based in Wandsworth South
London SW18 we have 6 teams in the Tandridge Youth
League Under 8/9/10, Under 11s, Under 13s and Under
15s. This coming season.
We are looking for FA Level 1 coaches
Teams play their matches on Sundays at our Home
ground at King Georges Park Wandsworth.
The coaches will be required to take their teams to and
from matches on Sundays (approx 4 hours each week) where duties will include
setting up the goal nets (home games) liaising with the referee and opposition,
completing the match card.
Coaches must have FA level 1 Coaching Certificate with in date Emergency Aid
certificate and Safeguarding Children's Certificate.
Coaches will be required to undertake a FA CRB Enhanced disclosure.
This is a voluntary post if interested please contact Janet 07936 534 627 /
janetandwayne@yahoo.co.uk
SLSL is delivering a football project for girls and young women with special needs. This project
will offer opportunities for the girls to take part in a competitive sport, focussing on health and
well-being.
For our more talented girls we want to help them to access mainstream, age appropriate football, teaming up with Long Lane JFC, who are based in Greenwich.
We are looking to find suitable level 1 qualified female players/coaches to buddy with a girl in
the club and help them overcome the barriers to participation e.g. communication and travel.
The "buddy" will also be able to support the team manger who may not have had little experience of enabling girls with a learning disability participate within a mainstream team. For more
information on this initiative and to get involved please contact; Sharon Brokenshire—
Specialleague@aol.com
Arsenal complete the treble!
Continental Cup final
Arsenal 4 (White 26, Ludlow 27, Yankey 64,83)
Birmingham City 1 (Christiansen 71)
att: 2,167; at Burton Albion F.C.
Arsenal completed the 'treble' after an awesome display of finishing saw them
land the Continental Cup to end the hopes of Birmingham City, who have to
settle for runners-up in both competitions.
Although they were not at their very best on the day, two goals in two first half minutes from Ellen White and Jayne
Ludlow gave the Gunners control at the break and two brilliant finishes from Rachel Yankey completed the win,
despite substitute Isobel Christiansen netting a consolation for the Blues.
The opening exchanges were even as both sides sought to take control of matters. Katie Chapman produced the
first effort on goal, a wayward effort which cleared both bar and stand, then at the other end a Jo Potter free kick
was flicked on by Kerys Harrop but comfortably held by Emma Byrne.
An Arsenal break led to the clearest opening so far, Kim Little setting up Rachel Yankey whose shot was parried by
Marie Hourihan and hooked clear by Emily Westwood. Birmingham could not get the ball away though and Chapman
tried her luck from 25 yards, the ball deflecting off Westwood and onto the woodwork, Ellen White reacting quickest
to tuck home the rebound.
Birmingham then produced their best move so far, Susi exchanging passes with Williams before spreading the ball
out to Carney on the left where her resulting cross was met by Williams but Byrne comfortably saved. Byrne again
needed to be alert as she came off her line to smother from Taylor as she tried to get on a good through ball by
Carney.
The second half began as the first half had finished with Arsenal content to keep things tight and hit on the break.
Little found space in the Birmingham half and carried the ball towards goal where her left foot shot was palmed
away by Hourihan. Back came Birmingham with Taylor nodding the ball down for Williams who fired her shot wide.
The lively Taylor then forced a save from Byrne following a surging run into the area which had taken her past two
defenders.
A foul on White around 25 yards out led to Arsenal's next scoring chance and they took a firm grip on the game.
Yankey curled her shot over the wall and a slight deflection off Williams took the ball past Hourihan, the ball going in
off the underside of the bar to put the Gunners three ahead.
Birmingham introduced Isobel Christiansen as a substitute and the young midfielder made an immediate impact.
Williams hit a shot which deflected and looped off Gilly Flaherty and, although Byrne looked poised to gather safely,
Christiansen nipped in to touch the ball past her and reduce the arrears.
Any hopes of a Birmingham fightback were firmly ended with seven minutes remaining through a strike of the
highest quality. Ludlow won the ball and found Yankey who took one touch before turning and crashing a
unstoppable volley over Hourihan and into the back of the net.
Things got a little heated in the dying minutes as Yankey and Weston initially clashed and in the resulting melee,
Williams was shown a second yellow card for raising her hands against Little, meaning a sad end to a magnificent
season for the England striker.
Arsenal: Emma Byrne, Steph Houghton, Niamh Fahey, Jayne Ludlow, Gilly Flaherty, Katie Chapman, Ciara Grant, Kim
Little, Ellen White (sub Jennifer Beattie 86mins), Danielle Carter (sub Jordan Nobbs 68mins), Rachel Yankey. Subs not
used: Rebecca Spencer, Yvonne Tracy, Hayley Ladd.
Birmingham City: Marie Hourihan, Chelsea Weston, Kerys Harrop, Jade Moore, Emily Westwood, Laura Bassett,
Dunia Susi (sub Isobel Christiansen 70mins), Rachel Williams, Jodie Taylor, Karen Carney, Jo Potter. Subs not used:
Leanne Hall, Sally Stanton, Eartha Pond, Marie Ballard.
FEMALE FOOTBALL FEVER
PAGE 11
FEMALE FOOTBALL FEVER
ISSUE 44
PAGE 14
Fit and Proper People in
association with the RSC
Soho Theatre
…..until Sat 5 Nov, 7.30pm
For four weeks only, the theatre will be transformed into a football
stadium with real turf, floodlights and constant media coverage for
90 minutes of spectacular theatrical entertainment.
Inspired by real footballing events, Fit and Proper People exposes
the backstage dealings and corruption in football and addresses
the very topical question of who is running our social and cultural
institutions. And how they run them.
Turn up in your football shirt and get a free drink!
Tickets from only £8 http://www.sohotheatre.com/whats-on/fitand-proper-people/ / 020 7478 0100
WATCH THE TRAILER HERE http://player.vimeo.com/
video/29489591
PAGE 15
FEMALE FOOTBALL FEVER
Jordan Nobbs (Arsenal Ladies) at the Capital Girls’ League launch festival….
If you
have a photo which you wish to be photo of the month please send to us no later than the 11th of the month.
Race to 100 followers….
It’s the battle of the WaGs this month on
twitter, we are racing to hit 100 followers,
who will be first—the North or the South?
Show your support now….
To follow Natalie Doyle go to @nataliedoyle82
To follow Emma Barnes go to @WaGFDOLondon
www.twitter.com
If you have a story or information you would like us to consider using in the next Newsletter please send it to us
by the 11th of the month. This may include vacancies within a club for coaches or players, or recent successes
Questions or comments? Please email us at: Emma.barnes@londonfa.com or
Natalie.doyle@londonfa.com