Youth soccer round-up

under 11
marle placeu11smarle placeu11s
marle placeu11s

Place do it the hard way

Marle Place Wands 3 Hassocks Hawks 2

Place (pictured) gained their second home win in succession at the Sidney West but did it the hard way, coming from behind after trailing at half time in miserable conditions. Kieran Mason got them off to the perfect start but lapses at the other end meant they were 2-1 down at the break. They started the second half in confident fashion and equalised with a penalty calmly converted by Tom Pughe-Morgan. The momentum had swung and despite Alex Rhys-Williams making a fine stop at the other end, the home side were winning the majority of the tackles and looking the more dangerous in attack.Home supporters thought Mason had got his second with a precise shot into the top corner but a linesman’s flag ruled it out. They were not to be denied, however, and Pughe-Morgan notched the winner from a good team move. Place are now establishing themselves in the division. MoM went to winger Oliver Appaya, who was denied a goal by the woodwork in a match refereed by Ted Smith.

Cosmos win excellent cup tie

Cuckfield Cosmos 3 Furngate Yth 0

This was an excellent cup tie played in torrential rain at Whitemans Green. The home side eventually proved the stronger and progressed to the League Cup quarter finals. Both sides started brightly but it was Cosmos who took an early lead when the impressive Josh Wells broke through to hit a post and Luca Cavalli was on hand to smash the rebound into the roof of the net. The second goal soon followed when MoM Wells fired in from the edge of the area after being set up by Georgie Berry. But credit to Furngate for continuing to put pressure on Dom Seed’s goal up to the break. Cosmos gradually took control in the second half and were rarely troubled thanks to the excellent defending of George Jeavons. They added a third when Liam McPhilemy jinked through the Furngate defence and were unlucky not to score more. Alfie Berry was particularly unlucky when harshly denied the goal his efforts deserved.

Third time lucky for Southdown

Southdown Girls 5 Crawley Town 1

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Southdown bounced back from two successive defeats with an assured display. They commanded the early possession, with Alisha Mainwaring controlling midfield, and on 20 minutes Rae Rothwell broke through the Crawley defence to open the scoring with an excellent strike. Five minutes later Libby Ackland-Hancock’s quick throw picked up the run of Olivia Hudson, who slotted home for her first goal of the season. Just before half time Holly Buckfield took the ball along the edge of the Crawley area and made room for a pile driver that went in off the underside of the bar. Southdown pushed on in the second half but as the rain continued to fall, they started to lose their shape and gave Crawley a foothold back in the match. Player of the Day Charlotte Symmonds was rock solid at the back, while Gemma Hebditch was impressive on the left and Zahra Cheeseman pulled off a series of good stops. However, the home keeper could do nothing to prevent Crawley scoring midway through the second half. The pace and power of Sophie Hooper and Kelly Fullerthen prompted further Southdown attacks and captain Mia Pordage scored two well made goals to put the game out of reach for Crawley. Southdown needed to respond with a good performance and result to show they can compete in this league - and they did.

under 14

Honour in defeat for Place

Marle Place Wands 2 Worthing Town 5 aet

There was honour in defeat for Place in this KO Cup second round tie. The title-chasing Division 1 visitors needed extra time to end the Place challenge at a drenched Worlds End Rec. Place had the first chance to open the scoring albeit with a slightly fortuitous penalty award for pushing. Luke Moulds hit a post with his first attempt and when it was retaken for encroachment, he saw his effort well saved by the keeper. Even so, Place did take the lead when a back pass was misjudged by the keeper and Ryan Murphy simply had the pleasure of ushering the ball over the line. The visitors then levelled with a well-worked team goal. Place’s defending was a credit to their division and it laid the foundation for them to regain the lead when James Ellmer’s close range effort was well saved by the keeper, who could not prevent Moulds scoring from the rebound despite the close attendance of a couple of defenders. At the other end there was a fantastic one handed save by Michael Platt to preseve the lead up until half time. After the break Worthing predictably upped the tempo and drew level with a well placed header. Although the visitors were laying siege to the Place goal, leading to desperate defending at times, Jordan Middle, Moulds and Murphy remained a threat on the break. A major upset was still on the cards entering 20 minutes of extra time, as the visitors hit the outside of a post when it looked easier to score. But they finally went ahead and two more goals in the second period of extra time signalled the end of a brave fight by Place. Nonetheless it was a very encouraging all-round team performance against a team two divisions higher. MoM had to go to the whole squad on this particular day.

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