FC Ronvau Chaumont

A sunny Sunday is the perfect day to play football, and with the season arriving at its final acts, FC Irlande Ladies III, facing FC Ronvau Chaumont, experiments with a new formation: a 4-4-2 diamond.

The match starts uphill for FCI that, due to a defensive inattention, concedes a goal after 5’. A harsh start that does not demoralise FCI, which, except for the goal conceded, is putting in a great performance. Despite the quality of a few of its players, after the early goal, Ronvau Chaumont does not create significant goal-scoring occasions. The new formation allows FCI to populate the midfield, making it more difficult for the opponent to pass and creating compactness in both offensive and defensive phases. FCI’s attacking manoeuvre misses a decisive shot to equalise the result. The first half ends with the result of 0-1.

Aware of the good performance of the first half, FCI starts the second one in high spirits, wanting to push a bit more in the offensive phase. Expect from some fruitless free-kicks, FCI blocks all the attacking attempts of Ronvau Chaumont and takes the control of the game. The best chances to score are created in the same action: Roxanne, in the penalty areas, does not give enough power to her shot that is blocked by the goalie; the defense sweeps up the ball ending on the feet on Clem that tries the shot but it is once again blocked by the goalie. FCI keeps its offensive pressure until the end of the match, but, as in the first half, it does not turn its ball possession into a goal. The match finishes 0-1.

The new formation worked well and definitely should be tested more in the remaining matches. As in many matches this season, a bit of incisiveness and coldness in the penalty area was lacking. Although the final result was disappointing, we should be proud of our performance and attitude.

Player of the match: Karissa

In the evocative darkness of Chaumont-Gistoux, FC Irlande Ladies III faces FC Ronvau Chaumont for its 8th match of the season.

FCI kicks off the match trying immediately to find space on the wing. Like in the match against Villers-la-Ville, FCI puts on the pitch good intensity and defensive pressure and some good combination on the left side, unfortunately without the decisive last pass or touch to create goal-scoring opportunities. Ronvau Chaumont puts the same intensity on the pitch and thanks to the quality of some of its players builds interesting goal-scoring chances. At 25’, Ronvau Chaumont scores the opening goal with a shot from the edge of the penalty area. The first half follows the same script until the referee’s whistle. The first half ends with the result of 1-0.

The break between the halves gives FCI the motivation and energy to continue fighting. FCI plays an even more intense second half and disrupts all the scoring occasions created by Ronvau Chaumont with sacrifice, teamwork and a goalpost. Also, the attacking phase improves, but FCI still struggles to trouble the opponent’s goalie. The best goalscoring opportunity for FCI arrives at the last minutes of the match. A well-placed corner kick finds Sandra who shoots but not with enough power or precision to pass the goalie. The final whistle closes the match with the result of 1-0.

The 1-0 is at the same time a disappointing and encouraging result. It tells us that we fought a lot and gave everything we had but still for one shot, one detail, we lost the match. On the other hand, it tells us that we are not so far from their level and by training our weaknesses and working on our strengths, we can do better next time we face them. This season, easy matches do not exist and all of them will require a significant individual and team effort. And after not all of the matches, we will have cakes to cheer us up.

Player(s) of the match: Angela, Geani, Sophie