Report | Argyle Women 2 Gillingham 1
Argyle 2
Greenslade 65, Ireland 76
Gillingham 1
Fordjour 36
Argyle Women produced a superb second-half comeback against Gillingham on Sunday to claim their second win of the season.
The visitors led at the break through Kara Fordjour’s goal, but after the break The Pilgrims dug deep, and strikes by Lily Greenslade and Beth Ireland turned things around in the Greens’ favour.
In a game played at Saltash’s Waterways Stadium, it was Argyle who started the brighter of the sides, with Greenslade and Amber Pollock responsible for numerous shots on goal in the early stages, with the Gills keeper either comfortably saving them or the shots just dragging wide.
The 30th minute saw both teams have huge chances in front of goal. Gillingham’s Niamh Jestin would come close after an unsuccessful challenge from keeper Read looked to have her rounded and beaten, but defender Jemma Rose came to Read's rescue and cleared the ball from danger before Jestin had a chance to shoot.
Argyle would then respond moments after. A mis-hit clearance from Gills keeper Davies had her off her line and the ball in Argyle's possession. Pollock brought the ball down and played in the onrushing Rosie Train who immediately fired a shot that went just wide. Had it been on target, Davies certainly would have had a hard time saving it, having still been backpedalling from the initial clearance.
Although Argyle comfortably had control in the first half, it was Gillingham who found the first goal of the match. A poor back pass from skipper Zoe Cunningham in the 36th minute led to Fordjour finding the net from distance.
Spurred on by their opener, Gillingham would have a further two chances that closed out the first half. One from distance which flew just over the crossbar and another one-on-one chance for Jestin which although the shot went wide, was flagged offside regardless.
Like the first half, Argyle took control from the restart. Substitutes Ireland and Charlotte Whitmore made an immediate impact, with both players causing problems for the Gills defence from the minute they came on.
Argyle got the equaliser they deserved 20 minutes into the second half. After winning the ball off a Gillingham defender, Greenslade found herself one-on-one. Davies rushed out, but Greenslade stayed cool and slotted the ball home for her first league goal this season.
Ireland would then send Argyle into the lead 11 minutes later, hitting a fantastic shot from the corner of the 18-yard box that flew across the keeper and into the top left corner, and sent players and fans into jubilation.
The game would go into its most intense period following Argyle's second goal, with Gillingham searching for the leveller and The Greens looking to extend their lead. Whitmore and fellow substitute Kaitlyn Morgan-Hemmens would both get good chances in the final stages, but neither were able to find the back of the net.
The final major chance of the game came with five minutes remaining. From a Gillingham corner. Argyle cleared their lines to the edge of the penalty area where the visitors laid in wait. A shot flew towards the inside of the post and looked like a sure equaliser, but defender Jemma Rose once again came to the rescue. Her block on the line would help secure Argyle’s second win of the season.
This result sees the Pilgrims rise to eighth in the FAWNL Southern Premier Division. Next, they travel away to Watford in the hopes of continuing this good run of form.
Argyle: 1 Jasmine Read, 2 Sophie Perrin, 3 Rosie Train, 4 Jemma Rose, 5 Panagiota Papaioannou, 6 Lucy Hack (20 Beth Ireland), 8 Kayley Lane, 10 Zoe Cunningham (9 Kaitlyn Morgan-Hemmens), 18 Imy Crawford, 11 Amber Pollock (7 Charlotte Whitmore), 27 Lily Greenslade.
Photo Credit: PPAUK/ Tom Sandburg
