THE STENNY GIRLS

MERRY CHRISTMAS AND A HAPPY NEW YEAR !!!

 It's been a rollercoaster of a first season for all the teams at Stenny over 2009. Both the 13s and 15s finished 4th in their leagues and did well in the Cup competitions. Many teams saw them as push-overs at the start of the season but come November every team they had played knew they had been in a game... Win , Lose or Draw !!! 

Well Done to all the girls who have played for the teams this season and many thanks to all the mums and dads who have supported them (loudly) throughout the past year.

Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you all.

WINTER BREAK

Under-13 Training will finish up on Wednesday 16th November for the festive break. We will resume on Wednesday January 6th to prepare for a great 2010 season starting in March. Merry Xmas and Happy Noo Year from Nick and Nicole.

U-15s GO OUT ON A WIN

Stenhousemuir U-15s ended their first season with a long-delayed final match away against Airdrie United Cosmos today Sat 7/11). The girls put on a strong, spirited display on a boggy pitch at Ravenswood. They bossed most of the game and Steph got both goals in a well deserved 2-0 win. Airdrie didn't get to cause many problems for Jennifer in goal as the defence held firm and dealt with everything they were thrown. The midfield were constantly chasing every loose ball and getting it forward to make chances. A great finish to a great first season and the girls have done brilliantly .

Well Done to ALL the girls in the team and a BIG Thank You to all their parents for their constant support all season.

HALLOWEEN PARTY GOES DOWN A TREAT...!

A BIG, BIG Thank You to all the players, coaches and parents who came along to this year's Halloween Party. Everyone had a great time and and we raised over £600 pounds for the teams.

There are pics in the Gallery. If you have any of your own you would like us to put up, then email them to  sfcgirls@live.co.uk .

STENNY GIRL PICKED FOR SCOTLAND

Our very own Fiona Brown from the U-15s has been picked to play for Scotland at U-15 level. All of us at Stenny would like to say a big Well Done and Congratulations to Fiona on this great achievement. She has done the team proud this season and this is a great reward for her.

The matches are at Toryglen Regional Centre on 2nd and 5th November.

WHAT A FIRST SEASON !!

The Stenny Under-13s season came to an end in slightly disappointing fashion with defeat to the seemingly indestructable Motherwell Girls in the League Cup last Saturday (17th). The girls went out positive and up for giving it their best shot. They certainly did that as for the first 15 minutes they dominated the play forcing a couple of corners and having a couple of shots on goal that flew just wide. Motherwell seemed surprised that the girls hadn't just rolled over and given up like most teams seem to do against them. Just as the great Stenny support (and coaches) sensed that maybe, just maybe...... Motherwell got a goal. This seemed to deflate the girls after all their hard work and as hard as they tried to force their way back into the match, Motherwell's tails were now up and they quickly started slotting in goals for fun. They were helped, it has to be said, by some pretty weak defending from Stenny who seemed to stand off their opposition and give them plenty of time on the ball. Not like the Stenny 13s we've seen for most of the season ! So, a disappointing finish but it was always going to be a tough ask and the girls gave it all they had. Again.

This season has been all about settling into the League setup and finding our feet as a new team in it. The girls have done fantastically well to finish Level 3rd (on goal difference ) with an established team such as Motherwell FC Academy. Only Falkirk Ladies and Motherwell Girls (Champions, again) finished above Stenny in the 13s League. Coaches Nick and Nicole would have bitten your hand off if you had offered that at the start of the season !! On top of that they finished above all of the Falkirk FC Academy teams, got within 60 minutes of a League Cup Final (after beating Falkirk Ladies on the way ) and showed Manchester City Ladies how it's done at the International Umbro Cup !! Not bad for a bunch of girls, most of who, hadn't played team football before and were written off by certain local teams before they had even kicked a ball !! Nick and Nicole can't put into words how proud they are of each and every one of them and they can't wait for March to come around to do it all again.

 Well Done girls you have done yourselves and Stenhousemuir proud. Also, Nick and Nicole want to say a BIG "Thank You" to each and every parent who has come along to the matches this season and supported the girls in great style (and volume!!). You are the envy of every other club we have played this season and both the girls and coaches really appreciate your help and support.

So, here's looking forward to next season and even bigger and better to come.

WELL DONE EVERYONE !!

STENNY 13s 2 - 2 FALKIRK ACAD. REDS 13s  (League Cup)  3/10/09

Stenny 13s came into this game high from their great win against Falkirk Ladies looking for a moral-boosting win before the tough challenge of Motherwell Girls in the next match. However, the weather was terrible to put it lightly and both teams struggled to hold onto the ball and play anything like constructive football in the gale force winds and driving rain.

Stenny got of to a flying start, though, and went 2-0 up in the first 15 minutes thanks to two well-taken strikes from Leia who seems to be enjoying this cup competition. The weather kept changing every five minutes from sunny to wintery and Falkirk seemed to fight that little bit harder during the rest of the first half, pulling a goal back at the end of the first 30 minutes.

The girls came off at half-time still confident they could close the game out. The second half saw the weather get steadily worse, though, and both teams struggled to create chances. At one point, both teams' coaches considered calling a halt to the match the weather got so bad. But the girls of both teams bravely fought on and just as the final whistle approached a long Falkirk ball forward was caught by the wind and as Sarah struggled to control it the ball bounced off her foot and struck her on the forearm. Penalty. Horrible bad luck and Falkirk converted the penalty well to end the match 2-2.

A disappointing result after the heroics of the Falkirk Ladies game but coach Nick was proud of the way all the girls fought on during such horrible conditions. So now it's between Stenny and Motherwell Girls for a place in the Final at Toryglen. It's gonna be tough and some people might think the result is a foregone conclusion, but the girls have proved they can mix it with the best teams in the league when they want to. Take that positive attitude and determination into the match and who knows....

STENNY 13s  3 - 2  FALKIRK LADIES 13s   (League Cup) 12/9/09

It's been a rollercoaster of a first season for the Stenny U-13s, It started with back to back wins and a Cup win against Buchan Girls then settled into a nail-biting "will they/wont they?" sequence of wins, defeats, second-half comebacks etc... The fingernails of both the parents and coaches are now non-existent but as the months have gone by Nick and Nicole have watched as the girls have grown in confidence and, hopefully, belief in themselves.

Our last visit to Sunnyside ended in a disappointing 4-1 loss to Falkirk Ladies. After that match, Nick told the girls that they had it in them to beat them next time. Proof came today (Sat 12/9) when the 13s met Falkirk Ladies in the first of three League Cup matches.

Stenny got off to a flying start with Leia doing what she does best and firing a cracking shot from the edge of the box past a helpless Falkirk keeper in the first minute. Falkirk seemed a bit stunned by this but after about 15 minutes managed to scramble a goal out of a mass of legs in the Stenny area and then fire home a rebound of a couple of minutes later to make it 2-1 to Falkirk. Stenny's heads didn't go down though and they kept pressing and working hard up to half-time. Lauren had a great match taking over Alison's role in defence and Nia worked her socks off as Captain in a more central midfield role.

There was a feeling among the girls that, despite being 2-1 down, they could still win this match. They went out and dominated the second half with Dani, Kim and Nia all coming close. As the half went on it seemed like it might be the same story of "so near, so far" but with 15 minutes left Kim threw a cross over from the right which hit first the Falkirk keeper then the post and then the back of the net. Certainly not a classic strike but maybe it was the small piece of luck in front of goal that the girls have been missing so many times this season. Falkirk have only lost to one other team (in the League) this season and they showed why with a couple of good chances that came close but Mhara had them covered in goal. The clock was ticking down and it seemed that the points were going to be shared when Dani took off down the right wing and put in either a cross or a shot. Whatever it was, the Falkirk goalie couldn't hold onto it and the ball fell through her hands into the goal for 3-2 to Stenny. Falkirk piled up the other end of the park to try for an equaliser and forced four corners in a row but the whistle went and the girls had finally done what the coaches knew they were capable of. A great team performance.

It's only one result but a deserved one on the day and one which the girls have been working towards all this first season. Well Done to EVERY girl that was there today. Also, well done to all the parents who turn up every weekend in great voice and numbers to cheer the team on. Many teams would love to have the support you show for the girls and it is really appreciated by both the girls and the coaches.

13S SEASON COMES TO AN END

Stenhousemuir U-13s first season in the SWF Central League came to end at Wishaw Sports Centre where they met League winners and Scottish Cup Finalists Motherwell FC Girls. It was always going to be a tough ask for the girls to get a result against a team that has been unbeaten all season in the League and only lost out on the Scottish Cup by losing the Final to KSC Buffs. The girls gave it their best shot but Motherwell were in no mood to give up their unbeaten record and got 3 goals quickly through a combination of slippy surface and scrapping in the box. Stenny never really recovered and though they had a handful of chances at the other end, Motherwell played some great passing football to run out 9-0 winners. The 13s now go into the League Cup against Falkirk Ladies at Stenny Sports Centre on Saturday (12/9) kicking off at 10am.

The U-15s were also in Wishaw playing Motherwell's 15s. Despite girls missing through injury, the girls gave a great account of themselves and at half-time went in 2-1 behind but still in the game. The weather decided to take a turn for the worst, though, and the girls started to tire in the second half. Alison and Sarah helped out as subs after their 13s match but Mtherwell used the following wind to their advantage and closed the game out 5-1. The score certainly didn't reflect the hard work and chances Stenny had. The 15s are next away to Airdrie United Cosmos on Saturday (12/9) kicking off at 10am.

The Ladies team drew 2-2 with Airdrie United at Ochilview. They are top of the SWPL Division 2, 2 points clear of Airdrie. They are next up against East Fife on Sunday (13/9) kicking off at 2pm.

A BUSY WEEK FOR ALL THE STENNY GIRLS

All the Stenny teams were in action last weekend (29/30th).

On Sunday, the Ladies were away in Edinburgh playing Tynecastle who were relegated from Division 1 last season, so the Ladies were expecting a tough game. Tynecastle are a good technical team and passed the ball about well without really causing Stenny too many problems. The defence was caught cold on a couple of occasions but Stenny scored just before half-time through a well-struck shot from Rachel Orr. The Ladies started causing Tynecastle more problems in the second half and Gemma got a second goal shortly after half-time. The game kind of fizzled out after that with both teams having a couple of half chances but Stenny saw the game out to win 2-0. Three wins out of three for the Ladies this season.

The U-15s faced Falkirk Ladies Reds at Cowie Saturday morning. After their great result against the Blues the week before, the girls were full of confidence and ran out 5-1 winners although a hatful of chances were missed and it could have been even more.

The U-13s met Motherwell FC Academy at Stenny Sports Centre on Saturday and were looking to repeat their away win against them earlier in the season. The game didn't start according to plan with Stenny gifting Motherwell a first goal after switching off and leaving their striker unmarked on the edge of the penalty area. After a Stenny attack, she latched onto a long punt up to her and fired the shot past a helpless Mhara. The girls then stepped up and got an equaliser after Dani hit a shot against their keeper and cooly sidefooted the rebound under her to make it 1-1. Stenny had the better of the game with Dani, Kim and Nia all having shots go wide or hit the keeper. Alana put in a great shift on right wing making some great passes and runs. Second half came and M'well came out a bit more fired up after a stern talking to by their coach. Again, they scored after Stenny got dragged over to the ball and left one of their girls free. Nick put Leia on for Alana and she made a great run almost from the halfway line past four M'well players and fired a shot into the corner of the goal to make it all square at 2-2. Stenny kept up the hard work and Mhara was almost a spectator for the rest of the match. However, the muddy pitch didn't help either team and Stenny saw a number of chances from Leia, Sarah, Kim and Dani get scuffed or end up wide. So, 2-2 at full-time but a great display from Stenny who could really have finished the game off were it not for a combination of boggy pitch and a little panicking in front of goal.

The 11s played their first 7 a side Saturday morning games against Falkirk Community and Falkirk Ladies. They won one game and drew two, so an unbeaten start for them as well ! I would give details of who scored but my match reporter (Sam) has a worse memory than me so I will have to find out for myself...

All in all, a good weekend for all the teams. Keep up the good work all of you !!!

 NEXT WEEKEND'S MATCHES

The 13s are away at Wishaw Sports Centre to play unbeaten Motherwell FC Girls this Saturday (5/9). Kick-off is at 9.30am so if you are not making your way straight there you can meet Nick at Ochilview. He will be leaving Ochilview at 8.15am sharp.

The 15s are also in Wishaw, just round the corner at King George V Park playing Motherwell 15s. Their kick-off is 10.30am.

The Ladies are at Ochilview on Sunday (6/9) playing Airdrie United. Kick-off is 2pm TBC.

A ROLLERCOASTER WEEK FOR THE 13s

After a great return to League action for the Stenny 13s, winning 5-1 against Falkirk Academy Reds, the rest of the week was a bit up and down in terms of results.

On Wednesday (19th) the team met Falkirk Academy Whites at home. The girls were looking to make up for their unlucky loss earlier inthe season at Little Kerse when the Whites won 3-1. The signs were not good in the first half as Falkirk cruised through the Stenny defence to take a 3-0 lead. Coaches Nick and Nicole were scratching their heads wondering what had happened to the team that had played so well in the previous few weeks. Jeni came on for Leia up front and then Kim scored a goal with a rebound of her face that nearly knocked her out. She had to come off and the coaches put Chloe on in defence and pushed Sarah into midfield.Falkirk responded with another goal before the break and the girls went off at half-time with heads down at 4-1.

Nick and Nicole tried to send the team out positive for the second half, believing in the girls' great powers of recovery which they have had to show on one too many occasions this season. The girls responded almost immediately and got a goal back through a great bit of skill on the edge of the box and a great finish from Jeni. Jeni was starting to warm to her job up front against her old team and showed great energy and desire to score. Nia got another goal shortly after as Stenny started to press the Academy team and control the game. It was now 4-3 and fingernails were getting well and truly bitten both by parents and coaches. Falkirk tried to throw long balls in behind the Stenny defense for Shivohn Honeymann to chase but Chloe and Alison kept the Falkirk starlet in check and Sarah controlled the centre of midfield brilliantly laying the ball off to the attacking trio of Dani, Jeni and Nia. Then, Jeni made another great turn on the edge of the box and finished low and hard into the corner of the net to make it 4-4. Stenny continued to work hard and had a spell of 4 straight corners but the clock ran out before they could find a winner.

Saturday saw Stenny visit Sunnyside to play high-flying Falkirk Ladies 13s.

This time the girls were up for the job from the start and were making chances from the off. But Falkirk's strength in front of goal showed after 15 mins as they got the first goal of the match with virtually their first chance. The girls' heads didn't go down, though, and they got a goal back when Dani's low shot rebounded of the Falkirk goalie and she side-footed it away to level the score.

Half-time came with Coach Nick pleased with the way the team had kept Falkirk's chances to a minimum while making plenty of their own. Stenny went out confident they could get a result from a team that had previously beaten them 10-2 in the League and they continued to be the better team in the second half. But the second goal just wouldn't come despite great work from Kim playing an unfamiliar role as striker with Dani and Nia working hard tomake chances from out wide. Falkirk got a second early in the second half and their skill up front started to show as they started to make more chances. Mhara , however, made some great stops in goal and was confident and strong. As the half went on Nick was , again, chewing what was left of his fingernails and the great support from all the Stenny mums and dads was getting louder and louder. Unfortunately, Stenny's legs maybe started feeling the effect of a tourny and two League games in the space of one week and Falkirk threw a couple of long balls over their defence which their striker latched onto to finish the game off 4-1.

Nick was really happy with the teams performance during the match and the girls were given a great compliment from the Falkirk coaches as they said they were "a strong and talented team".

So, Motherwell FC Academy are next this Saturday and Nick is looking for another strong performance but with a bit more accuracy in front of goal !!

Overall, great signs of improvement from all the girls. Let's keep this going and finish the season as high up the League as possible.

LADIES WIN AGAIN

The Ladies kept up their good start to the season with a hard-fought 1-0 win at home against Spartans 'B'.

Rachel Orr got the winner with Gemma coming close on a couple of occasions.

Next up the Ladies are away to Tynecastle on Sunday (30th).

For all the Ladies results and fixtures  CLICK HERE  .

11s & 13s ENJOY DAY OUT AT CUMBERNAULD

After the weather tried its best to wash out the whole weekend, the Cumbernauld Festival finally got under way on Saturday (15th) with the 11s playing in the 4-a-sides at Broadwood and the 13s playing in the 7s at Ravenswood.

A great time was had by players, parents and coaches with lots of goals scored by both teams. Claire, Leia and Dionne led the way for the 11s, scoring 20+ goals between them, beating teams from Cumbernauld Colts and Falkirk Ladies.

The 13s had their games moved to Sunday and this meant that , unfortunately, Vale of Clyde could not make it. So Stenny and Cumbernauld fielded two teams each and it still made for some great games. The Stenny Whites drew their first game 0-0 and won their second game 4-1 with goals from Leia (3) and Jennifer (1). The Maroons won their first game 6-0 (Dani 3, Jeni 2, Kim 1) and their second 1-0 (Jeni 1). The weather held off until the medal presentation and everyone enjoyed the day.

Everyone involved with the Stenny teams would like to thank all the coaches and organisers at the Colts for managing to keep the event going despite the horrible weather and also give a big thanks to all the parents who braved the conditions to cheer on all the teams over the weekend.

All the coaches want to congratulate all the teams on great performances and results.

Pics will be in the  GALLERY ASAP  .

13s BACK WITH A BANG

Stenny 13s got the second half of the season of to a flying start with a hard-fought and well-deserved 5-1 win away to Falkirk Academy Reds.

Coaches Nick and Nicole were looking for the girls to continue their good run of form from the Umbro Cup into the rest of the League season and the girls responded in great style putting five past the Academy and creating plenty of chances inbetween.

For the first 20 minutes Falkirk didn't get a sniff at goal as Stenny dominated play with some great passing and a couple of goals. One from Leia who didn't give up on a loose ball and chased it into the net, and a cracking strike from Dani who smashed the ball into the top corner after a great run down the right. A moment of lost concentration saw Falkirk pull one back after a well hit pass into the box was somehow allowed to trickle past everyone into the net.

A sticky first few minutes of the second half saw Falkirk come back into the match but the girls soon got back into their stride and started dominating the play again. A few chances went begging before Dani latched onto a fumble from the Falkirk keeper and made it 3-1 to Stenny. This seemed to settle the girls and Dani got her hat-trick with a well struck shot low into the net. Substitute Jennifer then rounded off the day nicely with a great goal from the edge of the area. Subs Alana and Heather had a great couple of spells on the right wing and up front, Sarah was brilliant in the middle of the park and covering for an injured Alison in defence. Dani ran her socks off down the right and deserved her hat-trick which Nick and Nicole hope is the first of many.

Overall, every player played their part in a great result and it was good to see Stenny passing and dominating a team the way the coaches know they can.

Well Done to every player in the team from Nick and Nicole.

MANCHESTER UMBRO CUP 09

The Seniors and 13s are back from a great weekend at Manchester Umbro Cup. A great time was had by players,coaches and parents alike even though the Seniors missed out on the trophy in their group by just one point. They had won all their games, and kept three straight clean sheets, right up to their last match on Sunday. It was a title decider with Wigan Athletic and for whatever reason nothing went Stenny's way with shots hitting the bar and some bizarre ref decisions. Wigan came out winners 2-0 and Stenny were Runners-up again. The Ladies felt deflated after such a great effort up to that point.

The 13s decided to do their bit to cheer them up and put in a great showing in their competition. They started with a well-earned 0-0 draw against hot favourites Manchester City. They then proceeded to beat Flixton Juniors 2-0 with Nia and Dani netting a couple of great goals. Nia got another goal in the 1-0 win over Delamere Rangers and Stenny were sitting top of the league with Man City on 7 points after three games. It must have given the girls a small case of vertigo as the next match featured a mix of crazy defending and bizarre refereeing. This all resulted in Stenny going down 3-0 to Yorkshire Amateurs and fingernails were well and truly bitten as Stenny came to their final game against well-established Curzon Ashton. But the girls picked themselves up and responded in great fashion with a 1-0 win that saw Leia finally get the goal she deserved after taking some unfair physical treatment on the park in the previous game and yet making some great solo runs into the box.Stenny were relying on results elsewhere going their way but Man City got their fourth win and Yorkshire won their final match which meant that Stenny finished the day in third spot. But they were only 2 points behind Yorkshire and three behind unbeaten winners Man City.

Three wins, a draw,one defeat and to be the only team to take points off winners Man City was a fantastic result in the girls' first major tournament. They have also proved what their coaches have said all along, that there is much more to come from this talented group of girls.

They can all be very proud of themselves and the way they represented their Team.

Nick and Nicole and all of the Seniors want to say a HUGE "WELL DONE" and keep up the good work into the rest of the season!!

 Pics are up in the GALLERY

If you have any you want us to put up, then Sign Up as an official member of Stenny Girls or email us at  sfcgirls@live.co.uk  .

STENNY 15s AT FALKIRK STADIUM

Check out the Gallery for pics of the Under-15s in action against Falkirk Academy 15s in a charity game held at Falkirk Stadium on Sunday (24th May). Stenny fought back from 2-0 down to draw 2-2 in a great game. See if you can spot Courtney, Nia, Alison and Sarah from the U-13s ! And check out that cup !

CLICK HERE for match report and photo or go to the GALLERY

We are always looking out for new players to strengthen our teams, so if you fancy coming along and improving your skills, playing for one of our teams at under-9's, 11's , 13's and 15's  and joining the fastest-growing girls football programme around, then come along to Ochilview any Wednesday night (5-6pm) or email us at  sfcgirls@live.co.uk .

See You There !!!