Another Sunday and another home game for Bradford City Women, the weather held off until after the game and City were looking to get their first win of their season against Durham Cestria. City's first game of the season was a 2-1 defeat to Chorley so they were hoping to bounce back and get those all important 3 points. It was definitely great to see Charlotte Stuart's name on the team sheet too after her taking an early knock in the first game of the season. 

The game started off at a pretty fast pace as expected and City ended up giving a few fouls out in dangerous places in the first few minutes but Durham couldn't break through the City defence with any of those free kicks.  Durham did however, manage to break through just five minutes into the game to make it 0-1 after a cross close to the goal was deflected into the back of the net passed City 'keeper Richards. Durham were definitely on the front foot for a while after the goal and kept challenging City looking to double their lead. It really looked like they were going to do this in the 15th minute but a great save from Richards kept it at 0-1. 

City did manage to create some chances though and Hawkins made a great run forward, momentarily she did lose the ball but once again she showed no sign of giving up and won the ball back quickly to create a great position for City unfortunately though there was no-one on the receiving end of her pass and Durham gained possession once more. It didn't take long for City to have another chance though as some great build up play put them in a good position to take a chance a shot but unfortunately this went straight to the Durham goalkeeper. 

Just like last week it seemed to be once City hit that 30 minute mark they started to perk up and put in the performance we know they are capable of, once they got settled they were putting some great moves together and pushing forward, fingers crossed as the season progresses we will see City settling into games a lot sooner. There was a bit of a lengthy delay in the build up to half time as a 50/50 challenge saw Stuart once again needing treatment but luckily this week she was good to carry on and got back up to carry on where she left off. In the 39th minute Roberts took a shot from distance which looked like it could have beaten the Durham goalkeeper but unfortunately the ball dipped at the wrong time and the goalkeeper comfortably caught it.  

Throughout the first half we saw Durham really attack City trying to push through and gain that second goal but thanks to strong defending and great goalkeeping City somehow managed to keep Durham out and we went into half time with Durham leading just 0-1 when it could have honestly been more.  

Durham were the ones with the first chance of the second half but luckily for City it found it's way over the crossbar without troubling Richards. It didn't take long for City to find their feet in the second half though and it didn't take long for them to have a chance of their own with Prothero getting herself into a good position but her shot was ultimately blocked by the Durham defence. Bradford definitely got themselves into the second half a lot quicker than they did the first half and they looked a whole lot stronger in the midfield and going forward so it is safe to say whatever was said to the team at half time was taken in and they knew what they needed to do. 

In the 63rd minute Hames made his first substitution with Stube coming on for Prothero, who had covered a lot of ground throughout the time she was on the field so I think this was a good move as it meant a fresh set of legs on the field to try push for an equaliser. Unfortunately for City the 2nd goal of the game also went to Durham. Richards pulled off yet another brilliant save to deny Durham's first attempt but the second attempt managed to find its way into the back of the net for Durham to double their lead in the 71st minute. Almost immediately after the 2nd goal Hames made his 2nd substitution bringing Russell on in place of Roberts who once again had a really good game and covered a whole lot of ground whilst on the pitch. City did try to pull a goal back not long after conceding with Lambert moving well to keep hold of the ball and getting it through to Hawkins which was once again saved by the Durham goalkeeper. In the 83rd minute Hames made his final two substitutions of the game bringing Knapton on for her debut and Douglas whilst taking off Stuart and Hawkins. In the 85th minute City finally got themselves on the scoreboard with a great goal but again City left it late to score just like they did in their first game of the season, but for the final minutes of the game they were constantly pushing for an equaliser which was great to see. 

The game ended 1-2 just like it did against Chorley in their first game but you can definitely see improvements being made throughout the City team as they are putting up a fight each game and trying to find a way back into the game rather than just looking like they want to give up. Durham took their chances well and looked like they are going to do well this season and City might have been defeated but again they are showing some strong signs on the pitch and off field it is improving once more as we are seeing more and more people attending the games, it is nice to see the stand looking full. 

There were a few silly fouls given away from both teams really but the game was definitely more physical than it was against Chorley and City looked to be holding their own really well which is great to see, they never looked like giving up on a challenge. There were definitely a few City players that stood out throughout the game. Woodcock once again seemed to be allover winning the ball back with some great challenges and was carrying the ball forward really well. Stuart had a great game too and was covering the midfield really well and winning the ball plenty of times both on the floor and in the air which definitely helped City out a fair bit as the ball seemed to spend a fair bit of time in the air. Hawkins had an absolutely brilliant game too as she was all over the field and pressing Durham really well and never looked like she was going to give up even when the ball seemed out of reach she still tried to make it. Richards was also a standout player with some of her saves looking brilliant and she really did keep City in the game especially in the first half and quite a few times in the 2nd half. 

So here is who would have been our player of the match 

Lucy - For me it has to be Richards as without some of her saves we could have easily conceded a whole lot more. 

Liam - For me it is once again Woodcock as she made some solid challenges and got City into some good positions to push forward. 

The game this week was really enjoyable and I am really looking forward to seeing City when they are back home again as I think that win is due very soon, unfortunately there will be no report for their next home game as we aren't here that week but bring on the next home game after that. 

EOTA:  Whilst we haven’t seen much on the pitch due to Covid we have seen plenty of movement off the pitch with Ian & Keith joining the club and us becoming part of community foundation how do you think that’s going to benefit us?

Katy : I think it clearly shows the club is moving in a positive direction and the overall vision of the club is very evident now. Ian and Keith bring a wealth of knowledge from the commercial front and joining the community foundation shows the intent of BCAFC - we have a clear pathway for the junior girls to the seniors, it’s a great place to be in and a very positive one for the city of the Bradford. 

EOTA: We have seen Brighouse promoted out of the league and 2 new additions being added in Alnwick and FC Manchester is it nice to see new teams added to the league after no relegation or promotion during the previous cancelled season?

Katy : Yeah, it’s always great to see new competition arriving in the league. These teams clearly deserve to be in the league so it’ll be interesting to see how they get on. 

EOTA: As a player how have you been staying match fit during the lockdowns as it must have been hard not knowing if the season was going to happen again?

Katy: It’s extremely difficult to remain match fit because you only have that match fitness by playing consistently, week in week out. But during lockdowns, I just tried to remain as active as possible whether that be running - I completed a challenge during the second lockdown to raise money for charity. So this meant running 5K everyday for 22 days in a row. I was running a few times every week anyway so it just made sense to set a personal challenge/goal but also raise money for charity at the same time! A few other things I did were along the lines of; work outs in my back garden, zoom fitness sessions with the clubs fitness coach… and trying my best to keep a balanced diet in tact! 

EOTA:  How important do you believe social media is in raising awareness of the women’s game & helping promote teams in lower leagues like yourself 

Katy: It’s massive. It really is. I think it’s great that there are so many more aspiring journalist’s etc., that are taking a real interest in the women’s game, across all tiers/levels. Particularly for lower league teams, it really gives clubs the exposure that they deserve. 

EOTA:  We are seeing the club come closer to the men's team and after the merge with the foundation we are seeing a lot more promotion across social media, do you think that promotion is going to bring in more fans to games? 

Katy: I hope it does. We have great supporters who follow the club but It would be amazing to see more fans at our games and social media is a great way to advertise and showcase the women’s club. 

EOTA: What would you say to any young girls who have been inspired by the recent Euros and want to get into football but are unsure of taking the first step?

That is the Olympics over and done with and with us waiting an extra year to see some of our favourite sports stars in action I definitely don't think it disappointed us. My main interest of course was the football but more importantly the women's football as with how the game has grown over recent years it was bound to be a good one. 

Right from the get go the women's football was interesting with World Cup winners the USA losing to Sweden in their opening game ending their unbeaten run going into the competition. In fact the whole tournament was a shock with the USA as they really didn't look their best and looked like they could be broken down easily. They did leave with a bronze medal but I do think that if they performed as they had in the run up to the competition they could have been in that final chasing gold. They just looked fatigued and disjointed and not like the USA we are used to seeing who look like they could walk any game and take away a victory. It was nice to see other teams in the final other than them but it would have been nice to see Christen Press & Tobin Heath pick up a gold medal. 

Whilst USA weren't having a great competition Australia had a brilliant competition and were very unlucky to walk away without a medal. The team had some great comebacks and looked really well put together. Going into the start of the competition I didn't expect that Australia would make it into the final 4 but they really surprised me. The thing with Australia is that they are a pretty young team still so who knows what we are going to see from them in future competitions, with the quality of players they have I think we could be seeing them in a lot of later stages of tournaments. 

It was really nice to see Christine Sinclair picking up a gold medal with Canada as she is one of the greatest women's players ever in my eyes. Canada winning a medal whilst beating the USA on the way to victory is fantastic and is not something you see very often. I didn't expect to see Canada in the final at all especially against Sweden but to see a lot of those veteran players finally winning a competition is great. Sinclair is in her late 30's now so you wonder just how long she is going to be playing for so to see her possibly play her final Olympics and take away the gold is absolutely fantastic. 

Mot nations fielded their usual teams that play multiple times together a year & play together in all the competitions together however, Team GB made some adjustments and added in a few other players of different nationalities as it was all of Great Britain being represented rather than just England. I was a bit worried about how those few extra players of different nationalities would effect the team as they aren't used to playing together and didn't have much time together going into the games but those extra players didn't seem to matter. the team looked good and strong at times however, a few players did manage to get past them a bit too easily. I hope we get to see Team GB in the French Olympics the next time around as it made a nice change to just watching England. To say they didn't play much together they had a great group stage and did well in the quarter finals too and fell short to a great Australian comeback. Ellen White once again had a great tournament and let's hope that we see her popping goals in for the fun of it for Manchester City this season too as she is in great form.

I am surprised that the Netherlands didn't make it further than the quarter finals as I really thought they would defeat the USA and progress due to how the USA had being playing, the Netherlands are a team that are definitely on the rise at the moment but the draw just proved that bit too strong for them. I think we are going to see them in the latter stages of plenty of other tournaments in the future though. The whole tournament was a great showcase for women's football though and we saw it to be a lot more competitive rather than seeing the same old teams doing well which should show those just taking interest in the game it is changing and it isn't just a one horse race anymore. Countries are putting more into the game 

One issue I did have though is actually getting to watch full games live rather than catching up on highlights etc. Here in the UK we could watch a few of Team GB's games on the BBC but if something more important was happening they weren't showing the football games. So to watch it you had to sign up to Eurosport to be able to watch live and I refused to sign up for yet another service just to watch a few games. I already spend enough on subscriptions to be able to watch what I like and yes you get a free trial but if I forgot to cancel it was £9.99 a month which I don't want to pay. There should have been a bit more option on how to watch free of charge as they will have been cutting off a section of the women's fan base and not advertising it to a new potential audience. I don't think the football in the Olympics was publisised very well either as the competition started before the opening ceremony and I doubt a lot of people who aren't fans of the game would have even known it was on unless they randomly came across it on the TV. It makes you wonder if they could have advertised and showed the football a bit more to a wider audience and we could have even seen a growth in the women's football fan base I believe due to the performances we were seeing on the pitch. 

I think over the coming years we could see some fantastic tournaments with underdogs causing upsets and teams really coming into their own. I don't think the game is going to be filled with the same old teams doing well each time I think we are going to see a lot of teams on the rise and progressing to the later stages of tournaments. The women's game is on the rise and so are a lot of the countries involved in competing. The future of women's football is certainly looking bright. 

The first 10 minutes or so Bradford had a fair bit of possession and Chorley mainly only got the ball from free kicks however City just couldn't break through the Chorley defence and threaten their goalkeeper. The game was then hit with a lengthy stoppage as City's Stuart was down injured which forced Hames to make an early substitution where he brought Douglas on after just 12 minutes. Fingers crossed it isn't a bad injury to Stuart as she is a key player for City but she did seem to be in a lot of discomfort. 

Chorley did end up taking the lead after 21 minutes with Mills scoring a pretty good goal against the run of play really as up until then City seemed to have the ball a whole lot more. The goal definitely sparked Chorley up though and once the game restarted it was all about them and they looked a huge threat. It only took them another 7 minutes to double their lead with Matthews scoring in the 28th minute with a calm lob over the head of City's 'keeper Richards who had no chance of stopping it as she was quite a way off her line. Once Chorley got those goals they really got more into the game and looked lethal going ahead and City seemed to be a little shaken and struggled to get back into it before half time.

City went into half time trailing 0-2 however, I don't know what was said in the dressing room as they came back out fighting. Hames made a second substitution at half time bringing Jakeman off and putting Beck on and City started the second half with an early free kick and an early opportunity which unfortunately didn't really trouble the Chorley 'keeper. Beck definitely made an impact on the game when she came on, she made some great passes and some even better breaks to create some opportunities which again didn't really come to anything but it showed Chorley we could get through their defence if we wanted to. Hames then made another substitution bringing Prothero off and putting on Russell in her place again this is a sub that worked well in City's favour with Russell making some good passes and some good runs to help City really challenge to get some goals back. Beck did manage to get a goal back for City in the 80th minute with a really good finish to get City back in the game. Straight after the goal Hames made his final change bring Lambert off who was struggling with a bit of cramp and bringing Thomas on. 

Once Beck's goal went in City's spirits seemed to be lifted and for the final 10 minutes they livened up and though as hard as possible to find that equaliser however, they just couldn't hit the net for a second time and unfortunately their first game of the season ended in a defeat. They should be proud of their performance though as it was definitely an improvement on previous years and they fought hard to get themselves back into the game rather than just giving up when nothing really seemed to go their way. I really do believe the referee had a big impact on the game and especially the flow of it as it constantly seemed stop start for the most ridiculous free kicks. For the full game there was definitely some questionable decisions like a back pass that wasn't called and few offside's that definitely didn't look offside yet for obvious ones the flag stayed down. Those decisions definitely got tempers flaring and cost a few players to understandably frustrated, even the anger was rising was on the benches and we saw City coaching staff member Qasim have a talking to from the referee with him ultimately receiving a yellow card, it is safe to say a lot more yellows could have been given out in the 90 minutes with each team having players on yellow cards we could have easily seen a couple of reds too if the referee really wanted to. 

There was definitely a few City players who had a standout game in my eyes, 'keeper Richards pulled off some great saves to keep Chorley on just the two goals but they could have definitely walked away from the game with more if Richards didn't have the game she did. Woodcock and Roberts both had great games in defence too although at times they were hard done by they still carried on putting a solid performance to stop Chorley scoring more than they did. Both these players were certainly getting frustrated but they didn't let that stop them and not only did they defend really well but they helped create some good attacks too. The substitutions Hames made certainly made an impact too which is just what is needed in this league, when the opposition is getting tired we want the option of players who are going to test them with their fresh legs and it looks like this season we are going to be seeing a fair bit of this. It does make me wonder how we would have got on if Stuart was able to play the full 90 minutes though as she started the game really well before her injury. 

City certainly looked a lot better than in previous years and I don't think it is going to be long until we see all the hard work paying off on the field and those results start heading in the right direction. We just look like we need to tighten our defending that little bit more, making sure we are closing players down a bit quicker and tidy up some of our passes in the midfield to get us in some dangerous positions going forward. 

So here is who we would have voted as our player of the match...

Lucy - For me it was definitely a tough choice between Roberts and Woodcock as they both had a really strong but I think Woodcock gets the honour this week as she showed us just why she is captain she never gave up.

Liam - For me just like Lucy I would have to say Woodcock, because she never gave up and had a really good game.

It is nice to be back at the game watching live football once again and I think we are going to be in for an interesting season. It was also nice to see a lot more fans at the game compared to previous years, the changes off the field are definitely going to help bring the results on the field. 

Up next Bradford take on Durham Cestria on Sunday 22nd August, are we going to see Bradford win all 3 points? 

Well it is here we have finally seen the Bradford City 3rd kit and it certainly hasn't disappointed me. I had heard rumours that the shirt was going to be blue but I didn't expect it to look as good as it does. I have loved the previous blue shirts we have had especially the Avec ones so I knew we were going to get something that looked good but does it live up to my expectations? 

It has been a while since I have done one of these In Conversation posts and what better way to bring them back than with Bradford City Women's very own Chris Hames. Since Chris took charge of the women's team we have definitely seen an improvement both on and off the pitch however, the pandemic ultimately put a hold on that progress but as we enter the new season which we are hoping to complete this time around we are also going in as being part of the Bradford City Community Foundation and Bingley Bantams Ian & Keith Taylor taking charge of the club on a day to day basis. This move is bound to help bring in supporters and bring the women's club more inline with the men's and junior teams which has been needed for a long time really so the women's team were part of he club more than just having the same name and kits. So here is how our chat with Chris about the upcoming season, changes and pandemic delays went... 

EOTA : Whilst we haven’t seen much on the pitch due to covid we have seen plenty of movement off the pitch with Ian & Keith Taylor joining the club and us becoming part of community foundation how do you think that’s going to benefit us?

Chris : Them joining the club has been a breath of fresh air. It means a lot to us that we are part of the institution that is Bradford City - and the support they have given has been superb so far. Qas has taken over as our GM, which will only drive this club on with what he gives for the club and his ambition, as well as allowing us to rejoin and get closer to the Junior teams again - and we can all see the quality of player coming through at all ages there.

EOTA :  With the last two seasons being cancelled we haven’t seen your full potential as manager yet but results started to change for the better. Are you confident we can keep this up?

Chris : This has never been about me. The group hasn't changed dramatically since the one that was struggling when I took over, all they needed was some confidence, some direction and then we have had a few excellent people join the group too. We've reached a point where there is a buzz about the place, where being good people is the first and last condition to being a part of the club, and that has to power to take us very far.

EOTA : With two new additions to the league are you looking forward to finding out what those teams are all about after there being no movement between leagues due to the cancelled seasons?

Chris : Yes it'll be nice to have some new teams to play, and some new challenges - though there are still a number of teams in this division I haven't faced over the last two years, with all the lockdowns and postponements, so the whole season should feel like a new challenge as it is. There will be challenges to these additions. FC United have come up having had years of dominating the league above, and I am very familiar with their manager and players, from some of my previous roles. Alnwick proves a different challenge, one we don't know much about yet, but I'm sure they will come flying into this league - though we may need to charter a flight to just get us up there for a 2pm KO!

EOTA :  What are your main aims for this season? Is it all about promotion or is it mainly finding your rhythm again after all the stop start of the past few seasons? 

Chris : I am always under the belief that we must all 'aim for the moon...' so lets see

EOTA :  Covid has been a big player since March 2020 and with the fact it isn’t going away do you think we are going to suffer from further disruption.

Chris : Yes, unfortunately. It is going to be a tough job for the league to make sure that no one is unfairly punished for Covid reasons, but also to ensure that teams don't use it to their advantage, like we saw one or two try to do last term. I think we just have to be flexible, and adapt to the environment at each time, though I do hope this season can be completed.

EOTA :  We are seeing the club come closer to the men's team and after the merge with the foundation we are seeing a lot more promotion across social media, do you think that promotion is going to bring in more fans to games?

Chris : Bradford City is a huge club. As an outsider I probably didn't realise how big a club it was until I came; but the support is special, in spite of there not always being a lot to cheer about over the last few years. I want the people of Bradford, the fans of City to embrace us as a part of their club, as a part of the family and come out in numbers. I would love for 1% of the men's match going crowd to come and follow us week in week out too.

EOTA : Have you found it easier or harder to recruit new players / keep hold of players with all that has gone on or do you think the addition of the foundation has helped bring in new faces? 

So there we have it that was our in conversation with Chris Hames, I am hoping to get more pieces from Chris and the team throughout the season to run alongside these little interviews so keep your eyes on the blog for them as I already have a few more to post very soon but I thought we best start with Chris to see what he thinks about the season ahead. Throughout this morning there will be a lot more Bradford City content but if you want to see interviews with anyone specific please do let me know as they are really fun to do and give us all a bit more of an insight into the teams.  Fingers crossed Chris can get the team playing as they should be this season and Covid doesn't cause any more disruption. 

Well here we go the final of the women's football at the Olympics and I think we are going to be in for a treat as Canada face off against Sweden. Both these teams are looking very strong in this competition and are pushing their opponents to their limits so anything could happen during this game. I can honestly say I didn't expect either of these teams to get this far and they have caused some upsets to get this stage.

Canada

Canada has beat the USA to get this far and if it had been a few years earlier I don't think this would have happened but they have really grown this year and are showing they shouldn't be under estimated anymore. There inclusion in the final has certainly surprised me though as I thought they would have struggled to get out of the groups but they have shown their true strength and made it this far so no matter what the result in the final they should be proud of how well they have done especially with that win over the USA. I really think they could put up a strong challenge against Sweden and push them as far as possible but I just aren't sure if they can take home the gold but I really hope they do surprise me. 

Sweden

Sweden started off the tournament really strongly against the USA by defeating them 3-0 and since then they have looked very strong and it is nice to see them in the final of the competition. Sweden have been a team that have been on the rise for the past couple of years so to see them going for gold is fantastic as it just shows that all their hard work is paying off. Sweden have gone from underdogs in my eyes to being one of the best teams in the world causing some big upsets. I don't think this is the last final we will be seeing Sweden in over the coming years. 

This game has the potential to be a very good one and we are going to have the chance to see two teams in great form go to head to head. This is anyone's game to take and the battle for gold is going to be a tough one for both teams. Both Canada and Sweden are showing us they are teams to watch over the coming years as they are really starting to prove to the world their potential. I am really looking forward to seeing how this game plays out and who takes home gold and who takes home the silver. What ever happens though both these teams should be proud of how far they have come. 

The penultimate match in the men's Olympic football competition is upon upon us and it sees the host nation Japan take on Mexico. This game is bound to be a good one with the home nation being involved and I just wish fans could attend the game as I think this would end up being a sell out with a fantastic atmosphere due to Japan competing for the medal. Both the teams have definitely surprised me throughout this competition and they have really shown that they have the potential to go far in future competitions too.

Japan have looked brilliant and you can really tell that a lot of time has been spent getting the team up to scratch and the rise of the Japanese league also seems to have helped in my opinion. The players are looking great and like they are going to be able to challenge even the big teams in the future. I think if their semi final was against Mexico or Brazil we would have seen them in the final but facing Spain was just a step too far for them this time around. I don't think this will be the last time we see Japan progressing well in a major tournament and I am really looking forward to seeing what the future holds for this team. 

I will be honest I didn't anticipate to see Mexico going this far in the competition just due to the other teams competing but they have really surprised me. For me Mexico have always been one of those hit and miss teams but this time around they have shown us all what they are made of and have shown they shouldn't they shouldn't be underestimated. It is nice to see Mexico heading to the later stages of the competition instead of the usual suspects and with the team only being young I don't think this is going to be the last we see of them in the back ends of competitions they compete in. Mexico are definitely up against a tough opponent with Japan looking strong and being on home soil but if they play like they have done recently they might just edge Japan out of a medal however, will the fact Mexico had to play extra time and penalties come back to cause them issues? I guess we will soon find out. 

I am really looking forward to seeing who takes home the bronze medal from this game and I can see it possibly ending up going into extra time due to the strength and determination both team have. Japan will want to win on home soil and the Mexico team won't want to leave empty handed and let's hope the result shows just how closely contested this match can potentially be. I think I might be looking forward to this game more than the final.