On a wet Sunday afternoon at Chatham Town Gills Ladies got their league cup campaign back on track.
A goal in either half from Natalie Crinean and Danielle Carlton was enough for the Gills to pick up their first three points in the league cup this season.
With four minutes gone Nav Boparai fouled Lauren Phillips, her foul earned her a yellow card. Emma Tune stepped up and saw her effort go just over Michelle Beazley’s cross bar for the effort on goal in the game.
Twenty minutes in and a great move down the right resulted in a cross into the area by Lauren Phillips, she picked out Crinean who headed into the top corner to make it 1-0 from 12-yards out.
Captain Tammy Scrivens fouled Crinean on the half hour mark, Danielle Carlton fired her free-kick in low, it skidded off the surface and was saved easily by Beazley.
QPR’s first effort on goal came in the 34th minute when Cherelle Albert turned and shot goal wards straight at Chloe Baker in the Gills goal. A long range effort on 42 minutes failed to trouble Baker in the Gills goal as the rain started to come down like stair rods.
A minute later a great solo run down the left wing from Crinean saw her race into the QPR area, but her shot was blocked.
Just before half time QPR were lucky not to be down to ten players when Boparai took Vicky Ashton-Jones clean out, with the conditions not helping.
Half Time 1-0
At the start of the second half QPR came out looking to get back into the game and were on the attack from the off. Jade Dempster had the first effort in the second half but she fired wide in the 47th minute.
After the hour mark Gills Ladies created a number of half chances through Carlton and Phillips before a cross into the area saw play briefly stopped after Bryony Smith collided with the keeper.
Another fine solo run down the left wing saw Crinean square the ball to East who shot straight at the keeper, while at the other end Amy Taylor got in a great last ditch tackle in the 73rd minute.
A Carlton corner a minute later saw East rise unmarked at the far post but she couldn’t direct her effort goal wards. With 77 minutes gone a Carlton cross was just cut out with Phillips and Jay Blackie lurking.
A minute later Natalie Crinean was taken out by Scrivens in the area the referee pointed to the spot, Carlton stepped up for the penalty and rifled it home to make it 2-0. With two minutes to go Sophie Fogarty fired over Baker’s cross bar from the edge of the area.
Full Time 2-0 Gills: Baker, Taylor, Carlton, Jones, Cooper, Tune, Smith (Williams, 83), East (Hardaker, 85), Phillips, Crinean, Ashton-Jones (Blackie, 74)
QPR: Beazley, Boparai, Odeniyi, Dempster, Scrivens, Maggs, Sayer, Cooper, Albert, Staples, Fogarty
Subs: Sandow