WU17 Match report Klub Kildare 1 Bray Wanderers 3

The Bray girls came into this one eager to bounce back after a narrow defeat to Waterford last week, and they wasted no time making their mark. 

Just 3 minutes in, Rachel Gillis slipped a lovely ball into Bella Macleod, who struck it sweetly with her right foot to send it high past the Klub Kildare keeper and give Bray an early 1-0 lead. 

Klub Kildare responded well and tested Bray’s defence, but Sophie Farrell was outstanding between the posts, pulling off a string of excellent saves, including two big stops inside the opening 10 minutes. At the back, Poppy Smith, Julie Baumann, Fidelma Hanlon Lopez and Grace Leonard had to stay sharp as Kildare pushed forward, even rattling the crossbar from a free kick on the 12th minute. 

There was a setback for Bray on 20 minutes as Erin Flashman was forced off through injury, with Anna Morrissey coming on and quickly making an impact, firing just wide of the post. In midfield, Annalily Farrelly, Ava Clarke and Rachel Gillis battled well throughout. 

As the halftime drew close, Farrell was called into action again, making another top save to preserve Bray’s lead heading into the break at 1-0. 

Bray made a number of changes at half time, with Rebecca Howard coming into goal, alongside Emily Moore and Emily O’Driscoll entering the action. 

Klub Kildare found an equaliser in the 54th minute from a corner that ended up in the Bray net, bringing it back to 1-1. But Bray responded brilliantly. Just four minutes later, Annalily Farrelly won the ball in midfield and fed Ava Clarke, whose powerful effort struck the post, only for Bella Macleod to react quickest and finish to restore the lead at 2-1. 

Macleod wasn’t finished there. In the 66th minute, a superb long ball from Rebecca Howard was brought under control before Bella fired home her third of the day to complete a brilliant hat-trick and put Bray 3-1 ahead. 

Klub Kildare kept pushing right to the end, but Bray’s defence stood strong, with Emily Moore, Anna Morrissey, Julie Baumann and Grace Leonard dealing well with the pressure. Emily O’Driscoll also worked tirelessly down the left, creating chances and delivering some dangerous balls into the box. 

At the final whistle, Bray came away with a well-earned 3-1 win and a fantastic all-round team performance.