Festival fun

This was the third Bayside Girls Festival that Jeanfield's U13s had attended since the end of last season, and a full squad made the journey down the M90 to Dalgety Bay hoping to dust off the cobwebs that had gathered after a couple of frustrating weeks in which the weather put paid to outdoor training.
With four of the starting seven still only 11 years old, the first game against Real Fife nevertheless featured 5 girls from last season's league campaign that saw the U13s finish joint 4th. The experience was evident in a close-fought 1-0 win (goal to Abbie Ferguson after 10 minutes), but it was debutante Olivia Laing whose composure in defence was outstanding alongside stalwart Sky Steele. Together they made sure that Amelia McRae was largely untroubled in goal, and the young keeper will be pleased to have gained further match experience at this level.
In midfield, Beth Dakers is quickly establishing her credentials having proven her defending strength in her first season at this level last year, and she provided a steady source of balls through to Abbie Ferguson up front. Working hard either side of Beth in midfield, Bernie Young and Abby Schofield covered massive amounts of ground as they tracked up and down the pitch. Abby's hard work was carried on by Eilidh Davies when she made an appearance half-way through this first game.
Chances to extend the lead came and went, largely thanks to some great keeping from Real Fife's number one.

The second game saw an almost entirely different team take on Glenrothes 12s, as only Beth Dakers and Amelia McRae remained from the first game's starting line-up. The change in personnel did not affect the performance, however, and Louise Guthrie was on hand to score from close range after 5 minutes. Beth Allen then blasted home a couple of minutes later, but a rare defensive error from Jeanfield almost let Glenrothes back in on 10 minutes, when a ball that should have been dealt with easily was allowed to run into the path of an oncoming striker who made no mistake in finding the net. With another debutante, Leah Sidey, taking the pitch the Jeanfield midfielder's technical skill was evident as she beat player after player and tackled like a demon. The two-goal advantage was restored four minutes later, as Anna Slidders, playing in an unfamiliar left-wing role, poked home a cross from Beth Allen. Although Glenrothes would come back to within a score of levelling the game, Jeanfield held on as deserved winners of their second match.

The final game against Forfar Farmington Stars saw a return to the team that had dominated large portions of the first game, and Jeanfield went into an early 2-0 lead thanks to goals from Abbie Ferguson on 2 minutes and 4 minutes. Eilidh Davies then turned from assisting to scoring, with two goals on 9 minutes and 15 minutes, before feeding Abbie once again on 17 minutes. Beth Dakers rounded off the day's goals with an exquisite shot that found the bottom corner of the net.

Taking 13 girls to a 7-a-side festival is never an easy task, and the substitutes were always eager to get on and do their best for their team. Nevertheless, this was a good start to 2016 for an outfit that has a blend of experience and new talent. Great debuts from Leah Sidey and Olivia Laing in particular showed that those moving up from U11 are not here just to make up the numbers, while experienced players like Danni Moore and Louise Guthrie demonstrated their desire to keep their places in the season to come. All in all it is clear that the U13s will put up a challenge to all who cross their path.