MATCH REPORT:
Coming into the game off the back of a heavy defeat last week against Leek Town Ladies, Alvechurch had their sights on restoring pride and restoring their reputation - more so for a reaction and response. Unfortunately, we came into the contest with just 12 players and within those 12 players, we were still walking wounded. With 10-12 players missing due to injuries, holiday's or other external reasons, we right up against it from the start against a strong outfit, who are 2nd in the table for a reason and still in the hunt for the league title despite Lye Town's 14-point advantage - the hosts still have 4 games in hand to slice that gap.

The hosts would have to be near-enough perfect from this point onwards to tip Lye to the only promotion spot and for Church, its a tall order having dropped points elsewhere but we won't give up until it's mathematically impossible, and we will have to be inch-perfect from here on in too, to stand any chance - their hopes of being perfect not helped by the numbers - but they're soldiering on despite the adversity.

Anyway...

Onto the game, and as expected, Church were here to shut up the shop, try limit Borough to very little as possible. They did find their first shot of the game on target in the 11th minute as returning super-star goalkeeper Darcy Fortner was called into action. The ball was worked in and around the final third with patience, before the strike came in from distance, allowing Fortner to make a good save and hold onto the ball.

The walking-wounded visiting side still tried to cause issues. We were being brave, working hard, covering every blade of grass at the Cherry Tree Walk stadium. Five minutes after Redditch' first attempt on goal, the away team managed their first shot on target. From the throwing on the left-hand side, it was launched forward, Evie Cunnane latched onto the second ball rapidly, knocked it into Jess Bryer's path. The striker turned on it and hit a spectacular volley from 25 yards out, which looked to be looping over former goalkeeper Abby Dadson, but she recovered to her line to make the save and deny us an unlikely lead!

However, the Church' resistance was broken on the quarter-hour mark. Having been pulled out of position, it allowed for a late but very clever run from another former player and striker Alisha Sheridan to be picked out over the top from the pass. She brought it under her control, drove towards goal, rounded Fortner and slotted it into an empty net. An uphill task now for the girls in amber and black.

After that goal, it became very scrappy again. Chris Gagg's side working so hard, and showing the exact response we needed from last week despite the score-line. Things got even tougher right on the half-time whistle as well. The home side doubled the lead on the stroke of the break. A very fortunate break of the ball landed at the forward's feet, a hint of offside in there as well, which she was, but the flag didn't come and the finish was very tidy as she lifted it over the top of our number one, into the back of the net.

HALF-TIME: REDDITCH BOROUGH 2-0 ALVECHURCH WOMEN

Apart from the two goals, Alvechurch had limited the hosts to not too much, but the two strikes were all that they needed to give them the cushion they would have wanted. For the side in amber and black, it was now about damage limitation but also trying to have a go to find a route back into the game - if they could conjure up the belief to do so but we were under wave after wave of constant pressure. Legs and minds starting to tire. It was always going to be a tough ask.

Redditch added a third just seven minutes into the second half. We had the chance to clear the initial cross, but we could only swipe it clear to as far as the edge of the box. The shot wasn't closed down, and the effort from the edge of the area was swept home into the top left-hand corner - another tidy finish from the team in blue. Game over in proceedings. At a time like that, it can really drop heads, and really make you worry for what is to come next, but the girls continued to work so hard and not let it phase them. Huge character from them.

Adversity striking at the worst time for the team. A break coming at just the right time for the girls, but they had another 35 minutes of pressure to get through until that full-time whistle.

On 62 minutes, the first bit of magic in the second half from the visiting team. Aleesha Hussain picked up the ball from deep within her own half before driving down the side on the left-hand flank, pushing the ball past 3 players, and racing onto the dribble. She carried on her brilliant, brilliant run - the full-back ended up inside the 18-yard box, cutting onto her right and taking the shot on forcing Dadson into a smart save down to her right-hand side. A really powerful run, and almost an incredible end to that drive.

Four minutes left on the clock, and you could see that we were just waiting for the referee to blow up. A very flat ending, it felt like an end of season encounter, you could sense it on the pitch. Borough just keeping the ball, trying to work openings, being patient in their build-up play, but no real room or space for them. The ball trickled through to Fortner. From there, as she went to kick it out of her hands, she took a really unfortunate slip, and the ball landed straight to the Borough attacker, allowing her to slot into an empty net for number four. Our young goalkeeper didn't deserve that moment - an unfortunate end to the game.

Despite the score-line reading the way it does, we are still very proud of the 12 players that committed themselves to the game today even though we were still carrying knocks and bruised bodies. We must wish good luck to the U18's travelling off to America as well during next week! We will see you all when you are back and we head into our final four games of the season - which can be read below.

Redditch Borough (H) - 12/04
Shifnal Town (A) - 19/04
Solihull Moors (H) - 26/04
Shrewsbury Town (A) - 03/05

FULL-TIME: REDDITCH BOROUGH 4-0 ALVECHURCH WOMEN