Chester FC Women fail to do back to back wins against a valiant West Kirby who battled from behind to secure a draw at Ellesmere Port Sports Village.
Chester took the lead through the inform Ashleigh Bullock in the 50th minute before Chloe Spree (69) equalised for the visitors.
The Seals failed to take advantage of their dominance and a chance to leapfrog Warrington Wolverines into third place.
The match started at a frantic pace with end to end action, as both sides had to be resilient not to let in an early goal.
Amy Broomhead had a half chance in the tenth minute as she latched on to a header, but her lobbed effort narrowly missed. The striker had another chance minutes later as Emma Davies used some smart feet to navigate her way past the defence and rolled the ball to Kelly who found Broomhead with a pinpoint pass. The number 9 was unable to convert her shot, smashing the ball into the side netting.
The Blues carried on applying the pressure as Bullock, who scored twice against West Kirby in the cup last weekend, came close to opening the scoring. The tricky midfielder took advantage of her close control and made some space for herself on the edge of the box and got an effort off which flew just wide.
The first half started to drop off with limited action as both sides failed to break down each other’s defence. Until on the stroke of half time Emma Davies manages to chase down a long pass down the right channel and pulled the ball back to Kelly who gets under her effort and launched over.
The Seals would have felt disappointed to not be leading at half time, against a side they knocked out of the cup with a dominant performance in their previous game. That creative spark seemed to be lacking from Martin Fitzsimons’ side.
However, the manager must have given some divine instructions at the interval as within five minutes Bullock opened the scoring. The playmaker took advantage of West Kirby’s inability to clear their lines with the ball bouncing kindly into the path of the scorer, who calmly converted into the bottom left.
Chester came close to doubling their lead through captain Lauren Quigg. The skipper was instrumental in keeping the goals out at the other end and nearly got one herself. The Seals’ corner got cleared out to Quigg on the right side of the area, as the skipper so nearly found the top left corner.
The Blues should have been out of sight as Broomhead missed two chances in quick succession, as the forward continues her struggles in front of goal.
The Blues' lack of clinical finishing came back to haunt them in the 69th minute as the visitors grabbed a goal against the run of play. The Seals failed to deal with a corner with Liv Cooke forced into making a save, only for the ball to drop to Spree to take advantage of Chester’s poor defending. The substitute, who hadn’t long come on, found the scruffiest of finishes, as her effort bounced off the turf into the top of the goal.
Fitzsimons made his only sub of the game bringing on Sarah Gill, as only 12 players were available for Chester, but the veteran forward couldn’t do anything to turn the game around. It wasn’t the greatest match Ellesmere Port Sports Village has ever seen, as the contest came to its conclusion with neither side creating many more chances.
The Seals could have claimed all three points but failed to capitalise on a plethora of good chances. Chester are not scheduled to play next weekend as the Blues now have time to prepare for Stockport County Ladies in the Cheshire County Cup on February 16th.
Despite the disappointing result, Fitzsimons’ side have snapped a two-league-game losing streak, as their search for a first Division One South win since the 5-3 dismantling of Wythenshawe continues.
Commentaires