Just an update on progress of U14 girls this season, following on from a very successful 2014-2015, pre-season saw us lose 2 players, (keeper stopped playing and captain moved to Forest), we brought in 6 players and another has just signed up, we now have a squad of 18 players which is quite a lot for 9 a side, however we are looking to next season where we step up to 11 a side.
We are running a rotation system where we take a maximum of 13 players to each game and this appears to be working with the players and parents.
Alongside myself and Stuart, we now have John Woodward coaching (currently doing his Level 1 course) and he is spending a lot of time coaching our keeper who before this season never played the game before. The hard work is paying off as Charlotte is becoming better with each game.
I believe we are playing better football than last season, and although our results may not reflect this, I’m very happy with the progress of the squad, the focus is on playing the game rather than playing the score.
Like a lot of football teams, players switching off at crucial times has resulted in us conceding a lot of unnecessary goals, but that aside we are well on track with our progression, our victory over Derby County adds weight to this.
We are in a very competitive division with Forest and Derby amongst others and face a tough challenge defending our Notts FA Shield (we face a very decent Southwell side in the Semi’s in Feb) and play Forest in the Cup Q/F on the 10th of Jan, so all this should lead to a hectic 2016. Have a great New Year and I wish all the GSB teams success in 2016, not just in terms of winning things but also in terms of playing football to a high standard.
