LADIES MAKE HISTORY

If ever you needed proof that the female section of Knowle FC is going from strength to strength, you only needed to look around Hampton Road on Sunday afternoon. A crowd of just under 140 people including girls and parents from every junior girls’ team roared on Knowle Ladies to victory in the FA Cup, putting them in the hat for the First Round proper for the first time in their history.  

In truth, it wasn’t the team’s best performance of the season, but at 4.30pm after a penalty shoot out, that fact hardly mattered to anyone. Earlier in the day it was a worry however; Knowle started slowly, with Loughborough on top for the first fifteen minutes. The away side went ahead with their first shot of the match, the left winger working an opening for the centre forward with good work out wide. Sam Smith made the tackle in the box, but the ball flew out to the edge of the area where the Loughborough forward had enough space to drill it into the corner of the net. The Students thought they had doubled their lead soon after, but the striker was standing a good few yards offside when she received the pass into the box. Knowle seemed to wake up then; they dragged themselves into the game by keeping possession a little better and getting their challenges in. Demi Rolph hit a snapshot wide before Kate Fleming volleyed her attempt from a Natalie Gibson free kick past the post as well. Loughborough continued to use the wide areas well, spraying the ball from side to side and it nearly led to another goal for them, with the number eleven beating a defender and then dinking it over Smirthwaite, but Smith was able to get back and slide in to clear off the line. At the other end, the Loughborough keeper clawed one out from under the crossbar away from the challenge of Gibson as Annie Stanway’s corner caused mayhem. Knowle were on top now and Gibson grabbed the equaliser on the 40 minute mark; she swung a deep free kick into the box that the Loughborough keeper misjudged and it bounced through into the net. Lucy Jones played two dangerous crosses into the area that Knowle should really have done better with before they did manage to go ahead. This time it was the high press that worked to perfection; Stanway and Rolph forcing the away side defenders into playing risky balls and then Alice Belcher nipped in to steal it away and race though on goal. The keeper got a foot to her left footed shot, but it wasn’t enough to keep it. The Robins didn’t really want halftime to come as they were enjoying a great spell, but going in 2-1 to the good after a shaky start was a bonus.

Sure enough, the break galvanised Loughborough and they were sharp early on, pushing Knowle back in their own half. The pressure told when Knowle gave away a cheap free kick on the edge of the box; Loughborough’s attempt was pretty central but Katy Smirthwaite could only punch it into the roof of the net rather than over the bar. The Students tails were up and they piled forward, flashing a cross across the six yard line and firing a couple of long range attempts into Smirthwaite’s hands. They went 3-2 ahead directly from a corner, the right footed in-swinger tempted Smirthwaite to claim but she couldn’t get round traffic quick enough. With 28 minutes left on the clock to haul Loughborough back again, Knowle bought on Poppy Wheatstone from the bench and she made a real difference, holding the ball with her back to goal and putting defenders under pressure. Her good work gave Gibson a chance to shoot, but it flew high. Knowle were still having to defend, clearing away several crosses into the box and on one occasion exploding the match ball! Tiah Underhill also did well to track her winger all the way across the pitch before blocking her shot. The Students nearly scored from the resulting corner, Smith won the initial header but Knowle let the second ball bounce. The attacker fired her shot at goal but this time Smirthwaite made a great reaction save then Rach Keen cleared the lines. In the last ten minutes, Knowle threw caution to the wind and filled the box for every set piece. Maz Byrne nodded Stanway’s corner just over the bar before Loughborough cleared Gibson’s free kick well and looked to be on the break, but Wheatstone tracked all the way back to put the tackle in. Wheatstone then skipped past a couple of challenges out wide before being blocked off, and this time Gibson’s corner delivery was spot on and Knowle’s skipper was not to be denied! Byrne rose high in the centre of goal to plant her header past the keeper. Cue wild celebrations on the pitch and in the stands as that 95th minute equaliser proved to be the last kick of the game, so Knowle were flying high as they went into the shootout.

That momentum certainly proved important as the Robins scored all five of their kicks; Gibson, Belcher, Smith, Fleming and Rolph each hammering great penalties past the keeper. Loughborough kept pace with four good penalties of their own, but the fifth was always going to be the pressure kick and so it proved. Smirthwaite dived to her left to get two hands to the shot and beat it away, and scenes of absolute bedlam followed! The Knowle players and coaches smothered Smirthwaite before celebrating with all the supporters round the ground. It was harsh on Loughborough who had been the better side in terms of possession and chances, but Knowle’s grit and determination not to let the game go also deserved a reward. What a day though – and one that so many members of the club shared thanks to the phenomenal atmosphere and big crowd. Thank you to everyone who came down, and in particular the super U8 Swifts (plus one U10 Griffin) who were the team’s lucky matchday mascots and the U15 Wasps for selling programmes! We’ll see you all in the next round hopefully – but first there is a home league game against Sedgley and Gornal next Sunday, 2pm kick off. 

Knowle: Smirthwaite, Keen, Smith, Byrne, Jones, Barlow, Belcher, Gibson, Stanway, Rolph.

Subs: Wheatstone (for Barlow, 62), Underhill (for Jones, 65), Horsburgh (for Stanway, 85)