Ian Varley was happy to see his side remain unbeaten on Sunday afternoon if not a little shocked his side didn’t come away with all three points.

The Gills twice went ahead against Portsmouth but were pegged back twice, yet they still created enough chances to win the game.

Talking after the final whistle, he said: “It was an unbelievable game and if I am honest I am disappointed that we didn’t win.

“Pretty much from minute one to minute ninety we have dominated the game, I think they would agree with that.”

“They were one of the best teams that we have played and if they are going to be one of the better teams at this level it gives everyone a lot of confidence. Everyone is disappointed that we have not won the game but again we have picked up a point against one of the better teams in our League.”

The ladies created more chances in the game against Portsmouth than they had in their previous two and Ian is pleased that players were getting into attacking positions more.

He added: “I think we had our first chance in the first twenty seconds when we hit the post that set the tone for the game then.

“We have started really slow in recent weeks and the key to today was that we started really quickly, as I said before the game we don’t know them and that takes the nervousness out of it.

“Once we started we got at them and they became nervous because we dominated the first ten minutes.   They never really got into their stride in the whole game so I am really pleased with the performance today.”

The Gills are still unbeaten this season having played against Charlton, Millwall and now Portsmouth and Ian is delighted.

He said: “We are still unbeaten at the start of the season, and we have played three good teams with Charlton who are an established side. Millwall are a good team and Pompey are an established team at this level.

“We now have four points from six in the League and we have a point in the League Cup as well and if we beat Brighton next week we are probably through.”

Aaron Perry was delighted to see his side come away with a 4-0 victory on Sunday afternoon in their first League game of the season.

It is even more impressive considering the fact that it was their first game in the Premiership Reserve League Division Two.

Talking after the game the ecstatic manager, said: “I am absolutely delighted with all my players today we have got the result that we deserved and that is all three points.

“I am delighted to have scored four goals against a strong Colchester side as I have said many times we are an attacking team and we will always look to score goals.”

The manager was just as pleased to keep a clean sheet on the opening day of the season as he was scoring four goals.

He added: “I am delighted with my back four; both the full backs were great all game and the centre halves Enya, Kate and Zara were brilliant, keeping a clean sheet will give them a massive boost.

“It also means that yes we are still unbeaten which includes the pre-season games and that is particularly delightful and hopefully we can continue our winning streak.”

Aaron was also full of praise for striker Kylie Overton who scored a brace in the opening fixture and the confidence it will give her.

He said: “I am pleased for Ky as she worked really hard up there alone and the wingers provided her with great support.

“I am delighted with the whole team tonight.  We have set our stool out today and a standard for the League and everyone will now sit up and take notice I am sure.”

Aaron and Matt are a coaching staff who pride themselves on the attention to detail and were pleased with the work rate of the players.

Aaron added: “If I was to pick a man of the match I couldn’t do it, I have to give credit where it is due to the whole team.

“There is no way that I could pick an individual out today, I am a very proud manger tonight of all the girls.”

Gillingham Ladies maintained their unbeaten start to the season on Sunday afternoon with a 2-2 draw against Portsmouth.

The score line is somewhat harsh on the Gills as it was a game that they could and should have won in the end.

They took the lead in the 50^th minute through Ashlee Hincks before a corner went straight in for a Portsmouth equaliser six minutes later.  The hosts were in front again in the 66^th minute thanks to a fine finish from Natalie Crinean but Pompey equalised a minute later through a lob from Molly Clark.

The Gills could and should have taken the lead inside the first minute when Natalie Crinean found strike partner Ashlee Hincks. She raced into the area before hitting a shot that crashed back off the near post.

In the 6^th minute a long ball over the top was challenged by Ashlee Hincks and the ball broke to Danni Farmer and with Louise Worsfold stranded she hit a shot but couldn’t direct it on goal with an empty net begging to be rustled.

Then in the 14^th minute came a moment of controversy as Gemma Hillier appeared to be upended by Becky Spencer in the Gills area after a long ball from Justine Lorton. The referee waved away the Portsmouth appeals for a spot kick.

Two minutes later and the Gills created another good chance when Hincks found Danni Farmer, her ball to Vicky Ashton-Jones was excellent but the midfielder couldn’t keep her shot down.

The Ladies were in full control of the game at this point and the passing that resulted in a chance for Hincks in the 19^th minute was nothing short of exceptional.

Lauren Phillips found Danni Farmer with a ball round the corner, she them found the impressive Natalie Crinean who took on and beat a Portsmouth defender before squaring to Hincks, but her finish couldn’t match the build up.

In the 24^th minute Portsmouth created a chance with Lorton playing in the quick Hillier she raced through on goal but hit a shot straight at Becky Spencer.

Natalie Crinean was really working hard up front and causing all sorts of problems for the Pompey defence with her direct running. Yet in the 25^th minute she played a lovely pass to Vicky Ashton-Jones who played a one-two with Danni Farmer but her shot was straight at the keeper.

With half hour on the clock left back Stacey McConville played a great ball from defence that split the Portsmouth defence. Ashlee Hincks raced onto the ball before hitting a shot that was tipped around the post by Worsfold for a corner.

Three minutes later and it was Deanna Cooper playing a fantastic ball to Ashlee Hincks she got her cross into the area but Lauren Phillips couldn’t quite get her shot away.

Stacey McConville again turned provider shortly after when she headed the ball through to Hincks who took on two defenders before hitting a shot wide of the far post.

With one minute to go before half time Portsmouth sent a dangerous cross into the Gills area, it broke out to Clark who hit a speculative effort just wide.

A minute later and the Gills hit the woodwork for the second time in the first half when Danni Farmer found Hincks; her cross was met by Vicky Ashton-Jones who saw her shot crash back off the near post.

Half Time 0-0

The Gills came out in the second half and immediately picked up where they left off in the first half with their attacking play.

Natalie Crinean who was having her best game up front this season made a great run from deep in her own half. She took the ball past three defenders as if they weren’t even there before hitting a shot that was saved by the keeper.

The Ladies went ahead in the 50^th minute, Danni Farmer played a great ball to Ashlee Hincks and she took the ball round the defender and riffled a shot into the top corner to make it 1-0.

In the 54^th minute Natalie Crinean was again at the heart of a Gills attack, her pass found Ashlee Hincks who hit a shot from 20 yards out that was tipped over by the keeper. From the resulting corner Stacey McConville headed straight at the Portsmouth keeper after she wasn’t picked up by anyone in the six yard area.

Portsmouth were back on level terms in the strangest of fashions in the 56^th minute thanks to a corner going straight in.  A corner was swung into the Gills area and appeared to beat everyone in the six yard area before going in off the cross bar.

The Ladies were straight back on the front foot a minute later and Deanna Cooper hit a shot from distance that was straight at Worsfold in the Portsmouth goal.

The Gills were back in front in the 66^th minute when Ashlee Hincks played in Natalie Crinean, she took the ball round the keeper and wide of the goal. She showed good composure to get the ball back around and hit a shot into the bottom corner. The goal was nothing short of what the striker deserved from a fantastic performance on Sunday afternoon.

Just a minute had passed when Portsmouth equalised for the second time in the game. A long range effort was aimed at the Gills goal from Molly Clark and it beat Becky Spencer and ended up in the roof of the Gills net for 2-2.

With the scores level again the Gills pressed on to see if they could find a winning goal and substitute Danielle Carlton was at the heart of some of the Ladies best moves.

In the 77^th minute she played a great ball over the top to Ashlee Hincks who raced through on goal and hit a shot wide.

She then played in Danni Farmer a minute later who found Hincks who once again hit a shot at goal but it was wide once more.

Carlton then gave away a free kick from distance in the 81^st minute but Justine Lorton couldn’t direct the free kick anywhere near the Gills goal.

With two minutes left on the clock Natalie Crinean made a great run from deep, she got to the edge of the area and unleashed a shot. The shot was deflected out for a throw in and from the resulting throw in Danielle Carlton hit a shot straight at the keeper.

Portsmouth had the last chance of the game with seconds left on the clock, Zoe Nash found herself with space to get a shot away, but it was straight at Becky Spencer.

The Gills can be happy with their performance against a Portsmouth side that had started the season really well. The Ladies remain unbeaten after their first three games and will be looking to continue that next week against Brighton.

Full Time 2-2

Girl of the Match: Natalie Crinean

Gills: Spencer, Williams, Cheedy, Ahern, McConville, Cooper (Russ, 84), Farmer, Ashton-Jones (c), Phillips (Carlton, 74), Crinean, Hincks

Subs not used: Nunn, Jeffery, Lomas

Portsmouth: Worsfold, Ryan, Kirby, Clark, Murphy, Russell, Stregter, Thorp (c), Hillier, Lorton, Cox

Subs: Windell, Keil, Nash

The Reserves finally got their season under way on Sunday afternoon and they did it in style with a 4-0 win over Colchester Ladies.

The Ladies were making their debut in the Premiership Reserve League Division Two but on the days performance you would have thought they had been playing at this level for some time.

Kylie Overton got the scoring under way in the first half before Kirsty Goodall doubled the score on the hour mark. Overton then scored her second goal of the game before Amy Taylor rounded off the scoring with five minutes left.

Going into the game Aaron Perry had a dilemma as to who to pick in what position as his squad has strength in depth all over the pitch.

The Gills could have taken the lead in the third minute when Kylie Overton raced through on goal. She was one on one with the keeper but hit her shot just wide.

They didn’t have to wait too much longer to get their first goal in a new League when Overton did find the back of the net.

In the 18^th minute Colchester tried to play a ball out to the wing, it was cut out by Whitney Judd. She played the ball forward and Overton pressured the centre half and goalkeeper before slotting the ball into the back of the net to make it 1-0.

The Ladies then had a good chance to double their lead just two minutes later. The experienced Lesley Kay hit a shot that rebounded out of the Colchester area. Midfielder Natalie Farbrace was lurking and she turned and volleyed over the cross bar.

The Gills were dealt an injury blow on the half hour mark when Kate Foster was forced off with a nasty looking injury. She went in for a tackle and looked to have twisted her knee in the process of making the challenge.

The Gills were keeping the ball well but they did suffer one scare as the first half went on when a goal mouth scramble was cleared.  A ball was swung in from a corner and Kimi Bolden hacked the ball off the line and it was scrambled away from danger.

Half Time 0-1

In the second half the Gills looked to keep up the attacking intent and take the game to their hosts and extend their lead.

It took until the hour mark for this to happen and it was the impressive Kirsty Goodall who got the Gills second goal. Captain Kimi Bolden sent a cross into the box that caused confusion between the two centre halves; Kirsty Goodall picked the ball up and calmly slotted home to make it 2-0.

The Gills third goal was arguably the best move of the match as some superb pass and move football was finished off by Kylie Overton.

A ball was played from the midfield out wide to Kimi Bolden she in turn found Izzy Martin; she then played the ball to Amy Taylor. Taylor stepped up and curled in a left footed cross that Kylie Overton expertly volleyed into the back of the net to make it 3-0.

With five minutes left on the clock the Gills added some gloss to an impressive opening weekend performance.

A long ball was played out of the back from Anelle Massey the keeper missed it completely and substitute Amy Taylor gambled on this and was left with a simple tap in to round off the scoring at 4-0.

The Reserves can be pleased with the start in their first ever game in the Premiership Reserve Leagues and it continues their unbeaten run from pre-season.

Full Time 0-4

Gills: Jackson, Judd, Foster (Clarke, 30, (Taylor, 75), Lynch, Bolden (c), Kay, Abbott (Massey, 50), Farbrace, Martin, Goodall, Overton

Subs not used: Harris

Unbeaten League leaders Portsmouth visit Martyn Grove on Sunday afternoon in a battle of the undefeated starts to the season.

Like the Gills opponents Pompey haven’t lost yet this season and are currently scoring goals for fun, which means it is going to be a tough game for the Gills.

Talking ahead of an important game, Ian said: “The game should be alright they will be a decent outfit so we will try to play as well as we did in last week’s second half and hopefully stop them playing their football.

“They are one of the strongest teams at this level so will be one of the most difficult games we have had, but I think everyone is looking forward to it.  We have got to be at our best so hopefully we will get the right result.”

Portsmouth are a bit more of an unknown to the Gills than their previous two opponents Charlton and Millwall and Ian thinks that could be an advantage.

He added: “We don’t know much about them in terms of playing the Charlton’s and Millwall’s where everyone knows each other.

“I think it’s a bit more relaxed as they won’t know people. I am looking forward to it, hopefully we will get the right result but performance is key and hopefully we will be able to take something from the game, hopefully win, and it will put us in good stead for the rest of the season.”

Last weekend the second half performance was more in line with what Ian is looking for his side to play like and he hopes that continues this weekend.

He said:  “They are a National Premiership team so we will be looking to emulate that second half performance; we have proven we can play and get teams rattled, like I said Millwall will be better than most in our league so it’s important that we work as we did from the second half.

“If we do things right we will do well in the game, I’m not saying we’re going to win every game because there are times we don’t play and might lose games but we can only try to perform consistently over the 18 games and hopefully we will come out alright.”

Looking ahead to the game Ian conceded that Pompey are one of the more attacking sides in the Division but the Ladies have worked on a number of things in training this week.

He added: “They are near the top so if you can beat them or come above them you are probably looking at getting promoted.

“For me they are probably the team to beat, they had a good pre season, have some good players – Justine Morton who is a really good player so will have to keep our eye on her, they play an attacking 4-4-2 but I think teams that attack us we are better at dealing with that so hopefully we deal with it and hopefully when we do get the ball we will play our own stuff.

“We have had some good tempo sessions, good turnout – everyone is ready to go, no injuries well we know about some injuries, but good sessions and everyone is ready to go for the weekend.”

The Reserves finally get their season under way on Sunday afternoon when they take on Colchester Ladies.

It seems like an eternity since they returned to pre-season training at the end of June and both Aaron and his players are ready to go.

Talking ahead of the match against Colchester, Aaron said: “We are good to go now; we have had two good sessions both Tuesday and Thursday.  We’re looking good to be fair to the girls and they are buzzing and we are as good as we can be to go.”

The Reserves didn’t lose a game in pre-season with six wins and a draw and that means that the players are full of confidence for the weekend.

He added: “Confidence is high; it’s been a good pre-season to be fair to Matt and I it’s been a good seven weeks.  As I say I can’t wait to get started.

“In pre season the results have been good and I think that this gives us a bit more confidence going into the game on Sunday.”

Even so Colchester will be a big test for the Reserves as it is their first game at a higher level but they have played well against two teams from a higher division during the build up to the campaign.

He said: Yes and no to Colchester being a test really, we have come up against Charlton and West Ham and to be fair we beat Charlton and we could have beet West Ham.

“We will give Colchester the respect they deserve, they have had a good pre-season but as I say it’s a game we expect to win.”

Aaron is full of confidence in his player’s abilities ahead of the big kick off and he admits he can’t wait to get going.

He added:  “We are full of confidence, I’m buzzing I can’t wait to get going to be fair.  We have got to wait 2 days so will be kicking everything in the house to get going Sunday.

“I just want to get going, can’t wait you look forward to any game but definitely the first game f the season we want to win.”

In training this week the Reserves have worked hard with Aaron and Matt on shapes and formations that could be used on Sunday.

“We have worked on our shape, our set pieces everything from back to front as a team; obviously I’m not going to give too much away on this cause I’m sure they will be reading.

“All week we have worked on everything, more so tonight as its closer to match day we have worked on everything we need to work on, as I say everyone knows their jobs and everyone knows how important it is that they do their jobs.   We will be a disciplined team but a good disciplined team in attacking.  I am confident we will get a result.”

The season finally gets up and running properly on Sunday as the reserves finally kick start their debut in the Premiership Southern Reserve Division 2 League with an away trip to Colchester, whilst the first team entertain early pace setters Portsmouth at Lordswood F.C

The First team are currently in fine form with an opening day 1-0 win away to title favourites Charlton Athletic, and an outstanding come back against National League title contenders Millwall.

The First team have only one injury concern and that is Captain Becky Lyon, she will almost certainly not be 100% fit enough to start and Ian Varley will look for her to hopefully be available to be on the bench.

RECENT FORM

Gills:- WD – Lge Pos 4th

Pompey:- WW – Lge Pos 1st

Match Info

Lordswood F.C, North Dane Way, Lordswood, Chatham, Kent ME5 8YE

Kick Off 2pm

http://gillinghamladies.clubfans.co.uk/2009/05/21/how-to-find-us-2/

Entry Fee:- £2.50 Adults, £1 U16′s, Free – GFC Season Ticket Holders & GISC Members (please show documents at Turnstile)

Programme:- £2 – 24 Page Programme, jam packed with match reports, action photos, interviews and Stats, plus preview on visitors Portsmouth

50/50 – Your chance to help the club fundraise, for just £1 a ticket, 50p goes to the club, 50p to the prize fund. Record payout was £42. Lets see if we can beat that.

RESERVES

Aaron Perry finally gets to take control in a competitive match as they travel to Colchester United for their opening game of the season, after what was seemingly the longest Pre-season ever, having started back in July. The Reserves are hungry to get going.

Aaron has a full squad to select from, and with the return of several injured players back to training competition for places has never been stronger.

Match Info

Shrub End Community and Sports Centre
Boadicea Way
Colchester
Essex
CO2 9BG

Kick Off 2pm

http://www.multimap.com/maps/?qs=CO2+9BG&countryCode=GB#map=51.87514,0.87698|16|4&bd=useful_information&loc=GB:51.87513:0.87698:16|CO2%209BG|CO2%209BG

Entry Fee:-  No Entry Charge

Gillingham Ladies came from 2-0 down on Sunday afternoon to secure a creditable draw against Millwall.

Photographer Julian Hart who was attending his first ever Gillingham Ladies match was on hand to capture the game.

In his first photo gallery for the Gills Ladies site we have a selection of pictures from the game that got more interesting the wetter it got.

So season 2010/2011 is looking hot already, with an unbeaten run in pre-season, some pretty intense fitness and a new manager and assistant, Gillingham Reserves are already flying high, with hopes of continuing our success into the season.

We have had six pre-season games, a good chance for some of our signings from the C of E and local clubs to show what they have, and have been a big part in helping us to keep our unbeaten run going.

We have gained Whitney Judd from the first team, and more recently Natalie Farbrace too, who have been big characters in the team so far. We hold on to some of last season’s familiar faces in the way of Kylie Overton, Kirsty Goodall, Gemma Ridge, Lauren Harris, Kate Foster, Amy Russ, Charlotte Abbott, Anelle Massey and obviously myself. New faces to the team are Temi Opemiyan and Amy Taylor as well as Zara Clarke, Izzy Martin, Kate Cronin, Lou Jackson and Ruth Jackson all from the Centre of Excellence.

They have seen a huge change in pace this year, and were confronted, as were the rest of us in the first session back with a killer fitness session from new trainer Laura. She has been putting us through our paces for the last eight weeks, and although she has definitely not been our favourite person from time to time, most of the girls have really stuck with it and pushed themselves to the limit.

New Manager Aaron has been there with us from fairly early on, as has assistant Matt. After finally coming to terms with the amount of moaning he has to put up with by working within a ladies team, both have settled in well and have really upped the pace of training, despite our gruelling fitness regime before we are even allowed to kick a ball! First game of the friendly season saw us face Basildon away and with our new formation of 4-3-3 the girls got off to a bit of a shaky start. The fitness sessions were clearly not yet paying off, as we scraped a 2-1 victory with their goal unfortunately coming from a Gills own goal. As the new formation was not working for us, we switched back to 4-4-2 for a while, but have now begun to phase out swapping back in order to help us settle in our roles.

Our next game was against Charlton reserves, although due to the first team game being unexpectedly cancelled, a few first team faces appeared in the line-up against us. We started brightly, particularly as were on the unfamiliar surface of a 3G pitch, but were set back early on to a dubious penalty for pushing in the box. Despite going a goal down, half time was used to analyse the weak spots in our new formation, and the Gills came out fighting. With a much stronger second half performance, the Gills scored three good goals leaving Charlton very few chances to counter attack. The girls clearly revelled in the win, and it certainly proved a confidence boost at training.

Hearing of our cup draw with Yeovil, the team really started to gel, with talk of overnight stays and a true Gills style road trip! The girls then took part in a fundraising exercise at Priestfield, with many of the reserves completing a bucket collection at the Gills first home game of the season. Many loyal fans kindly dug deep to help support us, and much of the £300 raised will go towards funding our cup run. Many of them mentioned reading this blog which I was thrilled to hear, and so a special thanks goes out to them!

Kent Magpies were the next team for us to face, with assistant Matt taking control for the day, he never faltered under the pressure of keeping the winning streak going. The girls were unlucky to lose Kylie Overton early on to a poor decision by the referee; the girls had to go again with a new top three, all trying to prove they should be number one choice for the new system. Chab (Charlotte Abbott) was unlucky to miss a penalty, and Amy Russ was unlucky not to score first half with a number of long range shots. Second half saw the team pick up the pace a little, and with our hardcore fitness sessions starting to pay off, the girls banged in 6 in total.

With a much stronger focus at training about getting the new formation right, the reserves went into their first midweek fixture against Maidstone with perhaps a little too much confidence. After the firsts beat them 11-0 the week before, the reserves held a glimmer of hope that they may just try to beat this score. This confidence backfired as a defensive error, despite having several strong opportunities to score at the other end, left the team 1-0 down with a very poor all round performance. Aaron certainly gave us a piece of his mind at half time, but this had been softened by Whitney Judd’s equaliser just before the 45 minute call. With her and I both playing new ‘Wing-back’ sort of roles, we have both enjoyed the freedom of being able to get forwards and help with the attack. I have found playing on the left an additional new challenge to add to the fun, but have enjoyed settling in and finding my feet! (Particularly working out which one is my left again!!) But was very pleased to score my first accidental goal/cross of the season! Hopefully a few more of those to come this year!

We quickly moved on from Maidstone to West Ham at the weekend, who appear to be doing well in their pre-season run. A much quieter Gills stepped on to the pitch, and pressed well for the first 45 minutes, both making good chances in front of goal, and defending well at the other end. 0-0 and half time saw Aaron urging us to continue doing what we were doing but at a better pace, and straightened up a few midfield errors. With a new corner format and a renewed sense of clarity in the middle, the Gills began to look more likely to score, and did so early on, although it was ruled out as offside. Despite dropping off the pace a little near the end, the Gills passed by with a 0-0 draw, and a sense of satisfaction to have kept a clean sheet, although all were a little disappointed not to have left a mark on the score sheet.

The latest game to have tested the Gills was Malgo, a new team we knew little about. Gills started really brightly and were unlucky not to get on the score sheet early. With a strong looking formation and a much better organised midfield, the team really started to work together and were soon putting in crosses and goals all over the park. Everyone had a fair rotation in the game, many girls trailed several new positions, and despite finishing comfortably at 9-0, the girls continued to work hard right to the end. Still in good spirits the then completed a further fitness test with some box to box running. Possibly new manager Aaron’s first taste of the girls spirit, as they all completed it well and worked hard to get it done.

So with a positive pre-season behind us, and one game left before the season starts, the Gillingham Ladies Reserves are very much looking forward to the start of the season and no more gruelling fitness sessions! Although we would like to thank under muttered breath our fitness coach Laura for all her hard work, I mean all the hard work she made us do!

That’s it for now; let’s see where the season takes us!

Up the Gills!

Kimi

During the Millwall game Gills Ladies tried out their new stats centre to see just what happens in a match that everyone forgets about.

Technical Director Sean Edwards and Chris Dicketts got their heads together to come up with some stats they could keep track of during the match.

Below we have a selection of stats that were calculated during the match; however when the rain came down it got a bit harder to record, as everything got a bit wet.

There maybe some inacuracy in the first set of stats, so please do bare with us as we get used to recording every detail of the matches.

It is a new feature that will continue to develop as the season progresses and we think of new and innovative stats to record.

Match Stats

Goals:

16 0-1 – Leah Jones gives Millwall the lead with a rasping drive from 18 yards out.

50 0-2 – A Sian Cheedy back pass is missed by Beck Spencer as it bobbles over her foot and into the net.

56 1-2 – Ashlee Hincks is played through by Danni Farmer and slots home under the keeper.

79 2-2 – Natalie Crinean is played in by Vicky Ashton-Jones and goes on to finish superbly into the middle of net.