“YIPPEE, HOORAY & HOORAH!”

At last we have been able to beat Mercer.  The Foxes produced a spirited defensive display to stop Mercer in their tracks in the first leg of the cup semi-final.

 

This team showed a lot of courage and did everything to win.  We were mentally strong and well up for this game and very determined to win right from the first whistle.  We played at a good, high tempo throughout.

 

Foxes took the early lead with an excellent free kick that was taken quickly by Vicki to Celine who had a clear shot at goal and took it expertly.

 

The league leaders enjoyed plenty of possession, but struggled to create too many clear-cut chances.   For a team that this season has scored over 100 goals they were unable to broker too many genuine chances.

 

The only black spot was the one poor throw out in the first half which saw Mercer quickly intercept, capitalise on it and able to score a good goal to even the game out.

 

We continued to probe away in our usual manner with good runs and excellent passing and half-chances came but we were well marked and unable to get any real shots off.  However, Foxes spirits were high because of their performance in the match and halfway through the second half they took the lead again from a great shot by Vicki.

 

Kalee made some crucial saves in the game to keep Foxes in it.  Her legs and stinging fingers show this to be true.  Tip of the day, don’t save a ball with your girlie parts, it hurts! 

 

Although Mercer didn’t have too many shots at goal, what they did shoot had a lot of power and pace on them and hurt when you got in the way, which most Foxes will contest to.  However the Foxes did a sterling job in blocking a lot of passes and shots.  The marking of the  Mercer players prevented them having a major impact on the game.

 

The subbing worked well and caused little disruption to the Foxes momentum.  However, it did allow us to change it around a bit so it put Mercer on the back foot a little. 

 

We seem to have somewhat of a curse when we play against Mercer, this time being an injury to Celine.  With quite a physical game, Celine went down heavy and had to go off for a good half of the second half.  Luckily, we did have another player that could come straight back on

 

Pirate and Vicki played really well up front.  They made a lot of space for themselves and the quick passing and movement was excellent.  Pirate tracked back brilliantly in the second half when we needed to hold onto the lead.

 

Myra had a really good game.  She made some excellent blocks and really put her body in between the ball and the goal.  The slight down side to her playing a more defensive role is that we do miss her shooting, however tonight, in this role, she played an important part in keeping the lead. 

 

Tre did a great job, mostly on the left wing and found herself in a few personal battles with a couple of Mercer players.  She did tend to get the better of them most of the time by being strong on and off the ball.  She also had a good couple of shots on goal as she made great runs up front and found some space.

 

This was an excellent team performance from the Foxes, however the narrow lead still leaves the semi-final in the balance ahead of the return game.

 

 

Score: 2-1

Scorers: Celine 1, Vicki 1