MANAGER’S NOTES n Marjoram Darre
Welcome everyone to the Abbey Stadium for what we hope will be an exciting game and a good advert for Women’s football. We’d like to extend the warm welcome to the players, staff and supporters of Cambridge City. These local derbies are always a good occasion and we hope this one will be no different, especially as it is under the lights at the Abbey! The Women’s team have had a reasonably quiet couple of weeks with no scheduled fixtures recently, however training has been very good and last Sunday we managed to arrange a friendly against Peterborough United Development. It was an important exercise to ensure everyone had some game time under their belts and so I could try a few new things tactically. Hopefully we see the benefit of that in tonight’s game. In our last league game against Hashtag United,
we showed lots of promise and indeed had the runaway leaders in a bit of trouble at half-time, with the score level at 1-1 as we went into the break. A 10-minute spell after half-time saw them run away with the game, but there were plenty of positive signs and periods of the game which we now have to show consistently. The squad has continued to develop throughout the season and now we have good competition in every position. The quality of players we have recruited has really added to the squad and I think all of us involved are excited about the future as we continue to build. We have been very fortunate to have the full backing of the Club, and in forming the Women’s board who constantly look at how we can improve, we have a really strong foundation to continue to grow and progress in the years to come. Cambridge City will pose a stern test tonight, and as the saying goes ‘form goes out of the window’ in a derby game. Our job is to try to ensure the game is played and controlled in our way rather than allowing the occasion to become the primary factor. What always makes a huge difference is the backing of supporters, so please make lots of noise and help the players thrive on that energy. We would love you to be part of the team and your support is the way you can help us to achieve our goals. Finally, today we are honouring a true CUWFC legend as Kayleigh-Anne Burt retires after a remarkable career at the Club. Having gone through the set-up from a teenager and playing for the U’s right the way through until this year, she will rightly go down as one of the most important players in this Club’s history. Thank you, Kayleigh. Have a great evening!
cambridgeunited.com
5