Match day

Team logo
Tilehurst Panthers LFC (H)
Thu Mar 28
19:45

Match day

Team logo
Tilehurst Panthers LFC (H)
Thu Mar 28 19:45
Thames Valley Counties Women's Football League
1st
45pts

Managers' Update

An update from joint managers Jon Underwood and Neil Baker.

10/01/14


Whilst injuries and suspensions continued to plague us, we had hoped that our three games at Holloways Park over the Christmas period would still give us a chance to consolidate our play-off position; how wrong this proved to be.


Managers Jon Underwood and Neil Baker

December was a very difficult month and was certainly one of our toughest with injuries and suspensions causing us many issues.

We had entered the month on a real high having just picked up our fifth consecutive league win and with the lads full of confidence there was a belief in the changing room that we could match anyone.

We then traveled to league leaders Dunstable knowing that a win would see us take over at the top and after a tight and competitive first half we led 1-0 at half time. The 45 minutes that followed were nothing short of a disaster and in many ways set the tone for the rest of the month.

We lost top scorer Eddie Smith through injury after a poor challenge (and he has not kicked a ball for us since) and were reduced to nine men as we ended up losing a highly controversial game 3-2. As managers we try to be respectful to referees and not use them as an excuse when we lose a game but anyone who was at this game would have been as mystified as we were by the officials' performance. Thankfully the video evidence enabled us to successfully appeal one of the red cards but this did not give us our points back.

The following Saturday saw a real lacklustre performance from the lads as we were beaten 2-1 at home by AFC Hayes. The short trip to Chertsey the following week brought some relief and a much needed three points. A contender for goal of the season from George Short broke the deadlock and set us on our way to what was, in the end anyway, a comfortable 4-0 win.

Whilst injuries and suspensions continued to plague us, we had hoped that our three games at Holloways Park over the Christmas period would still give us a chance to consolidate our play-off position; how wrong this proved to be. A late goal brought a 2-1 defeat against bogey side Uxbridge and we then lost the 'away' game at Beaconsfield 3-1 on Boxing Day and followed this up with a 2-0 defeat against a much-improved Kettering Town.

Although this completed a hugely disappointing last month of 2013 the Kettering game showed a much more spirited performance from the lads and a score line that was harsh and there were certainly signs of improvement.

It was during this last run of games that we made the decision to freshen up the squad. We have added left back Ryan Parsons (brother of Jake) from Hemel, midfielder Leigh Rumbold from Fleet and striker Adam Cornell from Binfield. These were the positions that we had identified for improvement and we are delighted to welcome them to the club. We also took the decision to release Ryan Lake and Ollie Burgess and we thank both of these lads and wish them all the best for the future.

We now enter the New Year in a very positive frame of mind. The short break, due to the recent wet weather, has enabled the injured players to recover and the new signings have increased competition within the squad - everyone is focused and working hard.

From both of us we would like to wish everyone Happy New Year... and let's hope it's a successful one for us all!

Rebels

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