After a seemingly endless winter break, Clapton CFC Women’s First Team returned with a bang, beating Ashford United 2-0 at the Old Spotted Dog Ground.
After 39 days without a competitive game, CCFC fans have missed our Women’s First Team. And, after a sticky run of results pre-Christmas, Head Coach Alice Sharpe’s team came into this one hoping to kick 2026 off with a home win.
Opponents Ashford United will be familiar to CCFC fans. The ‘Nuts and Bolts’ have been something of a nemesis, beating us in two memorable cup games, a 2022 Women’s FA Cup tie and the 2023 L&SERWFL Trophy final. However, Clapton at least began to put that jinx to bed in the sides’ last meeting, triumphing 4-1 away at Ashford earlier this season.
The return meeting was to follow a similar pattern, after an early burst of pressure from Ashford. CCFC began to dominate Ashford’s midfield and displayed passing patterns that belied their nearly six-week absence of competitive football.
Maria Casanovas went close first, with just eight minutes on the clock, Marta Boiro’s slide-rule pass played the forward in. Unfortunately, her goal-bound shot was just tipped wide for a corner.
Clapton were playing some lovely stuff. Boiro, at the heart of everything, was the next to go close, Maria Mendonca’s cross finding her in the box. Only some quick thinking and fast feet from Ashford’s goalkeeper, who got down to smother excellently, stopped her from opening her account
However, CCFC didn’t have it all their own way in the opening twenty minutes. First, Sharpe was forced into an early change due to an injury to Lenny Holmes, who took a ball to the eye and was replaced by Allana Scoble. Then, Ashford had their first real chance of the game, although the shot went straight at Ella Bowles.
Clapton spent most of the half peppering the Ashford goal. Mendonca and Boiro both went close again, narrowly sending the ball over. However, in truth, CCFC looked a little rusty in their finishing.
They also needed to be wary of Ashford, who, while having a slightly torrid afternoon, still posed a threat on the counter. Only a brilliant recovery tackle from Eva Van der Vliet (playing her last home game for CCFC) stopped a three-on-one break developing late in the first half. Ashford could also consider themselves a little unlucky not to have taken the lead when a low cross deflected off Casanovas, rolling just wide of a stranded Bowles’ post. Half-time came with the scores still level at 0-0.
The second half began in the same vein as the first, although it quickly became clear that CCFC’s shooting troubles had merely been range-finding. Within minutes of the restart, Boiro missed a direct free kick by millimetres, before finally scoring the goal her excellent performance deserved. Found free in the area, Boiro calmly passed the ball into the bottom corner, beyond the Ashford keeper. 1-0 to CCFC and richly deserved.
Sharpe shuffled the pack in search of more goals, bringing off Steiner for Egle Trezzi and Annie Lyons for Julia Moulton. Sharpe wouldn’t have to wait long. Just two minutes later, a fumbled high ball from the Ashford keeper delivered the ball straight onto the left boot of Mendonca. With nine goals this season, Mendonca doesn’t often miss, especially from there. 2-0 CCFC.
Sitting on a comfortable cushion, CCFC really began to play. Leigha Bradding-Butler forced the Ashord keeper into a top save to deny a powerful drive from the edge of the area. It proved to be her last action of the match, as Aimee Shaw came on in her place, immediately drawing applause for some sharp feet to escape an Ashford midfielder.
More subs followed, with Holmes rejoining the fray after recovering the vision in her eye. So too did Steiner; the two coming on for Lucy Spours and Mendonca, respectively.
It was Steiner who produced the next highlight, somehow evading two simultaneous slide tackles from Ashford players, coming away with the ball and launching another attack. The afternoon’s final substitution saw a defensive change, on came Min Jung Kim on for Kaylee Shurety to see out the final minutes.
By this point in the game, the fight seemed to have gone out of Ashford, with CCFC proving good value for their first three points of 2026. However, there was one last chance for Clapton to score another. Holmes played the ball of the afternoon, sliding a lovely, disguised pass to Shaw. She probably deserved a goal to put the icing on a great cameo from the bench, wriggling free of her marker to get a shot away, only to see it flash narrowly wide.
With that, the full-time whistle arrived, and CCFC could celebrate a clean sheet and a win that keeps them fourth in the table, but not before the crowd serenaded Van der Vliet from the field. Good luck, Eva, we’ll all miss you! Congratulations are also due to Annie Lyons, who made her 100th appearance for CCFC.
The Women’s First Team are next in league action away at Camden Town FC on Sunday (February 1).
Rob Stafford
Photos
