AFC Totton
HAMPSHIRE COUNTY WOMEN'S FOOTBALL LEAGUE JUNIOR CUP FINAL
Sunday 28 April 2024 | Snows Stadium, Salisbury Road, Totton
AFC TOTTON WOMEN RISE TO OCCASION TO LIFT THEIR FIRST TROPHY
AFC TOTTON WOMEN 5
Sammy Hobbs 11mins, 52mins;
Vicky Tabley 63mins;
Lydia Tuckey 71mins, 81mins
FARNBORO' WOMEN DEVS 0
AFC TOTTON WOMEN won their first-ever silverware on Sunday, thanks to a dominant five-goal display against Farnborough FC Women Development Squad in the Final of the Hampshire County Women’s Football League Junior Cup.
AFC TOTTON WOMEN
Starting XI
1. Giulia PUCCINI
14. Abi BARKER
12. Zoe RAMSHAW
18. Paige PARNELL
27. Laura WINFIELD
25. Poppy WILLIAMS
8. Lydia TUCKEY (Capt.)
7. Lucy TOWNER-RUSSELL
6. Lily THORNE
19. Sammy HOBBS
9. Vicky TABLEY
Substitutes
10. Mel MACAULAY
28. Sophie STEVENS
16. Grace WATSON
4. Emily LE PEUPLE
3. Sarah SUTTON
Playing in front of a packed Snows Stadium, Farnborough’s Penny Wall was the first to unleash a shot in anger with an effort from outside the Totton box that drifted wide.
Sammy Hobbs was given an early sighter from captain Lydia Tuckey’s through-ball but the striker snatched at the chance when she might have taken it closer to goal. Then, Farnborough’s Grace Churcher went agonisingly close with a shot from the edge of the area that clipped the right-hand post, with Giulia Puccini rooted to the spot.
Totton took the lead on 11 minutes when Vicky Tabley’s through-ball from inside the centre-circle put Sammy HOBBS in again; this time, she showed a lot more composure to beat goalkeeper Lily Connell with a confident finish into the bottom-right corner.
DANGER WOMAN: Girl of the Game Sammy Hobbs goes close with a shot well-saved by Farnborough goalkeeper Lily Connell.
A foul on Tabley presented midfielder Lily Thorne with a 20-yard free-kick that she fired narrowly over the crossbar. Winger Charlotte Gallagher raced down the right wing for Farnborough and centred for the incoming Layla Johnson, but Puccini dived on the ball. Then, Johnson drifted infield from the left and went for goal but Puccini was equal to it.
Hobbs went close to converting from the left byline, after being sent wide by defenders Sophie Tzanetis and Clare Bradley; Connell parried at the near post. Then, Tuckey put Hobbs in again through the centre, but with Connell on top of her she poked it wide.
A headed knock-on from Sophie Stevens had Hobbs in a prime shooting position early in the second half. With time and space on her hands, she inexplicably blazed her effort over the crossbar. But the profligacy didn’t last. On 52 minutes, Totton played a neat triangle of passes through the middle, Stevens and Lucy Towner combining to release Sammy HOBBS behind the Farnborough defence to fire home Totton’s second goal.
Tabley almost made it three when she received a Poppy Williams delivery and fired across goal, wide of the left-hand post. But the Totton No.9 soon got her name on the scoresheet when Hobbs wrestled possession off a defender at the left post and squared for Vicky TABLEY to end the Final as a contest with a firm finish from six yards.
PENALTY!: Zoe Ramshaw's header from a Lily Thorne corner was handled by a Farnborough defender to provide Lydia Tuckey with the chance to convert from the penalty spot.
Excellent work from Laura Winfield and Tabley saw Totton win the ball back high on the right flank and pass to the corner of the box where Lydia TUCKEY rode two challenges before driving the ball into the bottom-left corner to make it four-nil.
Farnborough kept going, cheered on by a vocal support in the SFS Main Stand but Totton’s defence remained disciplined, determined to keep a clean sheet. Mel Macaulay brought out the skills with an impudent back-heel in the centre-circle, which elicited an enthusiastic response from the buoyant Totton crowd.
Tabley went on a one-woman mission to battle the Farnbourough defence, forcing them to concede a corner. Thorne sent the ball into the box; Zoe Ramshaw’s strong header struck the arm of a defender, prompting the Referee to point to the penalty spot. Skipper Lydia TUCKEY made no mistake with a confident strike from 12 yards.
Despite a comfortable lead, Totton kept their shape and their defensive discipline, with Thorne making several interceptions in midfield to deny Farnborough any route to goal.
When the Referee blew the final whistle, the stadium erupted in celebration before Lydia Tuckey (pictured left) became the first female player to lift a trophy for AFC Totton in the entire 138-year history of our football club.
WINNERS!: AFC Totton Women celebrate their first-ever piece of silverware.
By Ben Rochey-Adams
Images courtesy of Craig Hobbs Photography
