Darlington Spraire 0 Darlington Women 5

Darlington Women won the Darlo derby against the Spraire in the Durham County Women's League with a good 5-0 win.

Hattie Raine (2), Chloe Ryan, Lily Wilkinson and Chloe Bright scored the goals, but keeper Hannah Billingham also pulled off some good saves at the other end.

Darlington manager Shaun MacKenzie said; “I’m really happy with the result, it’s always a good feeling to win a local derby. We were missing a few key players but it was a chance for others to step up and it shows the strength in depth that we have in the squad this season.

“We couldn’t have started the game better, and I think that’s the fastest goal we’ve ever scored, but going ahead so early didn’t seem to benefit us. A lot of the first half was rushed and we were trying to force everything. When we did get the ball down and play, we created and scored a good second goal to double the lead. I think we should have and could have been 5-0 up at half time if we had our shooting boots on.

“Fair play to Spraire who defended well and didn’t make things easy for us. I think we were a lot more composed in the second half and continued to create chances. We needed the third goal and once we got that the game was won, another good goal from Lily Wilkinson who has had a bright start to the season. Followed by a goal from Brighty, which we’ve all been waiting for, for a while now!

“Massive shoutout to Hannah in the net who played her first competitive game in senior women’s football today and earned herself player of the match.

“We weren’t at our best today and Hannah was called into action a few times, but it’s great to win when you’re not at your best, and to score five goals and keep a clean sheet is pleasing. A big blow losing Aimee Dagnall to another injury towards the end of the game and fingers crossed it’s not as serious as first thought.

“We will keep working hard in training, put a few things right and look forward to welcoming Newton Aycliffe to Eastbourne this Sunday.”

Here’s the match report from Chris Barrett

Darlington got off to a flyer and scored what could be the quickest goal in their history, with Hattie Raine on the scoresheet within 15 seconds, a brilliantly worked goal from the kick off to finish with her left foot to give Darlington a 1-0 lead.

The chances continued to flow in the first half but Spraire were always in the game. Darlington were looking like they were going to rue their missed chances in the first half and go in just 1 nil up but Chloe Ryan doubled their lead 5 minutes before half time with Jen Harrison providing the assist.

Spraire continued to be resilient in the second half and defended well. Always a threat on the counter and Darlington relied on keeper Hannah Billingham a few times to keep them ahead on her full competitive debut.  

It took until the 68th minute for Darlington to break through again and Hattie Raine smashed one in on the goal line after a looping free kick from Chloe Ryan went over the keeper’s head and was definitely going in! Ryan had to settle for the assist. 12 minutes later, Darlington had a fourth and it was a perfectly timed run from impact substitute Lily Wilkinson to run onto a Raine through ball and finish well for 4-0.

The final goal of the game came in the 92nd minute as Chloe Bright got on the scoresheet for the first time in 21 months! A well-deserved goal for Bright who found herself in space just inside the 18 yard box and trickled it into the bottom corner with her left foot. Definitely the loudest cheer of the day from the fans. 

A first clean sheet of the season and player of the match went to Hannah Billingham who was superb today in goal, a calm presence and done everything right when called into action. 

The only disappointment of the day was Aimee Dagnall having to come off injured with 5 minutes to go after rolling her ankle. We hope that it’s not as serious as first thought. 

Thanks for your support today, always appreciated.

Thanks to Darlington Spraire Ladies F.C for the game. Good luck for the rest of your season.