Sun 25 Sep: Fleet Town (H) D 3-3

Fleet Town have always been awkward opposition for Teddington Athletic. The Hampshire outfit work incredibly hard, get stuck in and have a couple of dangerous players; as a result, they have been difficult opposition on all seven occasions the teams have clashed. This latest draw is the fourth time the teams have been tied.

PREVIOUS GAMES Oct 2014: W 2-0 (A) • Mar 2015: D 3-3 (H) • Apr 2015: D 2-2 (A) • Dec 2015: D 1-1 (H) • Jan 2016: W 1-0 (H) • Feb 2016: W 3-2 (A)

Teddington started with just the one change. Ella Bothamley being unavailable, Sadie Day was pushing for a start before succumbing to a cold; in stepped Millie MacEacharn, who has been training well. With Ale Fairn suffering back problems, Amy Hallett and Emily Bashford were the only subs.

Typically, it started with the sides trading blows, metaphorically at least. Visiting supporters were dismayed by a third-minute offside flag, although the linesman insisted the Fleet forward had been off before she ran back into an onside position.

While claim and counter-claim flew across the pitch, centre-back Hannah Hutchison calmly placed the ball down 30 yards from her goal and hoisted the free-kick goalwards; after one bounce, it was pounced upon by her fellow new girl Giulia Clini, who rifled home her first Teddington Athletic goal.

Sadly, and tone-settingly, the lead wasn’t to last. Within two minutes Fleet levelled when the forward received a simple throw-in, turned the defence far too easily and finished confidently under Ruby Rudkin.

A minute later they could have gone in front. Operating on the left of a front three, the speedy No.11 easily turned insider Teddington right-back Anna Kauffmann on the halfway line and streaked clear, only to miss the chance.

The home side responded with a tweak, swapping holding midfielders Carla Novakovic and Liz Kriebel so that athletic captain Carla could help ‘Coffee’ with the pacy flanker, while Liz could continue a burgeoning creative relationship on the left with Emily Coulson.

Before they could act upon any idea of going in front, Teddington again almost went behind when a simple diagonal cut out the the centre-backs. But then Liz came to the fore, first linking with Em and driving to the corner of the area to drag a shot just wide of the near post, before an altogether more ambitious 30-yard effort was gobbled up by the goalkeeper.

Teddington were starting to look good with the ball. Em flicked the ball beautifully over one defender, only to be blocked off by the next; Carla had a strong attempt from distance; then Giulia tried a vertical daisycutter down the channel but front-runner Ella Dodd was just beaten to it by the goalkeeper.

While creating chances, the home side were also getting in amid the muck and bullets. The strong No.14 at centre-forward has often bullied Teddington’s defence but Hutch was unafraid to get physical, the ex-Wimbledon player being made of strong stuff.

She is also, like many of her new team-mates, adaptable. So when Fleet changed their formation after 20 minutes – their players having complained to their manager that they were outnumbered in midfield – Teddington were able to tweak to fit. Morphing from their starting 4-3-3 to 4-4-2 moved Fleet’s fast winger to centre-forward; accordingly, Coffee and Hutch switched, with the Danish girl initially wondering what she had done wrong until it was pointed out to her that she had been moved into the middle precisely to keep an eye on her opponent.

The rest of the defence were doing their bit, too. When the No.14 outmuscled Millie Theobald to break clear, she found her way barred by a combination of the covering Saskia Brewster and the outrushing Ruby. A minute later, as the offside flag stayed down despite howling appeals from the home coaches, Ruby again hared off her line and forced an early, off-target shot.

Inefficient chance conversion had been a bugbear of Teddington’s first two games, but the special shooting practice paid off just after the half-hour – in style. Despite being forced wide, Doddsy had the confidence and ability to hammer the ball high into the roof of the net for only her second goal of 2016. It wouldn’t be her last.

Teddington brought on Bash for Macca, but before the sub could get a touch the home side had again surrendered the initiative. Again it was Fleet thinking quicker on their feet, reacting first to a bouncing ball and equalising.

But on this occasion it only took three minutes for Teddington to edge in front again. This one came from Liz channeling down to the corner, crossing it in, and Doddsy confidently sweeping the ball under the goalkeeper from seven yards, low, hard and accurate.

At half-time, bringing on Amy allowed Liz a breather but Teddington were very much in the ascendant, with the front four linking well. A Bash turn demolished the left-back, and the shy winger’s shot on the diagonal was only parried to Doddsy, who seemed certain to complete her hat-trick but could only knock it over with a rueful grin.

A minute later, Fleet got as far as Amy, who battled back possession and released a diag for Em to collect on the left; beating the offside trap, she pulled back towards Doddsy and when the centre-forward couldn’t quite collect, Giulia recycled to a marginally offside Bash.

Teddington were pulling Fleet hither and yon. Bash flew down the right and fed Doddsy, who reset for Giulia to flick wide to Em. The front four were fluid and dangerous, augmented by willing support from Amy, Carla and the increasingly adventurous Sas.

But the home side didn’t convert the advantage into a two-goal lead which might have made the game safe. Instead, 12 minutes into the half, they switched off again and Fleet played the No.11 through to finish under Ruby.

Again, Teddington didn’t learn and were almost doubly punished when the No.11 flew through again, only to be stopped by Ruby racing off her line. Her sidekick the strong No.14 was soon out of the game, though: going shoulder-to-shoulder in the box with Carla, she was simply outmuscled by the captain and left in a heap before wincing off the field. She may not be the tallest, but you won’t find Carla wanting for guts and determination.

With 15 minutes to go, Giulia had been replaced by Liz, operating in a more advanced role than earlier in the game. Drifting around to find opportunities, the American soon cut in from the left and forced the goalkeeper into a save.

Still the chances came at either end. Millie T dug back to deny the No.11, feeding Sas to steam clear and work the ball via Em to Doddsy, who clipped it through but Bash was denied by the keeper. Four minutes from time, a Fleet cross from the right was met at speed on the full by the No.11, who was unlucky to see the shot sizzle wide. With 90 seconds left, Liz and Bash combined for Doddsy to clip the outside of the post, before Doddsy returned the favour only for Bash to be denied by a superb block tackle from the No.17.

Even in injury time, either side could have won. Sas burst up the left and fed Liz, whose shot from 25 yards arrowed just past the far corner. Within seconds Fleet had lifted the ball over the Teddington defence one last time; with Ruby for once frozen to her line, the striker pulled the shot wide and a pulsating game was over.

For Teddington there were mixed feelings. The shooting practice worked, with a bristling brace from Doddsy and a maiden strike from Giulia, but lapses of concentration thrice let Fleet back in. The home side had stood up to Fleet’s physicality in a more impressive manner than on many previous occasions, but they had again let points slip.

Fleet have improved – having put four past Carshalton, they are more free-scoring than last term – but so have Teddington. This was a game the home side could previously have lost, but they are beginning to get the steel to go with their style.

TEDDINGTON ATHLETIC Ruby Rudkin; Anna Kauffmann, Hannah Hutchison, Millie Theobald, Saskia Brewster, Liz Kriebel, Carla Novakovic, Millie MacEacharn, Giulia Clini (1), Emily Coulson, Ella Dodd (2). Subs: Amy Hallett, Emily Bashford.

Bondy's notes from the match

Bondy's notes from Fleet

We just keep improving and our performances are proof of that. No one can tell me any different: we have the hardest-working team in the league, the best group of girls. There is not a manager or coach that has a group of players with the commitment, passion, desire and willingness to learn more than this team. We have the best group of players in the league; it's up to us to make the league table prove that point.

A hard-earned point
We were very aware Sunday's game was going to be hard. Feet Town are a physical team with lots of pace. To get anything from Sunday's game we had to dig deep and match Fleet physically. We did that for 83 minutes. I felt we competed all over the pitch. We have very strong players in the side that can bully any team, we have players that can turn defences inside out with their skill and beat anyone, and we have players with their pace that can terrify defenders. The players have started to realise their full potential. We are starting to see the natural brilliant potential our players have in abundance.

The hard work is paying off 
What is unique about our girls they all set very high standards. Gary’s mantra “Do the next thing right" has become very important we have a set of players that want to do the right thing get very disappointed when they don't get things right. To see the hard work in training come off in a live game is truly incredible. We want to play football; we want to disorganise an organised defence with our creative passing and movement. I really hope you can see and appreciate the hard work the girls are putting into their football. I hope you can see what type of football we are looking to play.

Canada geese: The V formation
Before the game I got the girls to stand in a V-shape, a formation Canada geese use to fly hundreds of miles per day. The birds can only reach their destination if they keep to the formation, keep to their responsibility as individuals and as a unit. We’re not asking the girls to fly hundreds of miles, we’re asking them for 80 minutes. 
Our players have five key elements to follow: Trust, Collective Responsible, Communication, Care and Pride. The geese have their formation, we have ours, each player with a job to do. For a team to reach their destination, they need everyone to work together. That is exactly what we are doing. We just haven't got our reward yet. There’s going to be a game where it all comes together and once that happens there will be no stopping us. The five key elements of a massive part of our training structure, preparation for game day and in game time.

Just reward
You can tell a lot from a player’s reaction how much they care for the team. Last week against Carshalton, Doddsy was frustrated with herself and felt she could have done better. Doddsy’s determination to get goals was seen in training; her commitment to improve and work resulted in two very good goals, the first being a special goal. I didn't say anything to Doddsy but I know she was going to score. In training and in the warm-up she was striking the ball beatifully. I’m so pleased for Doddsy, it's proof that hard work is key to performance and performance is key to success. Shows our structure and philosophy is working.
Congratulations also to Guilia for her first goal for Teddington Athletic. You could tell from the way the girls celebrated Guilia and Doddsy’s goals that the players know how much it meant to both girls. 

Proud
I’m extremely proud of the players. My two best days of week are easily Friday and Sunday. We all work hard and need something to look forward to; seeing and coaching these remarkably people, I am very fortunate. It turns out these remarkably people are also very gifted footballers. 

– Bondy

MATCH REPORT

Sun 18 Sep: Carshalton Athletic (H) W 2-0

After the opening Sunday’s loss in the familiar surroundings of Abbey Rangers’ Addlestone home, Teddington Athletic’s girls turned out for their first competitive game at what will hopefully become their permanent home of Udney Park. Hard-sought and hard-won, the former Imperial College playing fields represent a fine place to play football. Could the girls do it justice?

They were seeking to end their first-ever run of three consecutive defeats, the Abbey reverse following two season-closing losses against AFC Wimbledon. The opponents were Carshalton Athletic – newly promoted, but having suffered an opening defeat 4-2 at Fleet.

Teddington’s starting XI was set to be the same as last week, with Ella Dodd edging out Ale Fairn up top while Amy Hallett and Sadie Day – absent at Abbey, but in for the unavailable Emily Bashford and Millie MacEacharn – watched the new system from the bench.

Such plans were tweaked by necessity when Saskia Brewster, the steadfast full-back whose probing overlaps had done so much to unsettle Abbey, felt ill during the warm-up. While Sas sat and recovered (apparently by covering herself with every training jacket in the postcode), captain Carla Novakovic – who had also exemplified the demands of a tweaked role last week, in her case as a holding midfielder – switched to left-back, with Amy slipping back in to the holding role she played so well in last season.

As it turned out, though, Carla only lasted a minute at left-back before Teddington switched again. Having started the match with only 10 players, Carshalton were playing a 4-4-1 – so the home side sought to maximise the numerical advantage, operating with just three defenders while the midfielders pushed on, with Amy the sole holding midfielder.

Even before that switch, Teddington had had a chance, with Doddsy scooting a good through-ball along the floor for Ella Bothamley, cutting in from the right. Boz beat the defender but pulled her shot across goal and just wide of the far post.

It took just over five minutes for Teddington to break the deadlock. Giulia Clini had shown great promise in attacking midfield at Abbey, and here she glided confidently across the edge of the area before feeding Emily Coulson. Her shot was fumbled over the line by the stand-in goalkeeper, leading the shy Em to declare at half-time that the goal “doesn’t count”. Wrong, Em: it does, just like the previous 46 goals she’d scored for the club. Some of us count them, literally.

For the next 10 minutes the home side utterly dominated possession but didn’t create enough clear chances against a hard-working Carshalton team, who then threw down a warning when their sole striker wriggled past the entire defence of Anna Kauffmann, Hannah Hutchison and Millie Theobald to force a save from Ruby Rudkin.

Teddington responded immediately with a strong passage of play. From a throw-in on the left in the attacking third, the initial move broke down but Carla tracked back and recycled via Millie T, cleverly positioned to receive the pass and lay a first-time ball up the line for Em. After a one-two with Liz Kriebel, Em drove to bye-line, cut inside, beat a couple of players and laid off to Liz, who took a touch and shot just over.

More chances came and went. A Liz long-ranger bounced off the goalkeeper towards Doddsy, but the scrambling defence forced the corner; then when Boz fired across the face of goal, the keeper just about managed to kick clear with Em ready to sweep in her second.

Just before the half-hour, Carshalton made their second foray into Teddington’s penalty area with a cross from the left which Ruby caught and bowled straight to Liz, who promptly accelerated down the inside-left channel. Her superbly-weighted vertical daisycutter sent Em through to cross for Doddsy, but her shot was saved by the goalkeeper’s stuck-out leg.

Whether by hesitancy or bad luck, the home side weren’t making the most of their superiority, and the arrival of Carshalton’s 11th player buoyed up the visitors, who could now see a dramatic narrative twist. Suddenly Teddington were wobbling: from their own goal kick, Millie was dispossessed and Ruby had to deal with the shot.

On came Ale and Sadie for Doddsy and Boz, and Teddington continued to create chances. Carla shot from 20 yards after Liz had done well down the left, then more good possession ended with Em steering the ball toward the top-right corner, only to see it float agonisingly wide.

Teddington were also looking dangerous from set-plays. Blessed with superb crossing ability, Boz has understandably taken most of the corners; however, Liz also takes a fine flag-kick, so at Dale’s suggestion (largely to get Boz’s striking abilities involved in the penalty area) Liz started taking the corners.

And what corners. Three minutes before half-time, one from the left whistled across the six-yard box and just wide of the far post after what seemed to be the faintest of headers from Giulia (although at half-time she said she hadn’t touched it). A minute later, one from the right drifted through the danger zone and out the other side; coming out to collect it, Em had Amy as an option inside her but instead beat her defender and delivered an excellent left-foot cross, which evaded Ale before Sadie steered it just past the back stick.

Despite Teddington reverting to a back four – albeit with just Amy holding, Liz having a turn on the left and Em more central – Carshalton started the second half the stronger side. A Carshalton ball over the top turned the Teddington defence but Millie managed to recover in time to block the shot wide, then a cross from the right required Ruby to race off her line and bother the centre-forward.

Still, Teddington were creating chances. Ten minutes in, Em cut inside and shot across goal. Soon after, Hutch knocked a free-kick into the box, but neither Em nor Liz could convert the chance. Then more good work on the left from Em created a chance for Boz – back on for Sadie, who’d eventually succumbed to the ankle injury she’d bravely earned during a strong block tackle – to shoot from the right; the effort was just about smothered with Ale lurking.

But with the score still 1-0, Carshalton still carried a threat. On the hour, Tia Searle, one of twins playing down the left, broke through on goal – but Ruby stood big to pull off a vital save. Had that gone in, Teddington may have collapsed, and a revitalised Carshalton may have completed a smash-and-grab against the run of play. (Asked to describe a match she had mostly spent as a spectator, Ruby said it was “well boring”.)

Teddington made more changes, with Doddsy returning for Ale, while the fully recuperated Saskia replaced the tiring Amy: Carla moved into holding midfield, swiftly joined by Liz as the home side – seeking to both extend and defend their slender lead – reverted to the default formation.

Sas had an immediate effect, and Teddington should have gone 2-0 up. Motoring down the left and combining well with Carla just inside her; Sas delivered a cross which missed the first defender and found Liz in a glorious position 10 yards out – but the American steered just wide of the far corner. Then a Giulia drive from edge of box was scrambled wide by the goalkeeper. Cue another gorgeous Liz corner from right; Boz got a head on it, Emily pulled it back from the left but Giulia’s first-time left-footer from the edge of the box scudded just wide.

By the 67th minute this had become the kind of end-to-end game which neutrals love and managers fear. A dangerous Carshalton through-ball was mopped up by Ruby, who laid it out for Liz to produce a good through-ball for Boz. Attended all the way by the left-back, Boz kept going to the byeline and pulled back for Doddsy, who got underneath her shot at the end of a lightning counter-attack, with Emily also sprinting through to be available at the far post.

And it was a similar passage of play which finally created Teddington’s second, with seven minutes to go and an apparent eternity after their first. As Carshalton passed through midfield, commanding Carla nipped in front of her opponent to intercept – but instead of just hitting the ball, she cleverly curled it down the wing, one of those instantaneous decisions that comes with fitness and awareness and can turn defence into attack within a split-second. Rarely slow to accept an invitation, Boz raced onto it and pulled it back for Emily to calmly tuck home.

The killer goal created an audible rush of air around the pitch: the home side relaxed, while the brave visitors finally acknowledged their fate. It was music to a football lover’s ears to hear both sets of players (let alone coaches) saying “get the ball on the floor”. A very pleasant bunch of footballers, coaches and parents, Carshalton are a welcome addition to the top flight.

How well Teddington do in that division this season may yet come down to how efficient they become. Even more so than at Abbey, they had majority possession of the football and frequently demonstrated excellent movement and awareness with it. However, as at Abbey, they wasted an almost comical number of chances – and in doing so, almost let their opponents take advantage again.

They will need to be sharper in the next home game, another 9.30am Udney Park kick-off against Fleet. Having beaten Carshalton on the opening Sunday, the Hampshire side were inactive this week as Crystal Palace again succumbed to a default walkover, raising questions as to their ongoing participation.

Elsewhere, Maidenhead cruised to a 5-2 home win over Abbey, while newcomes Hampton Youth were crushed 10-2 at home by title favourites AFC Wimbledon. Good teams lurk in this division; if Teddington are to truly become one of them, they need to keep being diligent without the ball – and become clinical with it.

TEDDINGTON ATHLETIC: Ruby Rudkin, Anna Kauffmann, Hannah Hutchison, Millie Theobald, Carla Novakovic, Amy Hallett, Liz Kriebel, Ella Bothamley, Giulia Clini, Emily Coulson (2), Ella Dodd. Subs: Ale Fairn, Sadie Day, Saskia Brewster.

Bondy's notes from Carshalton

Three points on the board 

I’m delighted we’ve got our first win of the season and my first competitive win since arriving at Teddington Athletic. It of course is specially nice to get your first win when you join a club. (Gaz, I think you said you’d buy me a coffee...) The girls are amazing people, so I’m really happy for them.

We were all disappointed we lost at Abbey Rangers, where we were the better team; I thought the players gave an honest performance there and got nothing for it. Thank you to the parents for your support on Sunday, we’re pleased you were able to celebrate two goals and a WIN.

Overcoming the unexpected

It was hard to know what to expect from a Carshalton side: promoted last season, beaten last week 4-2 at home by Fleet Town but scored two goals. We of course know Fleet Town set out a hard-working physical side.

Recognising this and looking at the result, we expected and discussed with the players that Carshalton would work hard. Starting with 10 players, Carshalton did indeed show what a hard-working team they are – and looked dangerous going forward: that continued for a lot of the game, I felt.

A good footballing team

We played some fantastic football. Any good coach will tell you that it’s a brilliant feeling when you work on things and it comes off, or you can see the improvement in training and on game day. We work a lot on possession in training: combination play, link-up play, support play, movement off the ball, angles, dribbling and especially being creative. When we started to link up with each other, with runs off the ball and players wanting the ball, Carshalton could not cope.

Squeeze and spread

I felt at times we could have been quicker to squeeze and press our opposition, winning the ball back or at least exerting enough pressure to force Carshalton into mistakes. We covered this in training and will continue to improve that part of our game: pressing as a unit and not individuals.

Time for shooting practice!  

Creating chances isn't an issue, but taking our chances is something we must improve on. We fully deserved to take the lead, but knowing how many chances we missed you can understand my concerns that we were going to be punished in the same way as at Abbey Rangers – creating chance after chance but not scoring and letting teams off the hook.

Thankfully in the last 10 minutes Boz’s strong determined run down the right, beating her defender with skill and pace, delivered a fantastic ball in the box Emily got on the end of it for her second goal.

Every goal counts

Emily said to me “My first goal doesn't count.' Like many players, Emily C is a perfectionist and sets high standards. It may not have been as good as your second, but it was on target and that’s all we ask for – it's up to the goalkeeper to save it. I played over 250 games and I got 17 goals – they weren’t all special, but they all count!

Ruby's professional performance

With not a lot to do for long parts of the game, it’s easy for a goalkeeper to lose concentration. Pushing to get our second goal, we left space in behind, but Ruby's positioning to make some very big one-on-one saves was excellent. Ruby was playing like a sweeper, coming out of her box to clear the ball.

What also impressed us was that Ruby was happy for her team-mates to play the ball back to her under pressure. Another was that Ruby played out from the back, passing to her defenders and midfielders so they could then bring the ball upfield. Everyone in the team wants to play good football!

Up next: Fleet Town

On Sunday 25 September we host Fleet Town. We know that Fleet are a very hard-working team who will make life difficult for us: they put four goals past Carshalton. Remember our Six Principles:

• Communication
• Collective Responsibility 
• Trust 
• Care
• Pride
• Smiles and Laughter 

Most importantly... 

I want to say how proud I am of you girls. We can have all the ideas and structure in place, but it's you who has to do it. I can see how hard you are working – you want to learn, you want to improve and you want to win. I know I keep saying this and I will keep saying it, but you are so brilliant – a breath of fresh air. Thank you for being you :-) and to the players’ families and friends, thank you for welcoming me into to your Teddington family! One last request: Please, we all know each other by now – it’s Bondy, not Dale...

Regards, Bondy

Sun 11 Sep: Abbey Rangers (A) L 0-1

For the fourth successive season, Teddington Athletic started their season at Abbey Rangers’ ever-improving Addlestone Moor ground. With the men’s senior team freshly promoted to Level 9 of the pyramid, the place has had a further spruce-up. Would Teddington match the vernacular improvements?

Now in their fourth season, the Teddington girls have had their own changes over summer. Snapped up by Millwall and Brighton & Hove Albion respectively, key players Phoebe and Ella Waldron are no longer available to play for the team they helped to found, but the squad is now graced by two new players and a new coach, Dale Bond.

A former semi-pro player, Bondy has been coaching in women’s and girls’ football for several years. Getting to know some of the Teddington girls at the London Youth Games, he was invited aboard by manager Dave Waldron and has immediately been welcomed by the girls, for his boundless enthusiasm and his innovative training routines. (More on Bondy here, in an introductory note from the man himself.)

One of Bondy’s innovations is a clearly delineated matchday timetable, which encourages the girls to get to the match early enough to get their social interactions done before a KO-minus-45-minutes “down to business” deadline; although not everybody quite got the memo, there was a notable focus about several players, with Ella Bothamley particularly switched-on.

The girls were also being shaped into a new formation, one which has been designed to get more of Teddington’s dangerous players working further forward. As the girls have progressed through divisions, formats and formations, certain players have willingly sacrificed some of their attacking intent for the greater good of the team shape; but with two of the team’s top three all-time goalscorers now having left – 52-goal Phoebe following 42-goal Sinead Morris in exiting via the wings – the pack has been shuffled to give greater creative licence to get some of the great players still in the squad into the areas where they can hurt the opposition.

That said, there is much pleasing familiarity. Inventive in triangles, the team still passes the ball along the floor. They had the game’s first half-chance within two minutes when new captain Carla Novakovic, collecting the ball in midfield, had the maturity and confidence to look up and measure a diagonal ball between defenders for her friend Ella Dodd to run off the shoulder of the last defender and force the goalkeeper into a hurried clearance which struck Doddsy but bounced harmlessly behind for a goal-kick. It wouldn’t be the last action to draw sighs of relief from the home fans.

Having bagged 14 goals in her debut campaign, Doddsy frequently played in midfield or defence last term – and while her excellence there means she will no doubt be selected in various positions this season, she can also push Ale Fairn hard for the front-running role. Certainly judging by her performance at Abbey, Doddsy will be too much of a handful for several defences – while the wise positioning and striker’s instinct of Ale offers the opposition a different kind of problem.

Doddsy almost broke the deadlock from a corner in the 13th minute but her right-foot shot was hacked off the line; collecting the clearance and remembering the drills from Friday’s training session, Emily Coulson turned her marker and fired in a shot which the goalkeeper just about parried. Emily is another who sacrificed her attacking ability for the good of the team last term: having gobbled up 40 goals in her first two seasons, she played deeper in 2015/16, but the formation rejig should give her more scope to drive on and punish the opposition. At Abbey, she was playing in a new role but grew strongly into it and will doubtless be bothering the scoresheet again this season.

Six minutes later Doddsy gave the travelling fans a close-up view of her power and finesse. Hammering down the right wing, full of strength and vigour with chalk on her boots, she beat two defenders before finding Emily whose shot forced a corner.

Sadly, a minute later, Teddington conceded against the run of play. Without really threatening a determined Teddington back line, Abbey had been focusing on playing via their left wing, and it was from that side that the goal originated – although blame cannot be attached to the overworked Anna Kauffmann: Abbey’s cross met runners who got their before their visiting markers, and despite Ruby Rudkin’s best attempts the cross was tucked in at the far post.

Goal notwithstanding, Anna – or “Coffee”, into which her surname has been twisted to avoid on-pitch confusion with new girl Hannah Hutchison – was having a good game. Part of the new tactical plan is to get the full-backs far more involved in the creative arts, and despite growing into an excellent right-back, the Danish girl has always had more attacking ability than your average No.2. But with Abbey focusing on their left wing, that simply left more leeway for Saskia Brewster, on the other side, to roam forward.

One of Teddington’s mainstays from the off, Sas has also long displayed a fuller skillset than that required by a stay-at-home full-back. After an excellent summer of diligent training, she is fitter than ever; coupled with constant coaching encouragement, that fitness and the new formation allows her to gallop forward and join in with the attacks, creating overloads for Teddington and problems for Abbey.

At around the 20-minute mark, Sas began to impose herself in midfield, and Teddington enjoyed having another safe pair of feet to pass through. When Sas recycled a throw to Liz Kriebel, the American girl had the patience to look up and the ability to pick out a long diag to Boz, whose parried shot was almost snaffled by Doddsy on the rebound.

Soon after, Sas went on the overlap again, and by now had developed the (fully justified) confidence to take the cross on herself, although Boz couldn’t quite reach it.

Just before the half-hour mark, a triple Teddington switch brought on Emily Bashford, Ale Fairn and Millie MacEacharn for Boz, Doddsy and Emily Coulson respectively. All three had played increasingly well but were given a long half-time break to recharge before coming back on.

The sheer pace of Bash gave Teddington another option, and Abbey another problem. A great angled ball from Liz – another girl increasingly getting to grips with a new position, in her case as a deeper-lying midfielder; she has the creative ability for the role, and is a willing learner keen to improve her defensive positioning – sent the winger on her way. Outstripping one defender for pace and bothering another with her fearless physicality, Bash couldn’t quite add the finish but had served notice and set Abbey on the back foot.

Not that the hosts were without threat, but Teddington looked comfortably the better team. When Abbey managed to send a ball over the top, Coffee raced back with the striker, put her foot on the ball, turned and played it calmly along the grass to start a new attack. And when the Abbey No.41 did get a rare sight of goal and sent one scudding inwards, Ruby was equal to it – despite her pre-match complaints that her top was too tight (“I’ve grown during summer”).

As the 40-minute half wore to a close, Carla was bright red and asking for water but still channeled back with her foe to foil an Abbey attack, put her foot on the ball, calmly turn inside and lay a pass off. The captain was leading by example, one of several Teddington players showing excellent technique, but as the half ended they realised they needed to up the shot-count.


Teddington started the second period stronger, with Bash again stretching Abbey down their left. The hosts hit back with another long ball but again Anna raced back to regain possession and start another attack. And she wasn’t the only full-back creatively involved: by now Sas was becoming a regular in the Abbey area, and when a left-wing corner landed at her feet she sensibly reset for a Carla 20-yarder to sting the goalkeeper’s hands.

Then Bash seared through again but ran out of pitch, before Teddington somewhat overplayed from an attacking throw-in, being caught on the break and thankful to Ruby for forcing a shot wide.

In general, though, the defence was strong. A large part of this is the eternal reliability of Millie Theobald, starting her fourth season at centre-back, marshalling her defence with superb reading of the game.

Millie T was buckling up with a new partner, Hannah. After an unhappy spell at AFC Wimbledon, the friendly Hannah – or “Hutch” as she has been nicknamed, the latest retitling due to clashes with soundalike teammates – has quickly settled in among her new team-mates and rediscovered her love of the game…which is the whole point.

Such a solid centre-back pairing, coupled with diligent cover from Liz and Carla, allowed Teddington to spend the majority of the match on the front foot. They had five chances in the 55th minute alone. First a dangerous cross in from the right was hurriedly cleared behind a fraction before Ale, trying to bend her runs, could turn ball into the goal.

Liz’s resultant corner was headed off the line by an Abbey defender under her own crossbar, and from that flag-kick Teddington could have scored three times – Sas having the clearest sight of goal, her full-blooded 12-yard right-footer somehow blocked and wellied out of danger. From that clearance Abbey mounted a counter-attack but Teddington sprung back and covered superbly, captain Carla again leading her troops back to do the unglamorous covering work.

Just after the hour, Teddington reversed their triple substitution and reverted to the starting lineup. That meant Doddsy, Em and Boz were all back in business, and within a minute the latter’s searching corner caused all sorts of mayhem in the box - but again the visitors couldn't quite capitalise.

The refreshed front three immediately knitted back in with Teddington’s other new girl. Off the pitch, Giulia Clini isn't the loudest voice - but on it, she has the ability to frighten defences. Certainly Abbey quickly recognised the danger she poses, abandoning their early three centre-back formation to detail a man-marker on to Giulia.

It didn't really stop her. Ghosting between attack and midfield, Giulia exemplified Teddington’s intention to pass and move, linking team-mates and searching for openings. In the 67th minute she made herself the pivot of a one-two with Liz, the American driving on and firing in a 20-trader that the goalkeeper was happy to shovel wide. Again Boz’s corner hit the danger zone but Liz’s header was more upward than goalward.


Another to grow into her role, Giulia was involved again soon afterward, at the heart of a flowing move across the pith. Gathering the ball from the inside-left position, she had the confidence and ability to look around and pick out a pass to Boz; she took it on a couple of strides and curled a ball into the path of Doddsy, who lifted her shot just past the under-fire goalkeeper.

Although still probing in attack, Teddington were starting to find the recovery runs harder, and in the 73rd minute allowed Abbey to flash a shot across goal. Now operating with a size-5 ball on a big pitch for 80 minutes, and with only three subs, the girls had been strongly advised to keep their fitness topped up; as the game wore on, those who had put in the miles over summer felt the benefit.

With three minutes to go Liz was still scampering around, sending Boz down the right for a cross which just evaded Doddsy and Em. Then Doddsy’s pressure forced yet another corner, just about saved at the near post following a scramble.

The final word so nearly went to indefatigable captain Carla. In time added on she fizzed in at least her third on-target 20-harder of the game, and this time the goalkeeper fumbled - but the ball trickled agonisingly wide for a corner from which one home parent, who had been advising his daughter to “run down the clock” with 15 minutes to go, claimed offside despite the defenders on the goal-line. Takes all sorts.

In the end, Teddington can count themselves very unlucky indeed to have lost this game. They had more possession and better chances; just as importantly, they played some very promising football. They have some lessons to learn and some fitness to gain, and the 2016/17 season has a long way to go, but if they carry on like this they won't go far wrong.

TEDDINGTON ATHLETIC Ruby Rudkin, Anna Kauffmann, Hannah Hutchison, Millie Theobald, Saskia Brewster, Liz Kreibel, Carla Novakovic, Ella Bothamley, Giulia Clini, Emily Coulson, Ella Dodd. Subs: Ale Fairn, Emily Bashford, Millie MacEacharn. Thanks to David T for the photos.

First week's results: Wimbledon saw off Maidenhead 4-2 while newly-promoted Carshalton, Teddington's next opponents, lost by the same scoreline at home to Fleet. The other promoted side, Hampton, won by default due to the absence of Crystal Palace – the "Blues" from last season, not the title-winning Reds, who have left the league. Teddington's fixtures through to the second Sunday of half-term are now on the blog's fixture list. 

A word from Bondy

I’m proud and frustrated after Sunday’s game. Proud of the performance from all 14 players. Fitness did show in the end – we hope the girls will take note of how importance fitness is to their performance.

I must stress that the effort, work-rate and the miles the girls must have covered on a very hot afternoon, a big pitch for 80 minutes, was very impressive. When the girls get fitter then the game will become easier.

We kept to our game plan even when we went a goal behind – passing the ball, movement off the ball, creating space going forward and creating chances. The three changes we made before halftime kept up the tempo and made an impact; same from the changes during the second half.

We have a lot of talent and ability, 16 players who can make an impact regardless if they start or from the bench we do have depth in the squad.

I will never ask the girls to promise me a win or promise me a goal or two. What I do ask, and what I expected, is an honest performance – and Sunday’s was  a proud display. We didn't win the game but we played hard and we kept going.

The better team lost on Sunday: 
What left me so frustrated was we were the better team and our performance was brilliant; even a point I don't think justified our performance. What is evident is that we have depth in the squad and we can reach even higher levels; Sunday was a good performance, but we can and we will perform at a level above.

Work In Progress:
For us it's a work in progress: new players, new coach and new formation. You can see already the girls are working hard and have very quickly learned a lot of the new formation; some are in new positions and new players have fitted in nicely with the new training structure.

We regroup on Friday night training. Welcome Carshalton Athletic. Carshalton lost on Sunday and will be looking to get points on the board just like us. No game is ever easy until the game is won. We will go into Sunday’s game full of confidence and energy. PMA POSITIVE MENTAL ATTITUDE.

Your Support:
Parents and families: thank you for your support on Sunday; looking forward to hearing you in loud voice. Your support means a lot not just for this season but seasons gone by. All the years, in whatever weather, you have travelled to make sure the girls get to training and matches. I'm passionate about the female game so appreciate everything you do for the girls, the team and the club.

Bondy

New season, new faces, new attitude

And so to season four. The Teddington players who started out as primary school ankle-biters are now closing in on their GCSE years, and the team faces new challenges.

For the first time, this season they won’t be able to call upon two former mainstays of the team, Ella Waldron and Phoebe Head. Brilliantly, both have ben picked up by professional teams – skipper Jelly by Brighton & Hove Albion, all-time top scorer Pheebs by Millwall.

Obviously the much-loved pair will be missed, on the field and off, but they go with our best wishes and will may still be around to support the girls. And as two leave, two new faces have joined the squad. Giula Clini is a midfielder/forward who has recently moved to the area, while defender Hannah Hutchison has switched from AFC Wimbledon. They are both very welcome, as are their families.

Any team would miss the qualities of Jelly and Pheebs but this is a great chance for the girls to show personal growth, and to take more responsibility. We have dealt before with losing players: it simply means more opportunity for others.

Ch-ch-ch-ch-changes

We will be playing a slightly new formation this season which we hope will make the most of the talented players at our disposal. For this season we also have the services of Dale Bond, an experienced coach who has worked with Brentford and LA Galaxy among other clubs. The girls have already taken to Dale – perhaps, as manager Dave Waldron freely admits, it’s nice to hear a new voice – and he will be bringing his enthusiasm and organisation to what is already a very well-run team.

In another change for this season, we will usually only be taking three substitutes per game. This is to make sure that all substitutes get a decent run-out during the game rather than kicking their heels on the touchline while we juggle formations and personnel.

Each player getting more game-time will place extra demands on their stamina. The girls are strongly encouraged to do some fitness during the week; Carla and her sister are happy to host regular sessions, and advice will be freely available from the management.

Responsibilities

With a matchday squad of 14 selected (on a Friday night after training) from a squad of 16, two girls will be unused every week. As ever, this will fairly distributed around the squad and will obviously include allowances for absences due to other activities. On the other hand, absence from Friday training will usually make the management’s squad selection decisions much easier. The girls will need to be on the ball this season.

After requests from many clubs (including ours), the league has decided to experiment with playing fixtures on the SECOND Sunday of each half-term – ie the day before most kids return to school. (For instance, they have already arranged a cup game, at home to Milford Pumas for Sun 30 Oct.) If it’s possible to bear this in mind when booking holidays, that would be very much appreciated, but we know these things aren’t always easy. Please keep Dave and Lisa informed of players’ availability via the Doodle poll – remember this is editable if circumstances change.

Our aims for the season will remain private for now, but our intention remains the same as ever: to help the girls grow as footballers and as people; to help them become adaptable footballers who can play in different positions; not to pick the most powerful players for short-term gain, rather to give a variety of young women a set of skills they might use for the rest of their lives, both on and off the field.

First game

The Premier Division is again an eight-team league in which we’ll play everyone three times. There are two changes, with Carshalton Athletic and Hampton Youth promoted; they will replace South Park and one of the Crystal Palace teams. Preliminary indications are that it is the champions, Palace Reds, who have left.

The season starts with some fascinating clashes between some of the stronger teams remaining from last year’s top flight. We start at Abbey Rangers, while AFC Wimbledon host Maidenhead; next week, Maidenhead host Abbey; then Abbey travel to Wimbledon.

So for the fourth successive season we start at Abbey’s ground in Addlestone.  It's a 1pm kick-off, so we would like players to be there (in home kit, not tour kit) at noon sharp. Let’s start as we mean to go on, being organised and giving ourselves the best chance of achieving our goals. The address is Addlestone Moor, Surrey, KT15 2QH; map here.

Fixtures, results & scorers, 2016/17

11.09.16 L 0-1 Abbey Rangers (a)
18.09.16 W 2-0 Carshalton Athletic (h)
25.09.16 D 3-3 Fleet Town (h)
02.10.16 W 4-0 Crystal Palace (a)
09.10.16 L 2-5 AFC Wimbledon (a)
16.10.16 L 3-6 Maidenhead (h)
30.10.16 W 6-1 Milford Pumas (h, Surrey League Cup 1st Round)

06.11.16 L 0-2 Abbey Rangers (h)
20.11.16 D 1-1 AFC Wimbledon (h)

27.11.16 W 4-2 Hampton Youth (h)
04.12.16 P-P Fleet Town (a, Surrey League Cup QF)
11.12.16 W 2-2 (5-4p) Fleet Town (a, Surrey League Cup QF)
18.12.16 W 6-3 Crystal Palace (h)
08.01.17 W 4-0 Fleet Town (h)
15.01.17 W 2-0 Abbey Rangers (h)

29.01.17 W 4-0 Abbey Rangers (h, Surrey League Cup SF)

05.02.17 L 0-5 Maidenhead (h)

19.02.17 L 0-2 Hampton Youth (a)

26.02.17 W 5-2 Fleet Town (a)

12.03.17 L (walkover) AFC Wimbledon (a)
19.03.17 W 5-2 Hampton Youth (a)
09.04.17 L (walkover) Maidenhead (a)
23.04.17 W 1-0 Carshalton Athletic (h, double-header)
23.04.17 W 1-0 Carshalton Athletic (h, double-header)

30.04.17 L 2-3 Maidenhead (Surrey League Cup Final, at Merstham FC)

07.05.17 L (walkover) Crystal Palace (a)

Fixtures subject to change. There are eight teams in the Premier Division; we play each team three times. Results, tables and upcoming fixtures come via PrawnSandwich.com - click the link then go to Surrey County Women & Girls League, U15, Premier Division.

Goalscorers:
13 Ella Dodd
12 Emily Coulson
11 Ella Bothamley
8 Liz Kriebel
6 Giulia Clini
2 Ale Fairn
2 Carla Novakovic
1 Emily Bashford
1 Saskia Brewster
1 Millie MacEacharn

(NB Penalty shootout goals don't technically count: sorry to Liz, Doddsy, Em, Giulia and Ruby)

FIXTURES, RESULTS & SCORERS for all TAFC seasons:
2017/18 • 2016/17 • 2015/16 • 2014/15 • 2013/14