Southend and Benfleet 1’s travelled to Romford with a strong squad of 13 and were looking forward to an attacking game. The high pressure from Southend and Benfleet paid off, with many attacking plays from Naomi Barker, Ashlie Bolton and Chloe King, leading to a lot of shots and short corners. Romford’s keeper was having a blinder however and managed to save every shot that came her way. Halfway through the first half, the ball was fired into the D, where Ashlie Bolton was waiting with an expert deflection into the top netting, putting S&B ahead. The pressure remained for the rest of the half but no more goals, half time score was 1-0.

The second half continued the same, with Player of the Match Hattie Bowden holding the middle of the park and delivering sharp passing and solid tackles. Romford started putting more pressure on the S&B defence, who held strong. Finally, a short corner from S&B was converted by Naomi Barker, putting S&B 2-0 up. However, within minutes, Romford caught S&B on the break and managed to slip the ball into the back of the net. S&B kept up the attacking play for the rest of the half and the defence soaked up the pressure from Romford, with Carmel Kenny making a fantastic save on the final whistle to secure 3 points. Final score 2-1.
Player of the Match: Hattie Bowden