Sun 22 Nov: Teddington Athletic 0-0 Maidenhead

In the supposed hierarchy of football results, 0-0 is often thought to be the worst for neutrals. Unlike most other sports, the game is predicated upon the relative rarity of scoring success, yet when neither team makes the breakthrough there is a guilty feeling of failure, of promise unfulfilled.

Often, though, these hierarchies are fatuous generalisations which disregard individual attributes and attractiveness. Just as a well-engineered car park can have more design worth than a City of London skyscraper, a good 0-0 can be more involving than any ground-out 2-0 or cakewalked 4-1.

So it was with Teddington’s second game against Maidenhead Blue Sox. Having blitzed the Berkshire league last term, the newcomers have sought, and found, harder opposition in the Surrey League – and have started to make their mark on what is turning into a fascinating Premier Division season.

Maidenhead hosted Teddington on a crisply autumnal early-October day at Bisham Abbey, and gave as good as they got in a 3-2 reverse. That was their fourth successive single-goal defeat to last season’s top-four sides, but since then they have found their feet with three home wins against the division’s relative strugglers (Palace Blues, Fleet and South Park) and a hard-fought 1-1 at wobbling champions Wimbledon.

As a result they came to Broom Road a point clear of their hosts, albeit from two games more. Teddington have had their own dichotomous season: comfortable wins over South Park (twice) and Kempton, plus that rather harder victory at Maidenhead, have contrasted with disappointingly comprehensive beatings at Abbey and Wimbledon.

So it was with some interest that Teddington prepared for Maidenhead’s visit: tactics were tweaked, formations discussed and personnel considered. The home side had clipped wings: with Phoebe Head ill, Emily Bashford away and Sinead Morris having left the team, they were without their three fastest flankers.

However, Millie MacEacharn has made that left-sided berth her own not through speed but through hard effort, teamwork, diligence and awareness. Having impressed in a cameo on the right against Kempton, Ella Bothamley slotted straight in alongside an unchanged central midfield quartet of Amy Hallett, Ella Dodd, Carla Novakovic and Emily Coulson, the latter particularly happy to support ever-willing front-runner Ale Fairn.

The defence was also unchanged, which is credit to another girl who has settled straight into a position. Although Millie Theobald is available again, Anna Kauffmann will be a difficult team-mate to dislodge in that backline; the Danish girl once again displayed tactical awareness, no little vision on the ball and a fleetness of foot that often got her team out of trouble.

To managerial despair, a Teddington team that had been asked for a high-tempo opening started the game as if still in pyjamas, but by the fifth minute they were asserting themselves on Maidenhead. Ceaselessly pressing their opponents, the strong midfield had the upper hand for most of the first half.

The hard work tired the home side, but that’s where rolling substitutions help: work hard, have a rest, come back on. Positional flexibility helps, too: when Boz ran herself ragged on the right, Millie T came on in defence, Anna pushing into midfield and Emily floating out wide.

Sadie also discovered a new position, the right-winger coming on to replace Macca on the left, and getting involved in a lovely flowing move that ended in perhaps Teddington’s clearest chance of the half.

Amy Hallett strode out of defensive midfield and played a clever diagonal for Sadie, who skipped past the right-back and dummied inside with an ease which might have even surprised the affable winger herself. Her astute pull-back found ale at the near post, but her instinctive first-time flick was the wrong side of the wood and ruffled the side-netting.

Not that Teddington had had it all their own way. Just before the half-hour a Maidenhead corner was volleyed in from the edge of the area, with Ruby’s parry and a messy clearance only finding a striker – who then found herself pounced upon by the brave goalkeeper.

Ruby was again impressive five minutes into the second period: an uncharacteristic mistake from Jelly allowed the striker in on goal, but Rubes got down well to push it wide.

Two minutes later Maidenhead breached the back line again. This time it was through good passing rather than defensive error, and indeed Millie T showed great composure to recover, rescue the ball, work her way wide and calmly play the ball out of defence.

As in Berkshire, Maidenhead had the better second half after Teddington edged the first period. Unlike in that first game, the goals didn’t follow, but the football did. Although each team could use a long throw from the commanding centre-back, this was no war of attrition, with both sides plainly preferring to play the ball on the deck and pass through their opposition. It may not have resulted in goals, but it made for a game that was fascinating and absorbing rather than tense and fearful – as did the cordial relations with the Maidenhead management.

With their next five league games all against those bottom three sides, Maidenhead may well have built up a fair head of steam – and number of points – by the time they come to face the title challengers again. They may well make Teddington’s own top-four ambitions harder to fulfil, but in this reporter’s view Maidenhead are a welcome addition to the league.

TEDDINGTON ATHLETIC Ruby Rudkin, Anna Kauffmann, Ella Waldron, Saskia Brewster, Amy Hallett, Ella Dodd, Carla Novakovic, Ella Bothamley, Emily Coulson, Millie MacEacharn, Ale Fairn. Subs Millie Theobald, Sadie Day.