Sunday Nov. 7th, 2021 | South Walpole, MA
A beautiful warm November morning is bonus-weather in the North East region, and a perfect day to get an early game in! The Lady Gunners had this opportunity, though without any substitutes, with a few players missing due to injuries. No excuses made, the 11 who are challenged with the task must deliver. 
Opening
The original plan was for the Lady Gunners to control the tempo from the start, and make the ball do most of the work, in order to sustain and manage playing without substitutes. What actually got executed was a slow, lethargic play, with many players stagnant all around. As the first half progressed, the performance improved, but never really launched into dominance. Despite a sub-par performance, the Ladies were able to establish a 3-1 lead at the half.
Half-Time Adjustments
At halftime, we discussed tightening up the defensive work in central midfield. Juventus is a much-improved team, with the ability to move the ball. That can be dangerous if not dealt with properly, by disrupting their combination and their flow through the middle of the park.
2nd Half- Final Result
The second half was actually better managed by the Lady Gunners, by disrupting any type of rhythm Juventus attempted to generate, especially through midfield. With such sound work from the Lady Gunners, it deflated their opponents' ability to close the gap. In the end, the Lady Gunners closed out the season with a 6-1 win. A gutsy performance with all 11 players running for the full 80 minutes! Aurore- was phenomenal in goal, especially for her full outstretched penalty save she pushed away, got up, and recovered. This was during a pivotal point of the match when Juventus could have gained momentum and made things difficult.
Maddie- from start to end, consistently provided composed ball distribution, poise tempo control, and kept everyone involved. On a day when the entire unit was not clicking as well, her outstanding performance made up for any lacking chemistry.
Congrats to you both on a well-deserved Players of the Match Award!!
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