Lincolnshire County Cup Final – Scunthorpe 2 – 4 OOH Lincoln
OOH Lincoln Ladies won the Lincolnshire County Cup Final last night, taking back the Cup which they lost to Scunthorpe last season.
The Lady Imps started off slowly, and Scunthorpe took full advantage with just ten minutes gone – after sustained pressure on the Lincoln goal, Scunthorpe took a free kick from 45 yards out which was met with a superb header inside the box put give the Iron an early lead. Lincoln replied just before half time with a free kick scrambled over the line by centre half Kate Wooldridge, however the goal was ruled offside, sending Scunthrope into the half time break 1-0 up.
Thirteen minutes into the second half, Carla Ward put in a hard swerving corner kick, which was met on the half volley by Megan Harris, who smashed the ball into the back of the net to bring Lincoln back on equal terms. But a goalkeeping error from Chanel Swadling, the OOH Lincoln Keeper, cost the Lady Imps dearly, just as they were getting on top. Swadling scuffed a backpass into the path of a Scunthorpe striker, who crossed the ball into the area, resulting in an easy goal for the onrushing Scunthorpe player – to give the Iron back the lead.
However, with 70 minutes on the clock, Carla Ward came to Lincoln’s rescue with a scintilating free kick, from 35 yards out she powered the ball over the keeper – it dipped just under the bar to put Lincoln back on equal terms. From then on the Lady Imps dominated. On 74 minutes Megan Harris again struck from close range to make it 3-2 to Lincoln
And with just 8 minutes of the match remaining Sophie Barker put in a pin-point accurate cross into the Scuntorpe area, which Kerry Smith headed powerfully past the challenging keeper to make the final score 4-2 to the Lady Imps on the night.
‘I’m absolutely delighted to have the County Cup back in our possession,’ said OOH Lincoln chairman Geoff Adams
‘I must give Scuntorpe United the highest praise – they gave us a real scare, and we had to be at our best to beat them! I had a feeling that would be the case, which is why I insisted we played our strongest team possible, and now I’m very glad we did. However, I think our fitness and quality shone through in the end and after dominating the game for long periods, I think we were deserving winners this year’ he said.
