Battling it out in the torrential rain and a howling wind at the Falcon Ground, Egremont, the match on Wednesday was a superb advertisement for women’s football in the county.
With quite a few fans making the long trip down the west coast to Egremont in terrible driving conditions, Keswick were disappointed to be 3-0 down at half-time, despite the best efforts of in-form keeper Angie Wray.
The wind was a major factor, making corner kicks a lottery but giving the Carlisle Ladies a real advantage, moving up the field in the first half.
Paul Brotherhood’s young Carlisle side’s first-half goals came from Jess Hawkins, Bea Barber and Holly Currie.
But Keswick coach Danielle Coates has assembled a battling squad, and their never-say-die attitude paid off as Keswick, now with the wind behind them, pulled two goals back in the second half in a now end-to-end game.
The goals from Kirsty Smith and a Sarah Fletcher header put Carlisle on the back foot as Keswick pushed forward, and Angela Wakefield fired in a screamer that hit the post.
The last five minutes were nail-biting as Keswick pushed for an equaliser that would of sent the encounter to extra-time.
It wasn’t to be for Keswick, however, as Carlisle held on with a good defensive display for the win.
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