Venue: Alex Collie Sports Centre
Teams: Cowie Reds V Ellon 3
Players: Gemma Angus, Laura Cruickshank, Jo Cubbage, Becky Gordon, Alison Millard, Dawn Milroy, Trisha Morgan, Nicky Ridgway, Janet Owen.
MATCH REPORT BY : Marilena Pignatiello
Cowie Reds lost the toss up and Ellon 3 took the first centre pass. Gordon made an excellent interception but lost possession of the ball shortly after and Ellon 3 ultimately scored. There was good circle work undertaken in Cowie Reds goal third. The team moved forward for the ball with some good spacing and several passes within the circle when Gordon scored the first goal for Cowie Reds. The centre passes were shared mainly by Gordon and Ridgway. There was some good movement in the centre third and Cowie Reds goal third by Morgan and Becky scored again. At one point Ellon 3 lost possession due to a held ball. This was due to Cruikshank’s great defending which gave Cowie Reds an advantage of another goal. Ellon 3 intercepted a centre pass taken by Cowie Reds and Ellon 3 ultimately scored. A toss up was taken by Ridgway and an opposing team member who batted the ball out of court. Cowie Reds gained possession of the ball. There was some great defending and interception by Milroy and Cruikshank. Cowie Reds appeared to dominate the first quarter which went well with some good spacing, low balls and short passes. Cowie Reds were in the lead with 11 goals and 4 goals were scored by Ellon 3.
This quarter started off well with Ellon 3 taking first centre pass but Cruikshank continued to defend her opponent well and Ellon 3 lost possession of the ball due to a footwork fault. Cowie Reds took the throw in. There was some good circle work within Cowie Reds goal third but at times this was also cramped but Cowie Reds continued to notch up the goals. The centre passes were at times swift with periods of being stalled also. Gordon continued to score well but missed a shot that was batted off court by Ellon 3. Gordon took the back line pass and Owen scored for Cowie Reds. Most of the centre passes were received by Gordon but Ellon 3 dominated the game at times and Cowie Reds had some goods movements and spacing on court with periods of over crowdedness, some high balls which were intercepted on occasions. Cowie Reds also lost possession of the ball a number of times due to minor faults. This quarter was generally good with a score of 17 goals for Cowie Reds and 9 goals for Ellon 3.
Cowie took the centre pass, which was received by Ridgway. Milroy defended well within her goal third sticking to her opponent like a Yorkshire terrier. Centre passes were mainly received by Gordon and Ridgway who gained more confidence in receiving the passes, becoming more swifter at moving for the balls within the centre third. There was some good balance within Cowie Reds goal circle, which allowed Gordon to score. Milroy continued to defend well with some great stretches as she defended her opponent. There were numerous passes between Morgan, Owen and Gordon as there was difficulty getting the ball at the right position to score due to Ellon 3’s good defence tactics, but this did not prevent Cowie Reds from eventually scoring. There was a good interception by Angus who helped move the ball up the court and Gordon tried to score but unfortunately Cowie lost the ball as it rolled of court. Ellon 3 lost their centre passes on a couple of occasions due to footwork faults in the centre circle, placing Cowie Reds at an advantage. The passes were combined with low balls and short passes with some high balls and passes being made too hastily. The play continued to be generally good with Cowie Reds scoring 23 goals to 18 for Ellon 3. This was a close round for both teams.
The first centre pass was taken by Morgan and received by Ridgway. Owen missed a goal opportunity, which unfortunately went off the back line, which gave Ellon 3 ball possession. Ellon 3 lost their centre pass due to a footwork fault in the centre circle, which gave Cowie Reds an advantage with Gordon scoring a lovely goal for Cowie Reds. The centre passes were mainly received by Gordon who drove the ball up the court notching up more goals for Cowie Reds. Due to some good balance around Cowie Reds goal third Gordon scored. Millard made a great interception in her goal third which gave the team ball possession. Morgan also made a good interception again gaining possession for Cowie Reds. The play continued to be generally good with some good spacing, low balls and at times it appeared unco-ordinated with periods of over crowdedness and not enough forward movements in the centre and goal thirds, but Cowie Reds really pulled together as a team. This was a good attempt by Cowie Reds that played considerably well for their first match of the season. They notched up 34 goals and Ellon 3 scored 22 goals. Well done ladies and well done Cruikshank who was nominated player of the match. Fantastico!
