Perfect Run Remains Intact

Tekena Ibanichuka sees another magnificent win for UEL Women brought to an abrupt end due to a serious injury.

The UEL Women’s team’s 9-0 victory was marred by the significant injury to one of Hertfordshire University’s defenders following a collision with UEL’s Otesha Charles.

Due to the seriousness of the injury suffered by the Hertfordshire Central defender Aimee, the referee saw fit to bring the match to a premature end with UEL leading 9-0.

Hertfordshire had come into the game on the back of a 3-0 win over Buckingham University  1st team and were hoping to carry that momentum against UEL.

It was a steady start to the game for both sides, with each midfield trying to impose themselves on each other. However, any hopes of Herts gaining the upper hand were dashed on 10 minutes.

From a poor clearance from the Hertfordshire keeper, the ball fell kindly to Charles. Bearing down on goal, she had one player to beat before slotting home.

UEL doubled the score almost immediately a minute later. Following a swift counter from the UEL, the ball was pulled back to Lilli Maple on the edge of the area and she calmly shot into the net.

On 16 minutes it was 3-0. Bearing down on goal once again, Charles’ left-foot drive from inside the box came back off the post, the first of three attempts from the striker that hit the woodwork. The ball then fell to striker Abbie Weaver who had the simple job of tapping the home.

Weaver would have doubled her tally on 23 minutes had it not been for the Hertfordshire keeper’s wonder save from two yards out. As Charles fizzed the ball across goal from the right, the ball came to Weaver two yards out but somehow the keeper had managed to get to it and push the ball onto the cross bar.

It was 4-0 on 25 minutes as Daisy Davis got in on the act with possibly the goal of the day. Carrying the ball down on the left hand side, the left wing-back let fly from 25 yards out leaving the keeper with no chance as the ball nestled in the top corner.

However, the scoring for the first half wasn’t over yet. Newcomer Chantelle, who impressed out on the left of a front three had cut inside from the left to bend the ball past the Hertfordshire goal keeper to make it five on the stroke of half time.

In the second half UEL did change things around a little. Starting the match in a 3-4-3 formation, there was a slight change to a 3-5-2 with Chantelle moving into the middle leaving Charles and Weaver as a pairing. The change proved to even more devastating for UEL as within seconds of the second half commencing, Chantelle had sliced the Hertfordshire defence open, releasing Charles who rounded the keeper to tap into an empty net to make it 6-0.

This would be a recurring pattern in the second half as Chantelle would continue to pull the strings from the middle of the park. And it was from the newcomer that Davis registered her second of the match and UEL’s seventh. Released down the left hand side, Davis cut back onto her right foot to score a goal similar to her teammate Chantelle.

Substitute Molly Concepcion grabbed UEL’s eighth of the game from the spot following a foul on Charles inside the box. It was nine almost a minute later, when Charles, in the thick of things again, managed to beat her marker one-on-one but could only see her shot cannon off the post into the path of captain Maple who duly tucked away the ninth of the afternoon.

However, the goal was not without controversy. Following Charles shot which came back off the post, Hertfordshire defender Aimee was involved in an accidental collision with Charles. Due to the severity of her injury with a suspected broken ankle and collar bone, as well as not having any available substitutes, the referee ended the match.