Stick Down Vicky!

Having managed to get a confirmed 11 before the middle of the week, with an abundance of forwards, we were confident going to Brigg this week.

What we didn't consider was that our team still only had one defender, so most people would be playing out of their usual positions today.

The game started well. Batley looked strong on the attack and were really taking it to Brigg. The Brigg forwards and midfielders were playing a switching game, making marking really difficult. We were doing a good job of switching our marks, but it still meant some Brigg players were getting free. Soon the game turned and it was Batley who were on the back foot. The varied playing positions of Brigg were pulling us out of position and creating space.

Brigg were also marking us well, making it hard to get the ball through from the defence to the forwards. Leading to attack after attack Vicky made some great tackles with her stick on the floor during short corners. Batley were still making good attacks of our own when we go the ball through.

Half time saw the score at 0-0 and we were pretty happy with the way we were playing.

With some switching up front to try to get more strength and marking in midfield, we went back to the second half.

Briggs breaks in the second half were fast and accurate. The first one took us by surprise and before we knew it we were 1-0 down (thanks to Newby letting the ball through her legs. Let's not mention that again.)

With everyone dropping deep to try and get the ball through, attacking became really difficult. Our forwards were still managing to get the ball through. The Brigg attacks were fast, but more prepared we were dealing with them slightly better. This didn't always stop them getting through and we were facing short corners now. Brigg went 2-0 up from one of these when were couldn't get the ball away.

Not ones to give up, we kept attacking, the forwards had lots of chances and finally after a bit of a scramble in the D a GOAL for Hilary - her first for Batley Ladies!! - 2-1 and a renewed confidence from Batley, we were attacking again. Brigg were still switching and confusing the marking, leading to breaks through the defence. With 5 minutes to go, another scramble in the Batley D left us 3-1 down.

Despite some last minute attacks and a short corner for Batley, we couldn't pull it back. The final whistle saw Batley lose 3-1.

Man of the match was Kim for her relentless work in midfield.

Next week is our last home match of the season against Huddersfield. Sad times!

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