Matt Dean reports on the reaction to Leyton Orient Women’s cup success, with confidence the theme for the future.
Following an emphatic 6-0 win over Tower Hamlets in the Mayor’s Cup on Sunday, the victorious O’s players and management were understandably ecstatic.
Player of the match Ella Meadowcroft said: “We are delighted with the performance today, it has given the team a boost. It was great to play in front of the large crowd”.
Manager Chris Brayford said: “I am really happy to end the season with some silverware, though we were always favourites, playing at a higher level than Tower Hamlets. They played well and their game plan was to contain but conceding an early goal made it difficult for them”.
This is the first season that the women’s team has played under the Leyton Orient brand, having previously competed for 11 years under the name Kikk United FC.
Brayford is already looking forward to continued progress next season. “We have had a good squad,” he said, “and there have been some excellent individual team performances. There have been a few injuries but as they came back our performance has improved at the end of the season.”
Promotion
Currently the O’s play in the London & South East Regional Premier Division which is the third tier of women’s football. In addition to their win on Sunday in the Mayor’s Cup they are currently in third place on 39 points and have finished all their fixtures.
They could still be overtaken by Herne Bay who are on 33 points with three games to play.
Captain Danielle Griffiths is equally confident about prospects for the next campaign, saying that the team were aiming for “promotion next season; we have played quite well but not always at our best and will probably finish third or fourth this season but that is not where we want to be – we want to be up there competing with the best teams.”
Brayford added: “We’ve had a good season. Wimbledon have been the most consistent [team] and deserve the title but we have shown ourselves to be one of the best teams in the league. If we can bring in a few new players, start the season well then I think the aim is for promotion.”