20/11/24: Blues 4-1 Loughborough III

BLUES MATCH REPORT 20/11/24

As the Blues walked out into the crisp winter air on Wednesday, game faces were on. In their first cup match they were set to face the Loughborough 3s, who had taken a victory against the Blues just the week before. The team was set out for redemption. Following previous seasons with CUAFC taking her to the final and semi-final of the national cup, captain Alexia Dengler was keen for another strong cup run for the Blues. From the first whistle, Cambridge were piling on the pressure. The defensive line was holding strong, whilst the midfield three looked to break through the Loughborough with a series of stunning through-balls. The reward for a big opening 30 mins of high-press attacking came when Lara Branston nicked the ball off the opposition’s full-back, which Alissa Sattentau picked up and calmly slotted into the net. Cambridge remained 1-0 up by half-time, and after a motivating changing room talk understood that the game was ultimately in their hands. CUAFC settled into the second half nicely, stringing together passes with ease, and linking between the thirds with flare. The second goal came just 10 minutes in, with a confident build from defenders Sara Pickrell and Ayesha Bennett pushing the ball up the left side, where it way laid into the hold of Rose Sparrow who set herself up and fired a stunning shot past the Loughborough keeper. With this momentum, the confidence within the CUAFC team grew, which reflected in their play. Strong tackles, unrivalled synergy, and some delightful tiki-taka plays characterised the game from here on. The quickest goal of the season soon came - with a goal kick from Alisa Kinaret won by Lily Wobschall, and played into seasoned vet Ella O’Connell, who assisted a precise through ball to Alissa, who claimed her second goal of the game. The senior link-up was so nice they had to do it twice: after just 10 minutes Ella put yet another ball on a plate for Alissa, who once again did what she does best and scored another banger. Despite sitting at a comfortable 4-0, the team carried on battling for every ball, and kept the intensity at an unreal level. In the final few minutes, Loughborough capitalised on a rare chance from a long goal-kick and managed to get a goal in before the final whistle. But it was CUAFC who came out victorious, with a huge 4-1 win. What an amazingg start to what will hopefully be a long cup run once again!

Goals: Alissa Sattentau (3), Rose Sparrow

Assists: Lara Branston, Ayesha Bennett, Ella O’Connell (2)

✍️ Lara Branston