St Margaret's & Godwin Fly The Flag

LAST YEAR’S CHAMPIONS, Godwin, overcame a shaky start to finish as runners-up in the county 7-a-side finals for London Boroughs in a scintillating afternoon of girls’ football at Fairlop.

They got off to the worse possible start however when a combination of poor finishing and hesitant defending saw them slip to a 2-0 defeat against St Anthony’s despite spending the vast majority of the game in their opponents' final third.

Signs of improvement followed in their next match against North Beckton as Briony Hagger and Faith Efemwen converted a pair of scruffy close range chances to achieve the same score-line, this time in Godwin’s favour.

Eventual winners St Mary’s were then put to the sword in a high-stakes encounter which Godwin controlled throughout. Hollie Ross, imperious at the back, spread play wide to Louise Dove who picked out Hagger with a perfectly weighted pass. Hagger’s first touch was perfect and her second emphatic as she sealed the three points with aplomb.

A 0-0 draw with Selwyn followed before a comprehensive 4-0 thrashing of Elm Park. Hagger continued her fine form with two more, with Dove and Efemwen chipping in from midfield.

That brought a showdown in the final game with fellow borough representatives Marks Gate. Hagger netted early on to achieve a swift lead before Efemwen made it two shortly after. Morgan-Lilly Duffield slipped in Hagger for her sixth goal of the afternoon before Dove put the seal on a solid all-round team performance in the dying minutes.

All that meant Godwin finished just two points off top spot but they did enough to ensure the runners-up position and qualify for the overall final against the winners from the rest of the county at the Arsenal Dome in February.

They will be joined at Hale End by St Margaret’s, who also put a jittery start behind them to lift the title in the corresponding boys’ tournament. Meanwhile, Hunters Hall, who were unable to add to their Evans-Moore Cup victory, had to settle for a mid-table finish, as the luck went against them in their attempt to retain last year’s crown.

Godwin: Tucker, Young, Ross, Dove, Hagger (capt), Efemwen, Duffield, Simpson