Late joy at Penn

Charlie Evans’ second half stoppage time winner gave United all three points against an opponent who having taken a seventh minute lead proceeded to frustrated Woodley by playing deep with plenty of players behind the ball.

United started positively but fell behind when Henna Hussain was quickest to the ball in a challenge with Michelle Quinn and shot from twenty yards into Sophie Cheadle’s top left hand corner of the goal.

Undeterred Woodley moved the ball freely with a lot of play in the hosts’ half of the pitch. In the fourteenth minute May Hamblin shot wide from an acute angle following home keeper Rebecca Tobin parrying Bonnie Messitt’s shot. Tobin went on to deny Maddie Sawyer midway through the half and then saved from Sarah Lawrence following Ellen Surtees’ free kick that Gemma Simms headed towards the Woodley winger.

Sawyer put an effort wide of the post in a goal mouth scramble before Tobin saved from Hamblin and then made a triple save from Woodley players!. The half ended with a Surtees’ free kick hitting the crossbar and rebounding back into play.

The second half continued in the same view with Woodley keeper Cheadle rarely being called into action while her opposite number continued to deny United.

A change in formation saw Woodley continue to push players forward and they finally levelled in the seventy fifth minute. Surtees received a throw in from Mollie Haines who she played a one-two with before unleashing a shot from twenty five yards that flew over Tobin into the top of the net.

Sensing that the match could be won, Woodley continued to pressure Penn and were rewarded in he second minute of stoppage time when right back Evans scored from close range at the far post from a Surtees corner. There was just enough time left for the hosts to restart the game before full time was blown.

Next Sunday sees league leaders Woodley travel to second placed Woodley United, the only team to have beaten the Kestrels in the league this season.

Cheadle, Evans, Wilkins (Routledge), Quinn (Measham), Simms, Surtees, M Haines, Sawyer, Hamblin, Messitt (Hudson), Lawrence