Avoca 0 – 4 The Entrance
This week’s match of the round came from Women’s Division One and took place at Fagan Park, where Avoca hosted The Entrance.
On paper, this was a very intriguing clash between the undefeated Eagles and the only team to take points from them this season, the Sharks. It started as a tight affair that was ultimately won by a brilliant Entrance team that cemented itself as the best side in their competition so far this season.
The prior meeting between these sides ended 1-1, and it was easy to see how, as from almost the instant the ref started the match, each team began to be tenacious in defence.
In the opening minutes, neither side gained any significant ground against the opposition’s defence, and the ball ended up bogging down in the middle of the field or out over the sideline.
Soon, however, this changed, thanks to two quick chances for the home team, both of which came through Zoe Milne on the left wing for Avoca.
The first opportunity developed when Cara Maxwell, in goals for The Entrance, played a ball out from her box straight into the path of Milne, who almost instantly shot, sending it left of the goal and out.
Her second chance came not long after when she shot just on the edge of the box after some nice buildup from the Sharks, but she couldn’t put it on either side of Maxwell, who made the save.
These chances may not have gone in, but they were indicative of one thing: For this period of the game, Avoca were in control, and The Entrance were scrambling to stop them.
The game continued this way for about 20 minutes. During this time, it felt like every 50/50 ball was going the Sharks way, and all they needed to do was find one truly great chance to take the lead.
While searching for that, they continued to probe with shots, and one of their best efforts came from Kristen Henshaw in the Avoca midfield, who attempted an ambitious swirling shot towards Maxwell from well outside the box, drawing a solid parry from the keeper, who bettered her efforts instantly by chasing down the loose ball in the box before Milne could get to it.
Despite their immense efforts so far, Avoca had nothing to show for it, and that came down primarily to two people: Jasmine Beacroft and Shelby Wharton, The Entrance centre-back pairing.
Down the wings or far out of the box, Avoca was in total control, but anything centrally inside or on the edge of the box was entirely locked down by Beacroft and Wharton, who both had near-perfect games at the back, showcasing why their side boasts the best defence in the competition.
With a clear-cut chance still alluding them, it was only a matter of time before the Eagles pounced, and when they did, they did so totally against the run of play.
With Avoca still seemingly in control over halfway into the first half, they continued to probe forward, searching for an opener.
But suddenly, The Entrance took the ball and drove it past halfway to Hayley Blunden, who laid the ball off from the middle to Mia Hansen just to the right of the posts around the edge of the box, and for the first time all game, nobody managed to close her down. So, she shot it low to her near post, where Avoca keeper Jemima Moore couldn’t save it, making it 1-0 from nothing.
Whilst this did feel like a desperately unlucky moment for Avoca, there was no denying that it showcased why The Entrance is undefeated. They refused to succumb to the constant pressure and struck back hard.
From here, the game’s complexion was entirely changed; the Entrance took control of the pace and played out smartly until halftime where they were up 1-0.
In the second half, things almost instantly got worse for Avoca when Haley Routledge had her pocket picked halfway into her half by Nyah Kay for The Entrance. The pair duelled as Kay dribbled the ball all the way to the top of the box, where the Eagle ultimately won out and sent a fierce strike into the top of the net to make it 2-0.
Avoca were under the pump now and struggled to hassle Maxwell in the Entrance net.
They did earn two more half chances from Milne and Henshaw, but outside of that, the Eagles were now dominating the match, and soon enough, two became three.
The Entrance’s right winger, Jade Hawes, found herself driving down her wing with a bit of space. Almost hugging the sideline, she pushed on before delivering a dangerous cross into the box. The Avoca defender slipped over, allowing the ball to fall to Hansen, who knew she had time, so she took a touch before sending it home to the keeper’s right to snag her second for the day, earning a 3-0 lead.
Now, The Entrance had a commanding lead, and they played like it. They were more than happy to frustrate Avoca as the ball went out for throw after throw, never troubling their defence.
It felt like a harsh situation for the Sharks, who had players playing very well, especially their left-back Shanay Quester, who put in numerous successful challenges throughout the match and almost always managed to progress the ball forward once she won them.
But it wasn’t enough to stop a team this strong, and The Entrance would grab one more before full-time.
This time, after a period of sustained pressure, Emily Weston got to a deflected ball in the Avoca box first and buried it into the back of the next at her near post from the right, making it 4-0 and putting the cherry on top.
Speaking to The Entrance coach Hayley Sheen, she noted the close nature of the contest and how it didn’t feel as dominate as the scoreline suggests.
“We really took control of the game in the second half” Sheen said.
“Once the second goal came, I was confident our girls would hold them out and win the game.
“Credit to Avoca though, it didn’t feel like a four-nil result”.
Avoca coach Mark Beatson reflected on the game by noting his sides efforts in the first half, as well as conceding it was too hard to stop everything that came after.
“I think we did okay, I think we did well the first half and held them” Beatson said.
“They are just too strong across the park and just ran away with it in the second half, and we didn’t have the depth to keep up”.
Match Official – Tafaranashe Mudavose
Written by Mark Goodyear
Women’s Division 1 Results –
Men’s Division 1 Results –
