Real Bedford Women Return in Style
By Louie Truman
The Pirates managed an impressive 5-1 win against AFC Wimbledon, bouncing back after a loss against Hashtag United. The goals came from debutant Melis Mehmet, Chloe Logie, and a hat-trick from Issy Bryant.
Charlie Bill’s side had an excellent start to the fixture with debutant Melis Mehmet scoring in the second minute, Issy Bryant’s shot hit the post, and Mehmet managed to strike the rebound home. A brilliant start for the new signing.
Just after the goal, Real Bedford managed to build from the opener and had many opportunities on goal. Byrom scored, but it was disallowed due to her being offside after a corner. Goalkeeper Meale made multiple saves, including two saves in the 21st minute, which eventually landed to an offside AFC Wimbledon player.
The wet conditions didn’t make it easy for either side, but the Pirates went on to double their advantage through Issy Bryant. It was a great attack as Bryant easily tapped the ball into the back of the net, after rounding the keeper. Just two minutes later, Bryant came close to scoring again, but her shot went just wide.
Alisha Buckingham managed to score for the visitors, which was her fourth attacking return in her last two. The Pirates went into the break 2-1 up and looking to build on their lead.
Second Half
In the 56th minute, Wimbledon scored through Highman, but the flag went up once again. Just after this, the Pirates got a penalty after Abbie Bensted was brought down in the box, and Bryant stepped up to score her second of the match to make it 3-1.
Charlie Bill made his first change in the 68th minute, Breon Grant replaced Leyla O’Brien. Ten minutes later, Issy Bryant scored and got her hat-trick. It was another great attack as Byrom placed a perfect ball for Bryant to finish.
The Dons didn’t let the scoreline slow them down and kept pushing forward. However, they received a red card in the 93rd minute. Chloe Logie scored the fifth in extra time. A quick attack allowed Logie through on goal, and she finished well to secure the Pirates three crucial points.
In his post-match interview, Bill said:
“Our final home game before the break, the hunger in the group has just been building up because it has been so long. Behind the scenes, we’ve been training incredibly hard. We wanted to show the intensity from minute one today, and ultimately, that’s what we did and deservedly got the three points.”
Next up for the Pirates is a long trip to Plymouth Argyle on Sunday 21st December.
Lineup: Meollo, Williams (Warren 79’), Stovold, Evans, Puddick, Hayes, Bensted, Mehmet (Fields-Davis 83’), Bryant (Logie 83’), O’Brien (Grant 68’), Byrom (Wood 79’).
Unused subs: Fuggle.
Real Bedford 5-1 AFC Wimbledon
Sunday 8th December
Kick-off: 2pm
Location: The Ledger Stadium
