Greater Manchester Police 7 - 3 Greyhound Gunners

Team: (1)Lloyd,(2)Holbrook, (3)Woolley, (4)Fairbrother 1, (5)Colley (c), (6)Bradbury, (7)Openshaw, (8)Whalley, (9)Else 2, (10)Winstanley, (11)Eaves, (12)Cloney (50 mins)

The Gunners travelled to Greater Manchester Police last Sunday with the hope of avenging their 1-0 defeat at the end of last season. However, given a very strong GMP squad it was never going to be easy.
The Gunners were dealt a blow on Sunday morning, with two late withdrawals from their squad. Hayes and Adamson were unable to travel forcing manager McKean to make several late changes to the starting line up.
They lined up in unfamiliar fashion with Lloyd winning the battle for the goalkeeping position ahead of new signing Cloney who started on the bench. Holbrook reverted to her more familiar left back role after playing preseason on the opposite flank. Woolley returned to the starting line-up in the right back birth, while Fairbrother and captain Colley continued in the centre of defence. The major changes occurred in the midfield. Eaves took up the wide left role while Openshaw, for the first time lined up on the right. Bradbury, Whalley and Winstanley made up the central midfield with the former and latter on the left and right of stalwart Whalley. Leading scorer last term Else took up a lone striking role, the first time she had ever played as an out and out striker.
As both teams, Greater Manchester Police in a new dark blue kit and the Gunners in their usual orange and navy attire, took to the field, hopes were high from all quarters, that there could be a successful season ahead.
The early stages of the game saw GMP's attacks down their left flank dealt with by the Gunners with Woolley prominent. While Else attacking from all sides, had a few early exchanges with the GMP keeper. Despite the Gunners forward forcing the keeper to skip about her area as she parried her shots, the GMP goal wasn't in any real danger.
The Gunners made it easy for the home side after only five minutes. A poor goal kick let in Holyroyd twenty yards out, forcing Colley in to conceding a corner. Fairbrother cleared the corner down the right only for a GMP player to return with pace in to the area. Lloyd in the Gunners goal got a touch on the cross but couldn't hold it. As the ball dropped despite the attendance of several Gunners defenders the six-foot tall Holyroyd was first to the loose ball slashing home a right footed effort from five yards out.
The Gunners looking at odds with each other soon found themselves further behind. Trying desperately to pull off their off side trap, the Gunners pulled out after nine minutes, as Taylor ran through with the ball therefore making the offside trap redundant. As most of the visitors stood watching Taylor needed no invitation to skip clear away from the two defenders who had tried to recover. Looking up the midfielder cleverly delivered a square ball towards Holyroyd who had gone clear on the left, leaving Lloyd stranded on her penalty spot. The GMP number ten had the simple chance of placing the ball home from only three yards out, to give the home side a two-goal lead.
The home side sensed they had their opponents on the rack and continued to take advantage of the space in the midfield, created by the Gunners wingers staying too far wide. Another run through the middle, this time managing to avoid the brave efforts of Whalley, caught the Gunners defence in two minds. Giving Holyroyd just enough room to hit a low effort across in to the bottom left hand corner from sixteen yards, on eleven minutes.
Manager and coach, tried desperately to install some encouragement and advice in the shell shocked Gunners side, issuing desperate pleas for the wide players to get more involved.
Despite the score line the Gunners looked capable of getting back in the game, especially with Lloyd causing all kinds of problems in the GMP back line with her quick clearances, constantly breaching halfway. On the occasions Else managed to take advantage of the kicks she caused mayhem, nipping left and right as she pulled the defence all over the place. Unfortunately for the Gunners she broke so quickly she had no support.
The Police gained their fourth of the afternoon following a left hand corner that Eaves half cleared, only for Holyroyd to arrive on the penalty spot and fire home her hat-trick.
The Gunners starting to look like a team as the orders from the sidelines started to take effect should have got on the score sheet on the half hour. Openshaw, looking more interested fed Else in front of her down the right, taking the attentions of two defenders Else managed to break clear and cross for Eaves at the back post twelve yards out. The Gunners left-winger took a touch, with the keeper coming off her line; she was forced into snatching her shot, which flew narrowly over the crossbar.
The Gunners really thought it wasn't to be their day soon after as Else took a Lloyd clearance in her stride and managed to get free of her three minders. As the striker pushed forward she pulled the keeper off her line before hitting a low cross-field ball between the keeper and the back post. Amazingly, with the keeper beaten the ball hit the post and rolled across the line until a grateful defender smashed it clear. Leaving Else grasping her head in disbelief.
Else must have been close to breaking point a minute later as a Colley free kick found Openshaw on the right. The winger this time had Else in a central position and delivered a cross to the edge of the box. The Gunners striker only had the keeper to beat, who to be fair made herself as big as possible as she rushed from goal, so Else opted for a delicate lob that cleared the keeper but bounced inches the other side of the post, that she hit sixty-seconds earlier.
To make matters worse for the Gunners as the half, which they had gradually started to get into, came to an end. The Police increased their lead once more. Although they chose the same route as two of the earlier efforts this goal had class written all over it. Jones picked the ball up from just inside her own half and weaved her way through a packed midfield before unleashing a solid shot from right to left which just found the bottom left hand corner.
Half Time 5-0
Following an ear bashing from manager McKean at half, the Gunners kicked off the second period with something to prove, not only to their manager but themselves. McKean made it clear that there would be a change early in the half and it would be up to the individuals to fight for their right to continue.
Five minutes in to the half, each Gunner's player had upped their game, leaving McKean with a difficult decision to make. Reluctantly, he opted to replace Bradbury (who had slightly lost her way, while Holyroyd, who she had started to pick up, briefly left the field), with Cloney.
No sooner had Cloney reached her position in the middle of the park; the Gunners had finally got off the mark. Else, picking up another long ball from defence dribbled her way straight through the GMP rearguard and unleashed a dipping shot that flew through the outstretched arms of the keeper in to the roof of the net, to make it 5-1.
The Police and Holyroyd in particular seemed determined to renew their five-goal cushion. Within a minute of the restart she took up the ball in centre field from a well delivered cross and waltzed past the static defence, to place a firm effort under Lloyd in the Gunners goal.
Taking up her near post position, Cloney came to Gunners rescue after fifty-six. From a GMP corner, a solid half volley crept through a crowd of players and looked destined for goal, until the youngster spotted the danger and headed the ball clear.
On the hour the referee was called in to action to caution a GMP player after a collision with Openshaw. Although the Gunners player needed treatment the yellow card was probably harsh.
Given the referee had just brandished a yellow card for a rather innocuous challenge minutes earlier, it was plain stupidity when a GMP player made a horrific challenge, from behind, on the Gunners main threat, Else. However, despite the severity not only of the challenge but also of the injury, the referee chose to simply award a free-kick and a talking to for the offender.
While Else was off the field receiving intensive treatment, the Gunners were awarded a free-kick some forty yards out, slightly right of goal. Fairbrother assessing her options stepped up to the ball with only one objective in mind. She made a spectacular connection and from the moment it left her foot, it was screaming towards the top right hand corner of the net.
Although Else was able to return to the action some time later, she was unable to have as much as an effect on the game as before due to her injury.
The scoring was completed five minutes from time, as a left sided GMP corner broke loose in the six-yard box. Taylor was adjudged to have got the ball over the line before Cloney's desperate clearance hit the top of the net.

Full Time 7-3 .