THE EXETER LADIES STORY

1976/77 Season

Pop goes the bubbly for yet another Exeter soccer success. The city ladies soccer team beat Tiverton 2-1 in the final of the Devon Dean Development knock out Cup at Waterslade Park, Clyst Honiton, last night.

The victory completed a fine season for the girls, who also won the Devon County Womens League, winning nine of their ten matches and drawing the other. they scored 86 goals and let in only eight. Popping the cork is the teams chairman, Mr Ray Ellis, who is also Exeter Citys commericial manager.

Using the small piece of land behind Exeter City's Club House, the team began training for the first season of the Devon Women's League. It was difficult training in such a confined space, but everybody made the most of it, and regularly attended training.

Prior to the start of the season a friendly game was arranged against Lympstone, who would also be in the new League, and it was the first opportunity for the manager to see the girls in a game, and the standard of Women's football. The 3-3 result was unimportant, and for the first com- petitive game against Polperro in the Pony Cup, basic back four play was introduced, along with two midfield players. The team beat Polperro 6-1, and a lot of individual skills showed up in the game which would be used later as the players settled in various positions.

As the season progressed it was obvious it would become a two team battle Exeter and Tiverton. It was Tiverton that made the first mistake. Drawing 0-0 at home to Lympstone put a lot of pressure on the Tiverton team and allowed Exeter to hold the only 100% record at an important time in the season. Without realising it, Tiverton also made the second big mistake. Drawn at home to Exeter in the Pony Cup, Tiverton defeated us 6-0. Anyone who came near to any of our players after that game would know that there was NO WAY Exeter would allow Tiverton to do that to them again. By beating Exeter, Tiverton nailed their own coffin lids down on any Championship hopes. In the league encounter at Exeter, the score resulted in a 1-1 draw. It was the first point Exeter had dropped and the second Tiverton had dropped, and everything depended on the last game played at Tiverton late in the season. Nothing runs smoothly in football, and on the day of the match, Ness Byrne and Julie Trott, two regular strikers, were rushing to travel back to Tiverton from Nottingham after two days basketball, and Exeter went into the kick off naming two sub- stitutes who had not even appeared. Although not hitting their true form, Exeter not only held Tiverton in the first half, but scored what turned out to be the winning goal. Just before half time, Ness and Julie turned up and subsequently went on for the second half. Team character won that game just as much as skill, and perhaps the Championship victory was the indirect result of that 6-0 thrashing.

Exeter had one more thing to do before the season ended. Retain the Dean Development Trophy won the previous season. By beating Lympstone, Calstock and Torbay, Exeter were again in the final - and the team they had to beat in the final - Tiverton.