The Ladies were forced into a last minute re-shuffle when three players had to stand down before the game against North West Regional League side Kendal Town. Leading scorer Emma Sisson, pacy defender, Chelsea Lighfoot and left sided attacking midfielder, Laura Webster were all ill during the night.
Kendal took control from the off, forcing Newlaithes on to the back foot. Newlaithes defended resolutely and managed to fight back, forcing a string of corners early on, however Kendal finallt made the breakthrough on 15 minutes when Newlaithes were unable to clear a ball on their right. The ball was clrossed into a Kendal forward who found herself in space towards the right of the area and she blasted the ball in at the far post. They scored their second on 23 minutes with a close range header from a corner on the right. Kendal looked impressive in all areas, they were comfortable on the ball complemented by slick movement off the ball and they were proving to be a handful for the home side. Newlaithes were struggling to find an outlet until a tactical swap saw Chelseas Norris change positions with Mairead Kinsella to add a bit more pace up front. Immediately, Newlaithes began to make inroads into the Kendal half and a Town defender almost steered a Carly Stevenson cross into her own net but the ball flew the wrong side of the post. Just as Newlaithes looked like they were starting to take some of the initiative, a moment of hesitation at the back cost them a 3rd goal when they looked to have a through ball covered. Right back Gemma Dawber left the ball for the advancing keeper Lauren Crofts but the predatory Town striker nipped in to clip the ball home from inside the 6 yard box. Newlaithes kept battling and just before half time, they almost equalised when Mairead Kinsella held the ball up well at the near post from a corner on the right. She laid the ball back to Claire Blackburn, who's shot thumped agains the far post with the keeper beaten. Paige Willams had a shot well blocked but unfortunately they were unable to make the breakthrough.
Kendal kicked off the 2nd half with Newlaithes determined to improve on the 1st half showing and they almost pulled one back in the first minute when Chelseas Norris broke free in the Kendal area but unfortunately her shot was straight at the keeper. Newlaithes were definitely showing more grit and determination as they tried to get in Kendal's faces but in doing so, there were always going to be gaps at the back and Kendal took full advantage on 51 minutes when they won possession inside the Newlaithes half. They moved the ball quickly into the Newlaithes area to score with a crisp finish into the far corner of the net. Four minutes later and they wrapped up their scoring when they broke down the left to square to a player inside the area and she made no mistake, blasting the ball home. Still Newlaithes kept battling and with just under half an hour remaining, Alison McCorry replaced Chelseas Norris up front and made an immediate impact, causing problems with that extra little bit of pace and within four minutes, Newlaithes were awarded a penalty when she was fouled from behind having been first onto a loose ball. Faye Comber stepped up to rifle the ball into the roof of the net. Credit due to Newlaithes as every single player ran their socks off to deny their opponents but with just over 10 minutes to go, full back Gemma Dawber was forced to leave the pitch to be replaced by Tasha Scott who herself was suffering from a heavy cold. This forced another re-shuffle with Alison McCorry, who had been so effective in attack, having to cover in defence. But it was Kendal's day and their quality was undeniable as they played with confidence and a sharpness that was missing from a Newlaithes side that hadn't played a game for over a month. Kendal came close again, skimming the post and then the bar but the score remained 5-1 at full time. Newlaithes Player of the Match was awarded to the whole team for a sterling effort against a team from a higher division and in terms of effort, everyone gave their all.
Back to league action next week when the Ladies will be aiming to take the points when they play host to Keswick.
