Wycombe Wanderers

The Chairgirls travelled to Abingdon United for the third time this season in what was the club’s fourth meeting of the season. The previous affairs were very closely contested but those supporters that made the trip were to be left disappointed following a below par performance, losing 2-0.

From the start Abingdon applied pressure successfully putting their visitors on the back foot. Hannah Cox in the Wycombe goal was called into action early on with two routine saves for a keeper of her experience and ability. However, she was soon to face a penalty which Lauren May stepped up to convert to give the hosts the lead.

On 25 minutes, Wycombe saw a triple substitution made with the introduction of Christina O’Connor aka Boro, returning after an absence of four months due to injury. It took a while for the substitutions to make an impact with Cox having to make a top save from close range after May had skipped past three challenges. The closing minutes of the half saw Wycombe have arguably their best spell of the game when they created two good chances following some of the excellent build up play typical of so many of their performances this season. Unfortunately the finishing touch wasn’t applied to either chance.

The second half saw Abingdon extend their lead on 50 minutes when a long range shot deceived Cox low to her right. The game became a more scrappy affair as the Chairgirls battled to gain a foothold. Despite turning over possession frequently, the Chairgirls rarely demonstrated composure in possession partly due to the pressure from Abingdon who were defending strongly and contesting every ball and some poor decision making and execution. The Chairgirls created two or three further chances causing the Abingdon keeper one moment of uncertainty when she failed to hold onto a shot which was cleared by a covering defender.

All in all, a disappointing display from the Chairgirls who struggled to find their more usual fluidity in possession and were second best throughout against a resolute and determined Abingdon outfit. The result, whilst disappointing, still leaves the Chairgirls well placed to climb the table as they have a significant number of games in hand on rivals for the top five places as well as looking forward to the Chairman’s Cup semi-final on 1 March.

Next week sees another trip to Newbury which will be the third game between the sides since the start of 2020. This time it is a league fixture in which getting the three points is of paramount importance if the Chairgirls are to maintain their positive start in their first season in the Southern Region Women’s Premier League.