West Ham Ladies History Made and the Women's Super League

West Ham Ladies made club history on Sunday by winning their first national trophy since forming 26 years ago, the FA  WPL Plate, and also took another giant stride closer to seducing the FA into accepting their bid for WSL status. The representatives from the FAWPL may have been impressed with the skill, fitness, professionalism and work rate of the Hammer’s Ladies, but as the criteria for exclusive membership to the newly formed league includes none of these attributes, they will still have been wringing their hands at the excellent media coverage they offered and the money that would be available to be injected into their league. . 

This was indeed the West Ham Ladies Show.

To be fair the West Ham United media team put the FA to shame on covering the game, a game the FAWPL deemed to play in a stadium, which according to my unresponsive satnav, was in the middle of fucking nowhere, had goal posts leaning back at a 75 degree angle and pitch that had been played on just two hours previous. They had dressed the stadium up with a few banners screwed to the hoardings, a plastic patio table to present the medals from and a kind of archway to enhance the photographs that were to be taken. The FAWPL own media coverage looked non existent. There was a bloke getting in the way of my camera taking photos of the presentation with an iPhone but he could have been with the Luton Ladies contingent. Other than that, nothing. Apart from myself. 

It was a final and on the way up the M1 I was wondering whether I would have a good enough vantage position to take photos without blocking anyone’s view. I needn’t have worried, I had both ends and the stand opposite to the grandstand to myself. Tell a lie…. there were three other spectators and six ball girls as well, but almost to myself. 

Who cares? 

The players, the club and their friends and families care…. but who else? 

The FAWPL? The press? The fans? 

I was debating whether to do write up of the match because of work commitments I’m a bit late to the party. I searched the internet and there was no mention of the game except from West Ham Ladies media. No pictures, no reports. 

Who does care? …. apart from Danny Dyer …

Karren must've had a better offer

West Ham United had provided the Ladies with two highly experienced photographers, as well as entrusting them with their 4K video equipment instead of the handy cam they usually have to make do with, which wasn’t ideal but a big step up from filming the game with the training pitch security cameras. They’d also laid on a luxury coach for travelling supporters (friends and family), and even MD Jack Sullivan had endeavoured to make the laborious journey up there. There was no sign of the bloke with the helicopter though, or Karren Brady and Michail Antonio who were supposed to be ambassadors for the Ladies team, but had only managed to see one game so far between them. In fact on the day of West Ham Ladies last final, the Baroness was tweeting trying to get a freebie from BA after her luggage was mislaid, instead of wishing the girls good luck.

  Other notable absentees were the rest of the West Ham Ladies  (Dev) squad  who didn’t have a game that day, (Steph Bent and Mollie Kmita were the only ones that made the trip) Molly Clark who had scored the winner in the Women’s League Cup Final and medal winner new signing Vyan Sampson. 

The 100 strong crowd, mostly West Ham supporters by the sound of it, applauded the teams as they lined up for the traditional pomp and circumstance of a cup final. It’s a real shame that West Ham didn’t bring their own PA system as well, as we tried to decipher the unintelligible garble from the stadium announcer which had more to do with his poor equipment rather than his thick brummy accent. Apologising profusely beforehand for any mispronunciations, he read out the team sheets, although he could have been announcing train cancellations for all that we knew. I half expected him to say “Mind the gap.” But he had saved his ‘piece de resistance until last when he requested that ‘Everybody be upstanding for the National Anthem.’  For an occasion that had all of the atmosphere of a school sports day, it seemed a little bit over the top, but a slice of patriotism now and again can’t hurt, I thought. Just as we were puffing out our chests, God save the Queen crackled out of the speakers like someone trying to tune in an old valve radio to listen to Norman Collier. It painfully emitted about four bars, before a large buzzing sound heralded it’s premature conclusion, much to the amusement of the whole congregation. ‘Sorry about that…. I’m not used to the new equipment,’ crackled his apology……. well I think that’s what he said.

The players didn’t care about any of that. Both teams were fully focussed on the job in hand. Luton ladies had a game plan, their formation was a mirror image of West Ham’s, like for like. And it worked. For 25 minutes they had frustrated the Hammer’s with their dogged determination and smart goalkeeping from Kezia Hassal. Enter Amber Stobbs with her almost predictable ‘bend it like Beckham’ volley into the top corner of the net to break the hearts of Luton’s finest. Before they had time to regroup Kelly Wealthall had taken advantage of some sloppy defending and pounced to net West Ham Ladies second. Luton Ladies were playing with one up front and were finding it hard to get anywhere near Connatser's goal, as were most teams  these days.

After the break Zoepfl took just 2 minutes to score West Ham’s third, striding through the Luton defence before unleashing a low shot past keeper Hassal. Luton did manage to threaten the West Ham goal on occasions, mainly from corners but were no match for the WPL side. Hassal made a string of saves that would earn her player of the game, the best one being a one handed tip over from a normally unstoppable Stobbs thunderbolt. Captain Kmita scored a fourth after Hassal had rushed out of her area to tackle Wealthall, the ball fell kindly to Rosie who took two touches and then curled the ball over a defender and into the empty net. It was the goal of the game. In the dying embers of the game the tiring Luton defence allowed Zoepfl too much space and she bagged her second of the match. Not the perfect ten performance of the previous week against QPR, but comprehensive 5-0 victory, another trophy, and another feather in their peacock tail, in front of the watching eyes of the FAWPL. 

Wheeler scores the Hammer's first                

The following week saw the home demolition of Portsmouth Ladies. Pompey are no slouches and they are the only team in the league this year that actually played some football in the WHL half. In fact if they had scored the penalty they were awarded at 5-1 they could have made things very uncomfortable for the Hammers. However Hammer’s keeper Cara Connatser pulled off an incredible save, tipping the ball onto the post to deny them.

   Even though the game was played in a mini heatwave the West Ham Ladies closing down of the opposition showed no signs of relenting, a testament to their training and fitness. Rosie Kmita scored another sublime goal to add to her one against Luton, and Jasmine Auguste scored with a brave header….. her first for the club, followed by an Arnie-esque celebration which could probably use a bit more work. The 7-1 scoreline didn’t flatter the Ladies at all…. they are on fire.

Portsmouth...out for the count

There were two landmark occasions to follow during this week. The Ladies team were invited to the West Ham United awards night for the first time and even had their own player award which went to Ellie Zoepfl, the graceful American player who has a great season and has chipped in with some excellent goals. 

The other landmark occasion is the partnership with Barking Abbey School, to provide extra expertise training for 16-18year olds which could lead to further higher education with the UEL, another West Ham Ladies partner. Keith Boanas, who I tipped to be West Ham Ladies new manager back in December before General Manager Ray gave herself the job, is the Barking Abbey head coach. He would be a good fit for the ambitious Hammers as he left his post last year  at Watford Ladies because of their total lack of ambition. 

   The strange thing about the partnership is the fact that last summer West Ham Ladies decided that they didn’t want a 16-18 year old team and made the previous season’s unbeaten quadruple winning girls team have trials to keep their place at the club. Only two players survived the cull, Kelly Wealthall and Andreya Ezekiel-Meade (now with Tottenham), the rest were released as they were told they were not good enough even for the development squad. The coaches of the rejected players kept faith in them and resigned, and reformed under the banner of Barking Abbey Girls U18s, who had a very successful season.  

 So just a year after destroying the academy that should have been the future of West Ham Ladies, Ray has announced “We are very excited about this partnership and by the prospect of opening a flourishing and successful Academy.”  

This massive backtrack by Ray will hopefully let the girls get a chance to prove her wrong and get another bite of the cherry. The arrangement would also conveniently facilitate a smooth transition for experienced coach Boanas to take the reins, if West Ham Ladies succeed in their application to the WSL. 

WHL have just two more dances,one against Lewes, then the big show stopper versus QPR before the FA's decision is made.

 Personally I think it's in the bag

COYI

West Ham Ladies Run Rings Around QPR Ladies

I’d never been to QPR Ladies ground before. I knew it was going to be a schlep because I knew it was near Heathrow airport, the furthest point I can go on the M25 from home before coming back on myself. I had dropped my son off there only the day before, and now here I was back on the most boring congested sixty mile stretch of the M25 (ever) but with the added inconvenience of rain and traffic jams. 

  This was the West Ham Ladies league match sandwiched between two cup finals. QPRL were touting the game as a chance for youngsters to get inspired. To play football. They tweeted…

‘#QPRLFC are hoping to inspire the next generation, with hundreds of local girls expected for Sunday's @FA_WPL fixture with @westhamladies!

The teeming rain was was annoying. The traffic was making me late. Hundreds of school children? I’ve nothing against children (I used to be one) but in my experience, children at football matches tend to lose interest pretty quickly and end up being impatient,restless or bored, or all three. 

‘Hundreds?’  I pondered.

The car park was chock-a. A row of coaches seemed to be taking up a lot of the spaces. Hundreds of school children…. 

The club house was more modern than I had imagined, but after taking one tentative step inside and enquiring as to the whereabouts of the pitch I was directed back in the direction I had just come from. And there it was. Nestled into a small gap between the 21st century fencing was something that Arthur Negus would have given the once over, a rickety old green turnstile. It looked like a portal to the 1930’s, or platform nine and three quarters.  I half expected to walk through and see fans sporting rosettes, waving rattles at Stanley Matthews and shouting things like ‘Good play old boy’ and ‘Spiffing’. £2 later/lighter I was in the ground, still convinced it was the 1930’s. There was nothing grand about the grandstand, it looked like an old cow shed that the cows had abandoned in search of more salubrious surroundings. There were three other stands which were not even up to cow shed standards. Welcome to the third tier of women’s football, I thought. Bizarrely, next to the ‘not so’ grandstand was the juxtaposition of some palm trees, planted to cheer the place up a bit no doubt. It wasn’t working. 

   The promise of hundreds of school children was broken, there were a few, 10-20 maybe. the car park occupants must have been going somewhere else. Not here. The official attendance was 160 which isn’t bad for a WPL match, especially in the pouring rain. And on a Sunday. I’ve always thought that 2.00pm on a Sunday was a naff kick off time. Saturday football is played in the afternoon and Sunday football is played in the morning. It’s the law….. or at least it should be. 

West Ham Ladies were hoping to continue on their great unbeaten run against second bottom in the league QPRL, who had only won two games all season, both against serial losers Swindon Town Ladies. The WHUL team was unchanged from the one that had won the good move.co.uk Isthmian Bostik Women’s League cup on Wednesday, the only difference being Rosie Kmita was now wearing the captain’s arm band instead of Amber Stobbs who was keeping it warm for Amy Cooper, who hasn’t been seen since the game against Keynsham Town in early February. Medal winner Vyan Sampson was on the bench again, still yet to kick a ball in anger for the Hammers, as was Leanne Mabey and Dayna Chong. Having two central defenders on the bench seemed a curious decision, especially against one of the weakest teams in the league.

Kelly Wealthall

And still the rain came down. The whistle was blown and West Ham Ladies slipped straight into top gear, probing and pressing the QPRL defence. Predictably it was Amber Stobbs who broke the deadlock with one of her trademark booming shots from outside the area which the keeper could only parry into the roof of the net. It was closely followed by a bravely headed goal by Chantelle Mackie. She took to the near post at a corner kick and kept her eyes on the prize during the defensive melee. I think it was her first goal, and if it wasn’t,  it was the first goal I’d seen her score anyway. Mackie has developed into a real tough cookie. A clash of heads left her pole-axed on the floor, but she just dusted herself down and got on with it. QPRL were trying to weather the storm (as we all were) but fell foul to two more strikes from the prolific Kelly Wealthall and midfielder Ellie Zoepfl before half time was announced. 

The rain persisted. The second half was a master class given by West Ham Ladies in how to dominate a game, the animated energetic Rosie Kmita switching wings with Zoepfl to confuse the enemy, Amber Stobbs (my LOG) freed from her defensive duties to terrorise defenders, Kelly Wealthall keeping defenders busy and in the process helping herself to a hat trick, Andria Georgiou    and Molly Clark the enforcers breaking up play in midfield, whilst full backs Mackie and Auguste alternate between extinguishing any opposition threats by fair means or foul (literally) and providing width to WHUL attack. Mackie almost achieved the impossible feat of her scoring two in a match but her smart shot was saved at the near post. The 57th minute heralded the playing debut of new signing Vyan Sampson  coming on with Chong for Austin and Zoepfl. To be fair the comfortablest positions to play in WHUL team at the moment are central defence and goalkeeper purely because they are shielded so well by the rest of the team. Chong displayed her natural ability and was unlucky not to score after QPRL keeper made a point blank save.Sampson showed us all her WSL pedigree with some sumptuous control and passing, giving the manager a welcome selection headache to come.

Fittingly it was the stylish Georgiou who closed proceedings with torpedo of a shot from the edge of the area. 

10-0. Not bad. Not bad at all.

Two things I overheard on the pitch summed up the winning mentality of WHUL. 

A QPRL defender bemoan ‘This is embarrassing.’

‘ Hannah…I need the ball quicker!’  Amber Stobbs berating Wheeler for not releasing the ball sooner. At the time they had an 8-0 lead.

As an observation in this game and Wednesday’s final, bad fouls were punished not by cards, but by having to apologise to the injured party. I can’t see it catching on in the men’s game.

And so to Sunday’s FA plate final against Luton Town Ladies who had quite prosperous Sunday themselves beating Haringey Borough Women 14-0. Natasha Fensome scored five and Jess Mckay scored four for the Hatters, so maybe West Ham Ladies should keep a close eye on them, but in my opinion the Hammers will be too strong for the team that play in the 4th tier of the Women’s pyramid and should pick up their second trophy in the space of ten days. The only selection problem I can see West Ham having is who to reward with a place on the bench.

I’m sticking my neck out and going for a 5-0 to the Hammers.

(first published 12/4/2018 on Hammers Chat)

West Ham Ladies Win the Cup by Myles

Joy. Sheer joy. 

The look on Jasmine Auguste’s face as she kept opening and closing the box that contained her winner’s medal as if in disbelief or maybe to make sure it was still there. The Cheshire grins of Mackie and Wheeler’s long suffering fathers. Children hustling and bustling, vying for position to be snapped with their heroines

Those are the lasting images I have of Wednesday night’s battle against Charlton Women. And it was a battle, with West Ham Ladies fighting right up to the final whistle as if their lives depended on it. Like a machine. Unrelenting. Merciless. No quarter was given to the vanquished. 

This was West Ham Ladies night…

…………………………………………………………………………

There was a buzz about Aveley’s ground. West Ham Ladies supporters were out in force. Lewes’ own Rookmeister was there with ex-West Ham Ladies legend Danni Ritson, Claire Rafferty was in attendance fuelling my own speculation about a possible recruitment, WPL star Jay Blackie was watching accompanied by the Basildon Ladies Mafia as was West Ham Fan TV’s Ryan Archer. Charlton super fan Alan Watts was also there hoping to ring his bell a few times.

There were no surprises in the team selection for West Ham Ladies, the team picks itself these days. There was a surprise inclusion on the bench though. Ex-Arsenal defender who has been out of contract since mid February and yet to be unveiled as a West Ham player… Vyan Sampson. She might now qualify for the Guiness book of records as the only player who has a winner’s medal having never played for the club or played in any of the games of the competition. In contrast Molly Peters and Chloe Burr were conspicuous by their absence as was Jack Sullivan MD.

Undoubtedly this was the most steely performance I’ve ever witnessed from the Hammers, and even the disastrous start didn’t waver them, Kit Graham providing Cara Connatser with the first shot in anger she’s had to face, but there was little the Hammer’s keeper could do to keep it out. Charlton seemed happy to play keep ball in their  own half trying to slow down the game, but the West Ham Ladies were having none of it, with Ellie Zoepfl gliding past players as if they were training cones

Ellie Zoepfl

and Duracell bunny Rosie Kmita terrorising defenders with her blistering pace. Kelly Wealthall ran herself into the ground playing the thankless lone striker role keeping busy three defenders, allowing the midfield to surge forward. Stobbs, Georgiou and Clark were the midfield enforcers allowing Charlton little or no space to work in, forcing them to resort to the long ball which was efficiently dealt with by the now upwardly mobile West Ham back four. The hammers work rate was off the scale and reaped it’s rewards  when Andrea Georgiou found herself in hectares of space and fired a shot over the debutante Charlton keeper into the top corner from 30 yards. It was the last kick of the half.

Charlotte Gurr one of Charlton’s star players after being pole-axed twice in the first half didn’t make the second half. Not quite serendipity, but every little helps. Swords were drawn once again, West Ham Ladies continuing to have  the upper hand and after being bullied for last few seasons they have become the bullies. No more Mr Nice Gal. Wince inducing tackles were the order of the day. Football is a contact sport, and the final was turning almost into a full contact sport. Captain Amber Stobbs seems to have gotten nasty. A kind of female Joey Barton. Complimenting her ball skills with sailing close to the wind snapping tackles, in your face aggression and time wasting petulance. I calculated that a less lenient referee would have awarded her seven yellow cards (slight exaggeration). 

West Ham Ladies controlled the second half with an arrogance. A beautiful arrogance. As the Charlton team seemed to be getting more leggier than a Tiller Girls performance at the London Palladium, the Hammers  were growing in strength. However it was Charlton who came closest to scoring next when Pepper peppered West Ham’s goal from a free kick only to see it magnificently saved by Connatser.

West Ham Ladies were rewarded for their efforts though in the 70th minute when Molly Clark successfully converted a free kick from just outside the area. Her curling shot flying over the wall and over the head of keeper G

With victory within their sights West Ham Ladies chased down every ball with supreme gusto, frustrating Charlton, who were unable to play their usual dominant game which has made them title contenders this season. Charlton had one last half chance to take the final into extra time but Graham fluffed her lines.

The final whistle blew. The cup was raised. Champagne flowed (mainly down the Isthmian League dignitary’s back).

               

It was not just the end of the game…..it was the start of a new era for West Ham Ladies. 

And if West Ham Ladies are still searching for a permanent manager they need to look no further than within the club.

Myles Smith has worked wonders since being appointed assistant coach. A dedicated young man with no ego, he fits the bill perfectly.

COYLI

West Ham Ladies vs Charlton Women Cup Final Preview

I was on a bit of a spying mission Sunday. Whilst the West Ham Ladies were adding more misery to Swindon Town Ladies already miserable season halfway down the M4, I had opted to travel to Borehamwood for the chance to see at first hand, the difference in the standard of football between WSL1 and the WPL and also to keep tabs on Charlton Women, our opponents in the, wait for it, good move.co.uk Bostik Isthmian League Cup Final (invitational). (The trophy must be quite large to fit all that on it).

It was the Women’s FA cup quarter final between Arsenal Ladies and Charlton Women. Charlton the top team in the WPL were up against one of the top ladies’ teams period, boasting the likes of ex-England international Alex Scott as their captain, Jordan Nobbs in midfield and a whole host of other players who were really good but I didn’t recognise any of them. For Charlton,Kit Graham was making her 200th appearance and looking for her 184th goal, Charlotte Gurr (ex-West Ham) who was scoring for fun, and in goal under 19 England international Katie Startup. 

Ex-West Ham manager James Marrs was there as part of the Charlton coaching staff and it was clear to see his influence on the style of play, playing it out from the back…. no hoofing. It was good to see ex-West Ham player Samantha Miller in her media role. I hadn’t seen her since she’d successfully swapped her boots for a microphone and it was also good to catch up with ex-West Ham Ladies midfielder Kat Clifton who since leaving the club had started She Can Play, a club that encourages girls of all ages to play football. (She’s been on the BBC and everything….)

Jordan Nobbs gets tackled

It was a grand occasion, a big crowd, the usual suspects photographers (not me… proper ones) a queue at the burger stall (always a good sign) and a trophy was on display. I’m not sure which one. I suppose I should’ve asked. Maybe they were showing off the one they’d just won. Arsenal had a very partizan crowd cheer led by a vociferous young lady who showed no signs of letting up for the whole 90 minutes. The Strepsil sponsored yeller belted out a rousing chant after chant, although she might want to cut down on the ‘Come on the Red Army’ one, taking into consideration the current political climate.

Having never seen a WSL1 team up close I’d imagined that the players were going to be bigger physically than lower division ones. Whilst on the West Ham Ladies European tour, I’d seen that the two top European sides they played were quite Amazonian-ish in their a physical presence, however the Arsenal side were more of an average build , some bordering on the petite. The difference? ..they play the game at supersonic speed, always moving, always thinking, always probing and if they lose possession, they get it back pretty sharpish, which makes it seem as if they have 15 players on the pitch. 

Charlton, probably for the first time this season, set up defensively hoping for a swift counter with Graham playing the lone striker role.. Even Gurr found herself playing defensive mid (which she was rather good at). It would have be foolhardy to go toe to toe with Arsenal as Tottenham Ladies found out at their peril last season, losing 10-0.

Charlton seemed to let the occasion get to them in the opening minutes, being closed down every ball and when they did have the ball they  couldn’t find their passes. Strangely it was the 4th minute penalty that they conceded that settled their nerves, and from that moment they began to believe in themselves, and made it very difficult for Arsenal to break them down. The quality and fitness of the WSL1 side shone through though in the end, Charlton not really having a shot on target, their only half chances coming from corners, and the home side claiming a 5-0 victory.

Alex Scott enjoying the win

It turned out that the match was a mirror of West Ham’s against Swindon, Swindon being the team defending for their lives, being only 1-0 down at the break then succumbing to a second half onslaught, Kelly Wealthall scoring the 100th goal that Swindon have conceded in the league  this season. 

So what did I learn then on my spying mission? Well the great run West Ham Ladies are currently on will count for nothing against teams like Arsenal. With the imminent leap frog into WSL1 they will have to continue evolving involving high calibre players along the way. With the start of the new season only four months away a lot of work will have to be done or maybe the UEL could offer free degrees to international superstars. 

My attempted sussing out of the opposition for Wednesday’s goodmove.co.uk Bostik Isthmian League Cup Final (invitational) was a tad fruitless as I’m pretty sure that Charlton will set up quite differently compared to their pragmatic approach at Arsenal.

The final promises to be a humdinger of an affair with both sides in a great vein of form, both sides making mincemeat of the rest of the competition’s opponents and in their two league meetings they have one win apiece.

The Road to Wembley Aveley

Worthing Ladies 0 v  2  West Ham Ladies            Charlton Women  22 v 0  Tonbridge Angels

Margate Ladies  0 v 13 West Ham Ladies            Enfield Ladies        0 v 6  Charlton Women

Whyteleafe Lds  0 v  4  West Ham Ladies            Burgess Hill           ? v ?  Charlton Women

It appears that both teams had a cakewalk to the final. The real mystery is how Charlton’s semi final was decided. Burgess Hill were supposed to host the game but were plagued by postponements and maybe ran out of time for the deciding tie. There is no mention of a result on either team’s websites. Did they draw straws? Toss a coin? Have a game of Subbuteto? Maybe the sponsors felt that it would be a good move to put Charlton into the final? Very strange. I have googled until the cows came home and can find not one piece of information on this…..

I expect Charlton to revert to two up front, and the system that has seen them top the league for most of the season. The big loss for Charlton is Katie Startup, who put in an excellent performance at  Arsenal, as she is on England under19 international duty. 

West ham Ladies will probably keep the team that played at Swindon continuing  up front with the precocious young talent Kelly Weathall, consigning 2 goal hero Molly Peters from the Valley victory to the bench. Cara Connatser will probably keep her keeper place, yet to have to make a save after her first two games for the Hammers.  West Ham Ladies may switch from their 4-5-1 formation to a 5-4-1 with full backs Auguste and Mackie going forward when the opportunity arises, but expect a very cagey opening 45 minutes. 

The weather forecast is basically rain… the same conditions that West Ham Ladies won at the Valley in. 

As omens go, that isn’t the worst one you can have…

My prediction West Ham Ladies to win after extra time and penalties.

Post Script

My comment about whether they decided the semi final by playing a game of Subbuteo got me thinking, as a supporter of the Women's game, and how far the sport had come in recent years, whether it was possible to purchase Subbuteto female teams. So I googled. No joy. Then I found a site Subbuteoworld, dedicated to keeping the table top game alive. And they did sell  female figures............
 SUPERB NEW STREAKER SET
 THAT CAN BE USED AS AN IMPORTANT TACTICAL PART OF YOUR GAME OR JUST AS A GREAT NOVELTY ITEM. AT ANY TIME DURING A MATCH THE DEFENDING PLAYER CAN SHOUT "STREAKER" AND THEN PLACE THE FIGURE IN THEIR PENALTY AREA - A FULL SET OF INSTRUCTIONS ON HOW TO USE YOUR STREAKER AND POLICE OFFICERS ARE INCLUDED. YOU GET ONE FEMALE STREAKER, 2 POLICE OFFICERS AND A SET OF RULES IN EACH SET, HOUSED IN A DISPLAY BOX.


I didn't know whether to laugh or cry..........