Captain Kylie’s late winner!
Goal with last kick of game ends campaign on a high
KYLIE MURPHY poked home a dramatic winner with the last kick of the game as Wexford Youths ended their UEFA Women’s Champions League campaign on a high in Seaview, Belfast, on Monday of last week.
It looked like Youths had thrown away the win when a scramble in their penalty area saw Clare Timoney flash high to Sophie Lenehan’s net two minutes into added time. However, after trying to control the second-half, Wexford quickly transformed into attack mode.
Tom Elmes’ side almost snatched the winner when Hansberry’s rocket was pushed away by Linfield ‘keeper Lauren Perry, however, when the Sligo native sent the resulting corner low to the front post, Murphy beat her marker and turned the ball home into the far corner of the net.
The Ferrycarrig Park side came into the game with no hope of progressing to the knockout stages after defeats against Ajax and Thor/ KA in their two other encounters. However, the Dutch and Icelandic sides did both advance to the first round proper from Group 1.
There was pride, as well as hugely important co-efficient points, to play for in the group’s final game against a Linfield side which had probably been more impressive in their clashes against the top two seeds in the group.
Wexford made just one change to their starting line-up from their previous game against Thor/KA, with Becky Cassin coming into the team in place of Doireann Fahey. On the other hand, Linfield were missing their top scorer, Kirsty McGuinness.
For the first time in the tournament, Youths started on the front foot and looked to impose their own will on their opponent, rather than allowing them to dictate. The tricky Rebecca McKenna was a handful on the right but otherwise Wexford looked comfortable.
The visitors created their first opportunity in the ninth minute. Kylie Murphy started it, flipping the ball out to Nicola Sinnott on the right. She picked out Jarrett in the middle, and her lay-off to Aisling Frawley was inch-perfect, but the Wexford winger dragged her shot wide.
Two minutes later Wexford took the lead. Jarrett’s strong work won a corner on the right, Hansberry knocked it into a great spot, Murphy headed the ball onto the back post but, trying to grasp it, stopper Lauren Perry could only push the ball back into her own net.
That lead was doubled in the 19th minute when Sinnott pushed forward again. The Ballagh woman has proved time and again that she’s an excellent crosser of the ball, and she put in on a plate for Jarrett, whose header was looping towards the top corner from the moment it left her head.
Most of the Wexford threat came down the right all game. The loss of Claire O’Riordan is affecting production on the left and it’s something that needs fixing with several huge games in both league and cup around the corner.
The added strength of Fahey ahead of Cassin may offer a solution against good teams, as the youngster is a strong runner with the ball at her feet but also strong defensively, while McKenna Davidson simply needs to be used more as an attacking option.
Linfield started to come into the game in the second quarter. Louise McFrederick missed the target with a volley, Megan Ball hit the wall with a dangerous free, and Sophie Lenehan made a save from Rebecca Bassett’s long-range strike.
Youths struggled to defend set-pieces in this tournament and that continued against Ashley Hutton. The tall defender headed back across goal and it was deflected wide from Megan Bell’s centre on the half-hour mark. Then, Orlaith Conlon flicked her header from the next corner onto her own crossbar.
Frawley shot onto the foot of the post after a crafty one-two with Jarrett before Hansberry fired over with her first-time shot from the edge of the area. A switch for Casey to the right resulted in the youngster putting a good low cross in to Frawley but the winger was offside at the back post.
When Conlon gifted the ball to Rebecca Bassett 30 yards from goal, the Linfield striker drifted across the edge of the box and was hacked down by Lauren Dwyer. Bell’s free-kick deflected off Casey’s head, wrong-footing Lenehan and bouncing into the net just before half-time.
Youths wasted a chance to respond in kind six minutes after the interval when they over-complicated a free-kick on the left edge of the area which eventually saw Jarrett’s shot charged down.
There was a karmic moment in the 57th minute. Three days after she was launching sweets from the stand onto the pitch at the Thor/ KA left-back while she was taking a throw-in against Youths, Louise McDaniel broke through with the offside flag up.
Lenehan saved her shot with her foot, but the ball pinged up and nailed her square on the nose and rolled into the net.
That scare aside, Wexford were comfortable into the last ten minutes without looking like adding to their 2-1 advantage.
Murphy won the ball against Bell with nine minutes left but still conceded a free, and Dwyer came to the rescue with a hook away with Hutton lurking.
Lenehan’s long ball was knocked into the path of Hansberry by Jarrett in the 85th minute but her shot missed the target. Wexford were given a huge warning in the final seconds of normal time when the Youths ‘keeper saved Jennifer McDade’s shot with her leg from Bell’s corner.
However, when the next setpiece was delivered from deep, Youths didn’t deal with it at all well. The ball pinged around the goalmouth before falling at the feet of Timoney and she flashed high to the net.
The equaliser set up a dramatic last couple of moments with Wexford pushing for the winner. It was probably just about deserved when captain Murphy poked home Hansberry’s corner with what proved to be the last kick of the game.
Wexford were back in action against Limerick in Ferrycarrig Park on Saturday, a fixture that should have provided a soft landing ahead of back-to-back home fixtures against in-form Shelbourne.
Wexford Youths: Sophie Lenehan; Nicola Sinnott, Lauren Dwyer, Orlaith Conlon, Becky Cassin; Edel Kennedy, Kylie Murphy (capt.); Orla Casey, Emma Hansberry, Aisling Frawley; Rianna Jarrett. Subs. - Katrina Parrock for Casey (54), Aoife Slattery for Kennedy (75), Doireann Fahey for Jarrett (87), also Ciamh Dollard, Ciara Delaney, McKenna Davidson, Clíodhna Ní Shé.
Linfield: Lauren Perry; Kelsie Burrows, Ashley Hutton, Jennifer McDade, Lauren Robson; Sarah Venney (capt.), Chloe McCarron; Rebecca McKenna, Megan Bell, Louise McFrederick; Rebecca Bassett. Subs. - Louise McDaniel for McFrederick (46), Clare Timoney for Burrows (66), Caitlin McGuinness for Bassett (73), also Jamie-Lee Wilson, Caitlin Rae, Casey Howe, Naomi Doonan.
Referee: Ewa Augustyn (Poland).