CRAY WANDERERS WOMEN MATCH REPORT
By Charlie Bradford
Photos: Evie Elliott
Cray Wanderers Women 6
(Atkins 5, 21, Rix 6, Francis 19, Arnold 45 + 1, Pooley 55)
Chatham Town Women Development 2
(Cowley 8, 49)
Pre-Season Friendly
Sunday 13th July 2025, 4 PM @ Flamingo Park
A new season brings about fresh hope and that’s certainly true for Cray Wanderers Women who this season welcome new faces in the dugout…
After a remarkable quintuple in charge of the U15 Cray Wanderers girls team last season, Danny Stanton made his debut in charge of the senior women’s side this afternoon with Claire Goldsmith taking up the reins as his assistant.
They will be looking to build on the excellent start to the women’s team’s history – finishing as champions of the South East Counties Women’s Football League Division One West in their first season of existence in 2023 / 2024 before finishing third in the league above (the Premier Division) last term, all overseen by the stewardship of the now departed manager Dean Jarman and assistant Claire Willicombe.
However, if Danny can replicate the success of his U15s side from last season, Cray fans should be in for a treat! Last season the U15s remarkably won the following:
JPL National Cup 🏆
London Cup 🏆
Kent Cup 🏆
MYFL Boys League winners 🏆
MYFL Boys Cup winners 🏆
Yes, that’s right, they were so good they won a boy’s league and cup! A truly incredible achievement but how would it all stack up into senior women’s management?! That was the million dollar question…
The first test of the new management era at Cray Wanderers Women similarly were starting out from fresh. Indeed this was Chatham Town Women’s Development team’s first game in their history, formed to supplement their senior team who play in The FA Women’s National League Division One South East – the fourth tier of the women’s football pyramid.
However Chatham’s Development team will be playing at the league below Cray Wanderers next season in the eighth tier and so Cray, being in the higher division, would have perhaps been considered favourites on a sunny summer afternoon…
And the scoreline certainly showed that with Cray only needing five minutes to take the lead when Hannah Atkins shot through the grasp of Chatham’s goalkeeper and her shot ended up in the back of the net.
It was two in two minutes for Cray when a superb strike from 20 yards by Lucy Rix found its way into the top left corner to get pre season off to a flying start!
However, two minutes later, Chatham pulled a goal back. Phoebe Cowley winning the ball back on the edge of the Cray box before finding the bottom right corner.
There was then a lengthy delay in the game as Chatham’s goalkeeper went down injured in a collision with Cray’s Hannah Atkins. With Chatham changing their goalkeeper, perhaps their rhythm was disrupted as Cray made it 3-1 at the resultant corner – Chloe Francis slotting into the bottom right corner unmarked at the left post.
Two minutes later and Cray made it 4-1 when Hannah Atkins got her second with a nice slot along the deck from the edge of the box into the bottom left corner.
Chatham’s number 4 managed to strike an effort down the throat of Cray goalkeeper Jess Cox before Cray got a fifth in the first minute of first half stoppage time when Tarj Louis did all the hard work on the right side of the box before laying across to Storm Arnold who simply could not miss from bang in front.
HT: 5-1.
With a changed eleven at half time it took time for Cray to click in the second half and it showed when they conceded in the 49th minute – Phoebe Cowley coming up with a fine strike into the top left from 25 yards.
Cray however restored a four goal cushion in the 55th minute – Jess Pooley taking advantage of some slack Chatham defending to find the bottom left corner.
Both sides then had opportunities with Chatham’s number 4 striking a lay off against the bar before Cray’s Jess Pooley found the right side netting with an effort before Millie Main’s effort from the edge of the box was well saved around the right post.
Speaking of well saved, Cray saw themselves awarded a penalty in second half stoppage time for a trip in the box. But the effort to the bottom left corner was well saved by Chatham’s young goalkeeper wide of the left post.
Overall however Cray put in a clinical performance to build on throughout pre season and into the season itself and did well to manage the hot conditions but still put in a good performance.
FT: 6-2.
POTM: Hannah Atkins (Cray Wanderers Women) for her first half brace.
