The change was somewhat forced upon the management through the heavy cold suffered by Anna Kauffmann, who was willing to turn up and play but visibly below her physical best. Dropping to the bench – where she asked her coaches several intelligent questions as the game unfolded – she made way for Amy Hallett to switch to right-back, allowing Millie T to drop back into her central home, flanked by her old chum Saskia Brewster and nestled alongside her new friend Hannah Hutchison, the ensemble protecting the increasingly confident goalkeeper Ruby Rudkin.
Coffee wasn’t the only kid with a cold: captain Carla Novakovic was also under he weather, always a shame for a girl with such a sunny disposition. Typically, Carla agreed to start and see how she went on, with the proviso that she’d tell the coaches if she felt she needed to stop; equally typically, she never did need to stop.
Playing into the wind on a somewhat sticky pitch, Teddington missed their usual rhythm and snap. The first 15 minutes were largely Abbey’s, although the Addlestone outfit enjoyed more possession than penetration, winning just the one corner, cut out by Carla. More worryingly for Teddington, they struggled to string passes together, rushing clearances and too easily turning over ownership of the ball.
One mark of a good team is that it can play its way out of a bad patch, and that’s precisely what Teddington proceeded to do. From the quarter-hour to half-time, the home side had most of the ball and more of the chances.
Increasingly roving forward from midfield, Liz Kriebel slapped a shot just over and started to link up with Ella Bothamley on the right. Boz’s teasing crosses started to stretch Abbey: one narrowly evaded both Ella Dodd and goalkeeper Amy Gordon, while another was at the centre of a flowing move – Doddsy’s knockdown freeing the winger to centre for Em, who set for Doddsy to hammer just over.
Just after the half-hour, Teddington got even closer when Boz, coming central to receive a throw from the left, cleverly dummied her marker on the edge of the box and fizzed in a first-time shot which Amy did well to palm wide; Boz’s corner begged for a touch but flew through the six-yard box.
The following minute, Teddington were at it again. Liz had to dig back to win the ball, although by now the home side were so camped in Abbey territory that “digging back” was only as far as Abbey’s end of the centre circle. Winning the ball, the American just about stopped it rolling out for a throw, sent Boz down the right and collected the winger’s confident back-heeled return for an ambitious first-time shot which floated past the far post.
The visitors sporadically had chances – an 18th-minute ball over the top found Millie T outmuscled for a shot just wide, while in injury-time the same gambit produced the same result – but Teddington could go into the break confident, if somewhat rueing their inability to turn dominance into goals.
Teddington started the second half slowly, a habit they’ll have to shed against the better teams; even so, they remained resolutely organised in defence and once more fought their way back to dominance, like a grizzled arm-wrestler forcing the opponents’ hand backwards. It took 10 minutes for the home side to threaten, but when they did they looked capable of getting round and through Abbey’s back three.
First Doddsy’s driving dribble had the visitors back-pedalling, with Emily finding space through a clever blindside run; as is her right as a striker, Doddsy took the run as a decoy and fired a shot on target, well fielded by Amy Gordon. Proving the lack of hard feelings, a minute later hard-working Em curled a good-looking cross towards Doddsy, but sadly just past her.
While Emily worked hard on the left, building moves and offering support, it was the girl on the other side who looked most likely. Last season, Boz would need a rest after 50 minutes of involvement, and Teddington had a clear replacement on the bench in the threatening Emily Bashford. But while the coaches discussed that option, they decided that Boz was still looking strong – reaping the benefits of fitness improved by long bike rides with her dad.
It proved the right decision. Having fired fractionally over from close range in the 51st minute, Boz was soon involved in three goals in a four-minute spell.
First, she was the provider. Ever willing to improve, Saskia had asked at half-time if she was allowed to range forward, and told of course she was. And when Boz floated over a beautiful 57th-minute corner, there she was at the back post, firmly planting a header past the helpless Amy.
Players, coaches and parents exploded in celebration, and not just because the home side had deservedly broken the deadlock in a cup semi-final. A model footballer and quietly popular with the entire squad, Saskia had scored her first-ever goal for Teddington, on her 68th appearance (for the record, Emily is the most-capped player with 75).
It took just two minutes for Teddington to double their lead through some Boz brilliance. Flying down the right, she cut inside to the corner of the area; confronted by the left-sided centre-back, she flicked the ball round the back of her standing foot then shifted her body weight to curl it left-footed into Amy’s far corner.
Now thoroughly enjoying herself, Boz danced down the line again, her cross just evading Doddsy but finding Em just beyond the back stick, at a tight angle from which she was still confident enough to boom a volley just over the bar.
On 65 minutes, job done, Boz left the field to thunderous applause, replaced by Bash. Three minutes later, Doddsy – who had selflessly run herself ragged – departed for Ale Fairn, who promptly set up Carla for a shot well-saved. And with eight minutes to go, on came Anna for Amy – who was again excellent at right-back: Teddington have won seven of the eight games she has started – while Emily was given a breather by Millie MacEacharn.
Two minutes later, Millie took her chance – literally. Teddington came down the right through Bash, who worked the ball to Ale. Exemplifying a centre-forward’s role, she laid the ball off for Giulia, who had quietly impressed all day – frequently winning the ball and helping to construct attacks, spreading the play for others to find the gaps. Here she took a more direct route, gently rolling a gorgeous little 10-yard daisy-cutting vertical for Macca to run on to and simply slide it home past poor old Amy.
That made Macca the team’s 10th scorer of season. In the last three games alone – all against top-five teams – Teddington have scored 10 goals via eight different girls. It’s a squad game: pleasingly, Sadie Day was there too, and ex-captain Ella Waldron came down in time to see (and video) the goals.
That communal ethic continues throughout the team. With three successive clean sheets, Teddington have now gone 261 minutes without conceding – a club record; there were three successive clean sheets in the lower-league season, but games, like the players’ legs, were shorter then.
That clean-sheet run was ended in a 6-2 Cup defeat to the mighty AFC Wimbledon. They now have major rivals atop the league in Maidenhead, who beat them 3-1 in the other Surrey League Cup semi (the first time they’ve conceded since their 6-3 win at Teddington in mid-October).
Top of the league and through to the cup final, Maidenhead are also Teddington’s next opponents, coming to Udney Park on Sunday. The home side will have to eliminate the doziness that marred the start of each half against Abbey, but it’s to their credit that if they work hard enough and play as a team, they can face the leaders not with fear but with excitement. They have earned their big day out at a cup final; now they need to continue the good work in order to maintain a third-place position that would mark their finest ever season.
TEDDINGTON ATHLETIC: Ruby Rudkin, Amy Hallett, Hannah Hutchison, Millie Theobald, Saskia Brewster (1), Liz Kriebel, Carla Novakovic, Ella Bothamley (2), Giulia Clini, Emily Coulson, Ella Dodd. Subs Emily Bashford, Ale Fairn, Anna Kauffmann, Millie MacEacharn (1). Thanks to Catherine for the pics and Jelly for the videos (hope they work!)
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