Fylde 2 (F) 0 - 2 University Of Liverpool 1 (F)
North West Women's Division 1
At home following the Festive Break,
Hoping the 3 points to play for was what we were going to take, We started off following a great pre - match plan, We all believed we were strong, determined and off we ran. The ball was moved around to each other, KB did well with save after save and a smother, Our defence/midfield worked well, creating space and moving the ball, Then one jumped in front, and got a short so off they went with the ball. A save, a clear - we were so near, Sticks down, scuffle around and with a little fear, The ball crept in and oh man, it was a goal, Everyone fought again, knowing their role. Jayne did well in formation moving us up the pitch, Higher press from our Olivia’s/Emma put Liverpool in a ditch, We passed and moved into the D, Oh what did we have to do to let it be? As play went on - very much in the middle and front, We were low, ready to move like we were on a hunt, Liverpool sneaked through and lifted the ball off the ground, A great shot was taken - an applause from all round. Finally, we tried to the very end of the game, We never gave up and it was such a shame, 2-0 down, we battled hard together, Fylde go again next game, forever and ever!
Lancaster University 1 (F) 5 - 0 Fylde 3 (F)
North West Women's Division 2 North
A tough day at the office for the Ladies 3s with their first game back after the Christmas break. Lancaster started with possession and maintained it, Fylde had to defend from the first whistle, which they did consistently for large periods of the game. Lancaster worked the ball across the pitch always waiting for a gap in the defence to open up and were always quick to capitalise when such a gap occurred. The university side rarely came out of Fylde’s defensive third without an outcome, whether that be a goal, a foul or a penalty corner.
Fylde had moments of great play with the midfield and forwards linking up well but the possession was often short lived and the university side were rarely under pressure. A tough first game back but a lot of positives in terms of the team's positions and the fact they never gave up, onwards and hopefully upwards next week when Fylde host Kirby Stephen at Mill Farm. MOM: Abigail Johnson
Pendle Forest 3 (F) 1 - 1 Fylde 4 (F)
North West Women's Division 3 North (Central)
The Ladies 4s started early with a 10:30 meet in Nelson (which as Rachel rightly said, is a lot further away than we all realised).
After softening up the slightly frozen pitch with a warm up Pendle Forest Ladies 3s pushed back. They were a very experienced side with some big hits but Fylde 4s skill and pace helped us dominate the first half with open play that resulted early goal from captain Rachel Lees, assisted by Lauren Appleyard. Stepping up to save the day, Fran Loffler-Thompson made some excellent saves, showing off her flexibility and fearlessness. Unfortunately, we conceded an unlucky goal just before the half time whistle. Having learnt and practiced a new skill this week at training, several aerial balls were well executed during both halves of the game. The opposition dominated the second half at first but Fylde 4s got their mojo back with some very close shots on goal, including a lift towards the goal from Lucy Wane which was nail bitingly close to the top corner. There were no goals in the second half leaving it at a 1-1 draw for the 4s. Summer Holroyd played very well in her debut for the 4th team.
Fylde 6 (F) 0 - 2 Lancaster & Morecambe 3 (F)
North West Women's Division 5 North (Central)
The first match of the second half of the season was at home for the Ladies sixth team against Lancaster and Morecambe.
With the movement of players through the teams and the newcomers that have joined us, the team was quite changed!
Fylde took first pushback and held the possession quite well with Fran Loffler-Thompson coordinating from the centre half position. Unfortunately, the also greatly changed team from Lancaster and Morecambe were able to gain possession and started on the attack with a quick run down our left side. Some well timed passing saw them in our defensive D with three attackers who were able to pass around keeper Dani Howarth to secure their first goal. At the reset, Fylde worked hard with some opportunities but did not manage to secure a goal. Lancaster and Morecambe managed to win a short corner, the Fylde defenders came out strong and Dani executed a log as per her training, getting her stick to the ball but unfortunately only slowing its course to the back of our net giving Lancaster and Morecambe their second goal.
Following a half time talk, Fylde came back out with a tighter defence and began to dominate the pitch, Liddy Eccles and Katie Sloane made some excellent runs down their respective sides and despite great positioning from Sam Derbyshire, Beverly Reid and Hollie Whiteside, just couldn't secure a goal.
Final score Fylde 0 - 2 Lancaster and Morecambe. Special mention goes to Beverly Reid on her debut game.
Lytham St Annes 1 (M) 4 - 1 Fylde (M)
North West Men's Division 1
First game of 2022 saw the Men's 1s travel to rivals Lytham St Anne's which saw The Coasters come away with a 4-1 loss and Lytham closing the gap between the teams in the North West Division 1 to 4 points. Gareth Sym scored Fylde's only goal through a penalty stroke.
Fylde 2 (M) 2 - 3 Leyland & Chorley 1 (M)
North West Men's Division 3 North
Fylde took to the pitch without a hint of January blues and clear in their purpose. From the whistle Fylde dominated play, retaining possession and pressing hard when off the ball. A goal was the reward, slotted away by Rob Thomas and ensuring a 1-0 lead going into half time.
Into the second half, and the cohesion displayed all through the first half went missing, resulting in a goal-line scramble and a Leyland equaliser. A string of penalty corners was defended but ultimately a crisply struck ball found the corner of the net and Leyland were 2-1 into the lead. Leyland continued to push high, with a break around the 50th minute seeing a mis-struck ball from the top of the dee get lifted into the top corner of the Fylde net. 3-1. In the last 10 minutes Fylde regained what they were in the first half, dominating play and setting up another goal put away by Rob Thomas.
A final whistle of 2-3, a disappointing result, but a performance that also included some excellent hockey from Fylde.
Fylde 3 (M) 1 - 3 Garstang 1 (M)
North West Men's Division 4 North
Fylde Men’s 3’s restarted the season after the Christmas break at Mill Farm with an early morning 10am start against 2nd placed Garstang 1’s.
Despite the gap in league positions, Fylde held their own throughout the first half, with plenty of possession but not many outright goal chances. They were arguably unlucky to go into the break 1-0 down, although it was from a well worked near post move at Garstang’s first penalty corner.
Garstang put more pressure on at the start of the second half, and Fylde conceded a soft goal through poor defensive marking. Fylde continued to battle and were fortunate to be awarded a short corner when it was adjudged that a Garstang defender had deliberately played the ball off the bye line. Phil Hope was able to put away the goal in style.
Garstang continued to exploit gaps in Fylde’s formation, and were able to score a third goal, whilst Fylde were kept from scoring any open goals, with some spectacular saves from Garstang goalkeeper Stephen Pope.
A good performance from Fylde against a good side, with Man of the Match being awarded to Phil Hope for his goal and industrious effort in the heart of midfield.
