Crostyx 1 St Albans 1

With no game last week due to poor weather Crostyx ladies 1st XI played hosts to St Albans on Saturday, the side 1 point ahead of them in the league positions.

Crostyx knew they needed to take maximum points from the game in order to move back into the promotion positions and start a run of winning form, the last weeks having been somewhat disjointed with some disappointing results.

Crostyx started well, looking as though they would dominate the game from an early stage. Everyone worked hard and the movement and passing was infinitely better than the previous few games.

For the duration of the first half Crostyx pressed putting the St Albans defense under pressure and winning a number of short corners. St Albans absorbed the pressure well and even attempted the occasional counter attack but the Crostyx defense held strong with Kate Henley, Vicki Berrill, Lisa Dennett and Kirsty Breeze combining well to block any attempt.

Just before half time Crostyx were awarded another short corner. The initial shot was saved but only rebounded as far as Alys Hackett who passed the ball quickly back to Sarah Belsham on the left who in turn found Vicki Berrill with a pass back to the top of the D. Berrill’s first touch took her into an excellent position where she was able to slot the ball into the corner of the goal.

1-0 at the break and Crostyx were well on top of a game they would surely win. The second half saw more pressure from Crostyx with some excellent individual runs from Sophie Daltry and Thea Hitchcock. The midfield worked tirelessly as always, linking up well and playing dangerous balls through to the forwards.

However, despite all the pressure the second goal did not come. As the half went on it looked as though the score line would remain 1-0 and with 2 minutes to go the Crostyx side only had to keep possession to play out the game.

Unfortunately the visitors had other ideas. With seconds of the game remaining they stole possession just inside the Crostyx half and moved the ball quickly down the right and into the D. Crostyx were clearly half way to the dressing room as the St Albans forward was allowed a free shot from close range to level the game.

Another disappointment for a Crostyx side whose recent results have not reflected their potential. The final result of 1-1 leaves them in 4th position in the league, although with 3 games in hand. The team knows they missed an opportunity to move ahead on Saturday and must focus on concentration in the latter stages of the game to ensure they do not throw away any more leads.

Crostyx have another home game on Saturday against old rivals Southend. They will surely have to play to their full potential to get a result and ensure they are still in the running for 2nd place and promotion.