Skipper Bdr Anna Birtwhistle (RA) has reflected on a season of progress for the army women’s football team after they fell agonisingly short in their quest to dethrone the Royal Air Force as Inter-Services champions.
Having defeated the Royal Navy 2-0 in their opening game, the Reds only needed to draw with the RAF in the tournament’s concluding fixture to lift the trophy but found themselves on the wrong side of a seven-goal thriller in Lincoln.
A soft penalty decision saw the soldiers slip 1-0 down in the 12th minute and worse was to follow as keeper Cpl Nicole Gair (RAMS) was caught in possession to gift their rivals a second. The stopper was also at fault for the third goal early in the second half as her attempted pass deflected off forward Fg Off Jeorgia Carr and into the empty net.
LCpl Ashleigh Mills (RLC) gave the challengers something to cheer as she converted with an expertly judged shot over the stranded opposition keeper from 40 yards, but the joy was short lived as RAF skipper Sgt Cat Beaver slotted her second goal of the afternoon after the army failed to clear from a free kick.
Birtwhistle reduced the arrears from the spot and when veteran Capt Krissy Wright (AGC (RMP)) drilled home from the edge of the area the comeback was on. However, the equaliser failed to materialise, leaving the RAF to celebrate a fifth successive title.
“It is disappointing,” Birtwhistle told SoldierSport. “We had the opportunity to go all the way but it didn’t quite happen.
“We made some team and individual mistakes that resulted in goals, but I couldn’t fault our determination. To get to 4-3 in the second half is testament to the girls’ spirit.
“Despite this, we’ve had a really good season and finished second in the Southern Counties Cup.
“We’ve had a new coaching team who brought a new structure to our play and I feel that good things are coming.”
