New Tottenham Hotspur head coach Rehanne Skinner opened her account with a near perfect afternoon as the North Londoners defeated Brighton & Hove Albion 3-1 at The Hive.
Not only did Spurs secure their first win of the season in-front of the returning fans, Alex Morgan scored her first goal for the club and Jessica Naz made her long-awaited return from injury.
Visitors Brighton & Hove Albion have been inconsistent this season, turning in some excellent performances against top opposition but also struggling against the lesser clubs. The first half was largely consistent with the performances these teams have given this season, played mostly in the centre of the park with little for either keeper to do. Spurs did take an early lead through a free-kick which gave Kerys Harrop her first goal for the club. Ten minutes later Rosella Ayane should have done better as she was through on goal but her long range effort went well wide.
Just after the half-hour mark Brighton & Hove Albion were awarded a penalty for a recklessly high foot from Alanna Kennedy and Inessa Kaagman put the ball in the back of the net. Spurs continued to dominate in possession but the sides went in all level at half-time.
For the first half an hour of the second half, the game continued much as it had in the first half with both sides upping the tempo to little effect. In the 64th minute, Spurs found the breakthrough with Kennedy punting the ball upfield to be flicked on by Morgan. The ball then fell for Angela Addison who warded off Maya Le Tissier before rounding Megan Walsh and sliding the ball home to make it 2-1.
The growth in confidence was visible amongst the Spurs players and some good link up play involving Addison, Ria Percival and Morgan started to develop and Brighton & Hove Albion were unable to get back in the game, Hope Powell lamenting after the final whistle that her players weren’t good enough on the ball.
The game was physical throughout and in the 84th minute a push on Percival in the box saw the referee point to the spot for another penalty, this time to Spurs. Morgan made no mistake, scoring her first goal for the club to take the score to 3-1.
Immediately after the penalty Spurs made two changes bringing on Naz, after more than a season out through injury, to the delight of the fans.
After the game, new Spurs head coach Skinner praised the attitude of her players saying her key messages had been to believe in themselves and not to be afraid to make mistakes knowing their teammates would recover at the next opportunity. Naturally, she noted that there is still work to do but the first step in the right direction had been made on an afternoon of many positives for the club. Visiting boss Powell was understandably downbeat, praising the way Spurs had taken the game to her side but couldn’t find much to take forward as Albion once again found themselves unable to take their chances.
About The Author
