Sunday 22nd October 2023 ko 14:00

FA Women’s Cup 3rd Qualifying Round

WATFORD LADIES 1 (Lovelace 15p)

BRENTFORD FC WOMEN 2 (Woods 12 27)

Att c75 at The Hive 5G, Camrose Avenue

Free Entry

Sunday was a completely different day from the normal lie in with a Sunday roast to follow. Swedish Hop organiser Kim Hedwall was visiting and that meant a busy day.

We’d left Stadhampton FC and headed into London for a game that more or less had our names on it. Kim’s a Barnet fan, and Oxford United are my team so London Bees vs Oxford United Women had something in it for the both of us. Then there was the bonus of the game being played on The Hive’s “temporary” grass pitch behind the main stand, with a demountable stand that once was in use at the away end at Underhill serving as cover. The best laid plans and all that…..

We arrived in plenty of time, but rapidly discovered the game had been called off while we were watching Stadhampton. I’d assumed that since the Sunday League game was on, so would the Women’s National League one. I hadn’t checked Twitter, a schoolboy error on my part, so Kim and I sat in the cafe underneath the main stand and had a coffee. Or rather I did, and he went outside to take some pictures. He rapidly returned, with the news that the game had been switched to another pitch. It hadn’t but I would see why he’d come to that conclusion. Watford do play in yellow after all!

At this point I should explain the geography of The Hive. You may remember me attending a game on Pitch ATP1 at the southern end. The grass pitch is to the east, but to the north, behind the away supporters’ stand, at the base of the Jubilee Line is an artificial pitch earmarked for the London Bees use, presumably when the construction of the stand on the railway pitch side is complete. The terracing for that stand will be recognisable to Barnet fans, it’s the former away end at the main stadium!

By the looks of things that will be completed fairly soon, but until then the only viewing point is accessed from a gap between two other 5-a-side pitches, and it’s shared with the players. It was enough for the Women’s FA Cup and it’s not often you get a guard of honour from the players for attending a game but we did here!

Watford Ladies were intriguing, starting life at Watford FC Women’s Development, but opted to go it alone under a new badge when the parent club withdrew funding. The irony of seeing one “Bees” club playing at the other Bees wasn’t lost on us either! This game was due to be played at Bovingdon FC, but waterlogging saw the game get switched here, and Kim and I get very lucky! On another day we would probably have had a wasted journey.

And other than the chance to get a London Underground train in multiple shots it was a good game to watch. Brentford play in the Tier 6 London and South East Regional league, with Watford playing in
Eastern Region Women’s Football League Division 1 South- also at Tier 6 so it looked a good match-up.

But despite that it was Brentford that moved the ball better and despite the quick exchange of goals, followed by a goalkeeping error to give Nikki Woods her second it looked like Brentford would pull away as the game progressed. The fact that they didn’t speaks volumes how hard they worked to stay in the game. Nevertheless, it was the visitors who prevailed and drew Southampton in the first-round proper. It was a shame that the game was decided on an error.

We didn’t linger, Kim didn’t know it at the time, but he was due to be Guest of Honour at Oxford City Stars Ice Hockey that evening. It wouldn’t have been a good look for him to be late!