Sheffield Hallam’s Women’s Football 2s stole the show in their Varsity match against Uni of. Having won at last year’s Varsity fixture, Hallam’s team claimed a back-to-back, Varsity victory with a strong performance, maintaining much of the possession throughout.
The first opportunity came at about 10 minutes into the game from Charlotte Boyle, who played the ball over the post. With the ball remaining heavily in Uni of’s end, it looked like a goal could come from Hallam at any minute. One finally arrived in the 36th minute, with another following five minutes later.
Uni of looked weak in the first half, and Hallam’s defenders swiftly denied any opportunity to play the ball to their advantage. Trying to claw back possession, Lucy Dieteren made an impressive tackle on Anaia Willoughby in the final few minutes of the half. But the efforts of the black and gold team were not enough to stop Emily Furniss from scoring Hallam’s third goal of the game, bringing the scoreline to 3-0 at halftime.
Uni of looked stronger in the second half and seemed determined to turn the game around. Lucy Stock had a chance to reduce the damage, but goalkeeper Hannah Iguchi stopped the ball from reaching the back of the net. The substitution came from Uni of, swapping Lauren Mccroy for Chloe Bevan, hoping that some fresh legs would help boost their chances of a comeback.
A foul in the box following a corner gave Uni of a penalty and their first goal of the fixture from team captain Lois Ratfcliffe.
While the University of Sheffield saw a definite improvement in the second half, the game seemed won already. With 10 minutes left on the clock, Sheffield Hallam’s Rebecca Roddis scored the final goal of the game bringing the final score to 4-1.
University of Sheffield: Robinson, Rowley, Robertson, Crook, Ratcliffe, Byrne, Mccroy, Dieteren, Stock, Blackmore, Willars, Bevan, Hannah Macphee, Agathocleou
Sheffield Hallam University: Pratley, Kenny, Brogan, Furniss, Best, Greaves, Iguchi, Boyle, Burnley, Willoughby, Roddis, Cross Ainly, Burns-Cooper, Medcalf