A composed performance and a strong bench were the difference between Farsley Celtic Women and Ossett United Ladies on the day as Farsley Celtic Women continued their preseason preparations with a 3-1 win at Ingfield Stadium.
Manager Izzy Roads named a strong side to start the game with plenty of experienced operators combining with new signings and youth team talents to take on an Ossett United side who play a league above Farsley so it was the perfect test to prepare for the new season.
The hot summer sun played its part in giving us a slow start to the game before a quick counter attack from Ossett saw them take the lead in the 13th minute with a well taken finish into the bottom corner.
There was no panic on the Farsley side and stuck to the tactical plan and created a lot of good chances which during the regular action of the season would have surely been converted with Emma O’Hanlon having a number of great chances.
It was ultimately the captain, Lauren Rigby, who pulled Farsley back into the game with a low finish after the ball had fallen to her inside the penalty area for her third goal in three preseason games to see us level at half time.
A few wise words and the introduction of the always dangerous Shirley Murphy at half time saw control of the action swing in Farsley’s favour. Chance after chance was created but Ossett’s goalkeeper put in a very strong display to keep her team in the game, but a defence splitting through-ball saw Murphy clean through one-on-one and she calmly tucked it away as she did all through last season.
The final 15 minutes saw a lot of joy for Farsley, particularly through Kaitlyn Walker on the right wing whose skillful dribbling caused a lot of problems for the defenders and the icing was put on the cake thanks to Shirley Murphy once again with the final kick of the match to hand Farsley the 3-1 victory and a solid performance to go with it.
There’s no rest for the Farsley team though as they are back in action on Tuesday night away to Huddersfield Amateur with kick off at 6:45 pm at Old Earth in Elland. Make sure to keep your eyes on social media if you can’t make it for all the live updates!
