Ross Juniors Under 13s Girls capped a phenomenal season by completing a Herefordshire League and Cup double last Sunday, at Pegasus.

The girls had already secured their first competitive league title with an impressive away win at Lads Club Pumas, then they met long-time rivals Bartestree in the Cup final.

It was a tense, nervous occasion which was reflected in the first half. The Ross midfield of Lily, Macy, Mica, Millie, and Cassie had good spells of possession but did not maximise the width of the pitch, and created very few opportunities for striker Naomi to trouble the goal. Naomi continued to work hard in closing down the Bartestree defence, but Bartestree continually by-passed the middle of the pitch by kicking the ball long. It was not sophisticated, but it pinned Ross back and the defence of Maddie, Matilda, Daisy, and Ronie did a stellar job of minimising Bartestree’s chances.

Ross played on the counter attack, by moving the ball quicker when winning it back, and this created the best chance of a goalless first half. Matilda won a tackle, played the ball forward to Macy, who found Millie with a through pass. Millie made one of her trademark attacking runs through on goal only to put her effort narrowly wide.

Ross came out in the second half and immediately started to press and pass the ball better. Naomi started winning the ball higher up the pitch and this gave Ross a sight of goal. Bartestree responded with even more long goal kicks, which the behemoths in the Ross defence competed for in order to stop Bartestree’s quick strikers running through on goal. Millie continued to be at the centre of Ross’ best attacking play, and made an excellent run down the right before cutting the ball back into the box for Lily, who put the ball wide from close range.

Ross’s improved use of the ball finally broke the deadlock. Cassie picked the ball up on the left before sending the ball into Macy. She combined with Lily on the edge of the box, before finding Millie. This time, Mille would not be denied and hit a shot straight into the top corner. Bartestree persisted with long kicks which led to a series of corners, putting the Ross goal under great pressure.

Once again, Ross’s defence stood up to the test with Ronie bravely getting in the way of the ball at the near post, Matilda clearing a goal line scramble, and goalkeeper Karuna making a David De Gea-like save with her leg to divert the ball around the post. With seven minutes remaining, Ross broke free from the pressure, rushed forward with a beautiful passing move, and Millie was on the end of it to drill in another fantastic shot to win the Cup, and secure the double.

The result meant Ross Juniors Under 13s Girls have gone unbeaten all season, despite being a predominantly School Year 7 team in a Year 8 age group and integrating several inexperienced girls into the squad. Even more admirable than the winning has been the bravery with which the girls have passed the ball under pressure from older, physically stronger girls. The end of the season has been rich reward for the girls’ commitment over the last three years.

The coach would like to thank the parents of the girls for their ongoing support, and assistant coach Matt Walker, whose contributions have been invaluable in taking the team forward.