Montpelier Villa Women have won the OpenAge League Challenge Cup after defeating Seaford Town Ladies 4-2 after extra time at Culver Road. In what was a battling performance from both sides on the night, goals from Georgia Esner and Nicole White in added-on time were enough to see Villa come away with the League Cup trophy.

Villa, having enjoyed the greater share of the ball throughout the opening period, managed to take the lead in the 8th minute, with Ruby Warden driving an effort into the far corner from the edge of the 18-yard box. Disappointment early on from a Seaford standpoint, having failed to clear their lines amidst a period of Montpelier threat in the attacking third.

Seaford kept up the pace despite the early concession, and would soon go on to find an equaliser courtesy of forward Macey Gipson. After a spell of testing deliveries looked to cause trouble for the Villa defence, Town's rising pressure eventually reaped its reward, with Gipson firing into the roof of the net from close range to level the scoring after a quarter of an hour.

Seaford continued to seek out set-piece opportunities as a way of creating an effective inroad towards the Montpelier goal, and only minutes after finding a leveller they went on to take the lead. Centre-back Brooke Pallant put Seaford ahead in the 18th minute, after a header glanced on from a corner left the Villa defence scrambling on the line, yet unable to prevent the ball from crossing the line to make it 2-1.

The balance of play throughout the first half saw Seaford continuously growing in confidence on and off the ball, with Montpelier’s attempts to integrate their attacking players being nullified on numerous occasions through Seaford’s smart pressing in midfield.

Having seen their lead turned on its head throughout the course of the first 45, Villa came out in the second half looking to regain more of a foothold on the tie. Just under 10 minutes following the restart, they managed to achieve just that, with Louisa Tindall coming up with a goal in the 54th minute. After being played through on goal lurking on the shoulder of the last defender, Tindall eventually managed to bundle the ball into the Seaford goal to make it 2-2.

For the remainder of the second half, both teams put in a grafting effort in the hope of coming up with a winner, yet the strenuous tempo of the match meant the sides both began to succumb to the physical demands. Thankfully for Villa, the ability to make changes proved to be a luxury, with Seaford’s depleted squad forcing the starting 11 to put in a massive shift throughout the entirety of the match.

The beginning of extra-time saw Montpelier immediately look to take the upper hand, and after only two minutes they were able to take the lead courtesy of forward Georgia Esner. After substitute Tara Barratt struck the bar with an effort just inside the area, it was Esner who was in the right place at the right time to bundle home from close range.

Seaford had ‘keeper Katie Burr to thank for keeping Montpelier Villa from extending their lead, making a number of important saves during extra time to ‘keeper her side in the game. Unfortunately for Seaford, the toll of 100+ minutes on the legs of their starters meant they struggled to find an outlet to hurt Villa on the break.

Finally, in the second half of extra time, Montpelier Villa managed to put the game out of reach, with Nicole White adding a fourth after slotting home past Burr in the 113th minute. 4-2 stood the final score in the end, with Montpelier running out winners following a commendable display from the Champions. A performance to be proud of for Craig Pooley’s Seaford, who battled through adversity produce a fantastic spectacle for all in attendance at Culver Road.

Seaford Town Ladies:
Katie Burr (GK)
Sharnie Franks
Jordan Lucas (C)
Lucia Law
Eloise Saunders
Paige Hanson
Paris Akehurst
Macey Gipson
Nadine Martin
Sarah Barton
Brooke Pallant