REPORT | PORTSMOUTH 3 ARGYLE WOMEN 0
Argyle put up a strong fight against Portsmouth on Sunday, as a below full-strength Pilgrims made life tough for the runaway league leaders.
Leeta Rutherford scored the opening goal after 10 minutes, but it took an unfortunate Panagiota Papaioannou own goal and a second-half Riva Casley strike to finally see Argyle off.
Plymouth kicked off the first half and had an early opportunity through the middle that forwards Charlotte Whitmore and Ellie Sara tried to exploit, but they could not find a way past the Pompey backline. Eight minutes later, following a flurry of chances for Sophie Quirk, the home side broke the deadlock following a corner that found Rutherford lying in wait.
The Greens looked to respond minutes later, with Sara and Katie Dickson each trying to carve out an equaliser. Dickson, playing in behind the two strikers, tried her luck from range following an interception by Erin O’Shea, but struck the ball over the bar. Striker Sara then tried to hunt down a lofted pass from Whitmore, but it was recovered by a Pompey defender.
Minutes after Sara’s chance, Portsmouth’s Georgie Freeland found her way into a one-on-one position, forcing Papaioannou to slide in to stop the danger. However, the Argyle skipper unfortunately put the ball in the back of the net, doubling the home side's lead.
As the half approached its end, the hosts continued to search for ways to extend their lead, but were denied thanks to quick reactions from Lily Felgate, who palmed a well-struck half-volley over the bar.
The final chance of the half came to Argyle through Mia Endacott’s free kick delivered into the area that met both Sara and Whitmore’s feet but was blocked by a wall of Pompey defenders.
Manager Ryan Perks made one change as the second half got underway, bringing on Fern Orchard for an unwell Sara.
Both sides continued to hunt for chances on goal as the half went on, with Portsmouth coming the closest, but the home side struggled to beat the dives of Felgate and defensive efforts from the Argyle backline. As the half approached its final few minutes, a penalty was awarded for Pompey following a cross from Quirk that struck defender Amii Kearley’s hand.
Despite protests from the Argyle bench regarding Kearley’s location - she looked to be outside of the area when the ball struck her hand - the referee continued with their initial decision. Defender Casley converted the penalty, and the game was now safe for the hosts.
Despite defeat, Argyle remain ninth and now turn their attentions to the A&S Interiors Devon Women’s Premier Cup final, where they will face off against Exeter City on Friday, 19 April, before playing Billericay Town two days later in their penultimate FAWNL fixture of the season.
“I couldn’t be prouder of how the girls performed today,” said Perks after his side's battle with the title contenders. “Everything in the build-up to this game went against us. We’ve come here with a depleted squad due to illness which has led to us only having a bench of three players.
“We’ve started four 16-year-olds against a team who is top of the league, and they’ve all dug in and worked hard as well as the rest of the team. Portsmouth got a little bit lucky with a couple of their goals today, one being Giota’s own goal and the penalty that came from a handball that was a yard outside the box.
“Credit goes to Portsmouth either way, they’re a fantastic team and have all but secured themselves promotion to the Championship which they fully deserve. For us, it’s a case of dusting ourselves off and going again in a couple of weeks for our matches against Exeter and Billericay.”
Argyle: 42 Lily Felgate, 2 Katie Dickson, 5 Panagiota Papaioannou, 6 Lucy Hack, 7 Charlotte Whitmore, 9 Ellie Sara (Fern Orchard), 15 Georgie Knott, 18 Taya Pomfret, 19 Erin O’Shea, 28 Amii Kearley, 29 Mia Endacott.
