Denbigh victorious but a performance full of heart, belief and character from Holyhead Hotspur

NORTH WALES COAST WOMEN’S LEAGUE – OCTOBER 11

Holyhead Hotspur 2 (Hughes 29, Stockall 61)
Denbigh Town 3 (Bell 36, L Jones 57, L Williams 76)

Leaders Denbigh grabbed a close-fought win on Anglesey, but young newcomers Holyhead put up a fantastic battle against such experienced opponents.
Hotspur welcomed table-toppers Town to Bryn Du, Ty Croes, for their third league fixture of the season.
Facing an established women’s side, the hosts knew they would have to be disciplined, organised and prepared to work for every single ball.
And that’s exactly what Hotspur’s girls delivered.
Holyhead went into the game with a clear tactical plan, switching between a disciplined low block and a higher press when the opportunities presented themselves.
For the opening 30 minutes, the home side executed that plan brilliantly. Every player knew her job, defending from every corner of the pitch, closing spaces and frustrating a very attack-minded Denbigh side.
The visitors had plenty of possession, but Hotspur’s organisation, determination and defensive discipline were outstanding.
Then, in the 29th minute, came a moment of absolute magic.
Following a Denbigh corner, the islanders broke quickly on the counter-attack. The ball found Grace Stockall, who picked out Abi Hughes in a wide position.
Hughes went one-on-one with the defender, knocked the ball one side of her opponent, raced around the other and with the keeper rushing out, showed incredible composure, producing a beautiful chip from the edge of the area over the stopper and into the back of the net.

Denbigh rallied and equalised through Catrin Bell on 36 minutes to make it 1-1 at half time.

The second half saw a completely different side to Holyhead.
Having spent much of the opening half defending and frustrating, the girls began to grow in confidence, wrest control of spells of possession and take the game to the league leaders.
Nonetheless, on 57 minutes, Denbigh managed to find a second goal through top-scorer Loz Jones.
The visitors were then awarded a penalty following a late challenge inside the area from Keira Thomas. Fortunately for Hotspur, the resulting spot kick was sent wide of the goal.
That moment seemed to give the home side another lift as they began pressing higher, winning more challenges and playing with confidence and belief.

On 61 minutes, with Holyhead pushing for an equaliser, the ball fell to Stockall around 30 yards from goal.
She took control, sidestepped her marker and unleashed an absolutely stunning curling effort from around 25 yards, sending the ball flying into the top-right corner! An unbelievable strike that left the goalkeeper with no chance,
The home supporters erupted, the players celebrated together, and suddenly the league leaders knew they were in a real battle.
Anyone’s game now, but on 76 minutes Denbigh proved they are not leaders for nothing and made it 3-2 through Lleucu Williams.
Hotspur’s response was outstanding; they threw everything at the visitors in the final 10 minutes, but there was to be no equaliser.