Sunday September 28, 2008
National Division, Burnham FC
Fulham 3-4 Rovers
KATIE Anderton completed her hat-trick five minutes from time to secure the points in a seven-goal thriller away to Fulham.
For the fifth time in Rovers' last six games, skipper Natalie Preston opened the scoring with a fine finish from Jenna Carroll's pass, before Anderton doubled the visitors' lead with a left-foot curler on 18 minutes.
Fulham were handed a lifeline when Carroll was harshly penalised inside the box and Katie McIntire fired home from the spot.
Anderton restored Rovers' two-lead shortly after the break with a stunning left-foot lob from the edge of the box, but the hosts staged a spirited comeback as Jess Trimnell fired into an empty net and Alicia Moran rounded Rovers keeper Krystal Parker for the equaliser.
But in the 85th-minute, Rovers' record goalscorer raced onto Karen Burke through-ball and smashed home the winner at the second time of asking.
Manager Adam Lakeland said: "We made the game far more difficult that it should have been.
"I thought in the first 25 minutes we were absolutely quality - the best we've played all season - and fully deserved our two-goal lead. But we became complacent and were poor from then on.
"The penalty was the turning point in the game. The goal gave them confidence and from then on we found ourselves in a battle. I was disappointed with the goals we gave away. We're making individual mistakes, which we got to eradicate.
"But we've got to take the positives from the game. Firstly, we didn't play as well as we know we can, yet we still came away with the win. Secondly, having been pegged back from 3-1 up, we showed a lot of character in the last 10 minutes and adapted well to the changes that I made. Finally, it was great to see Katie Anderton get a hat-trick and get off the mark in the league. She came up trumps when we needed her yet again."
ROVERS: Parker, Carroll, Brewer, Twohig, Byrne, Burke, Shepherd, Campbell (Harding 70), McDougall, Preston, Anderton.
Subs not used: Norris, McCoy.
