Vic Esson - Rangers FC (Scottish Premier League)

Clearly Vic Esson is a machine because less than a week after she saved that late penalty for the Football Ferns against South Korea she was lining up in goal for the biggest game of Rangers’ SWPL campaign so far. Away against Glasgow City in a big three clash. Meikayla Moore was not amongst the crew for home side Glasgow City on the back of her international travel. Elsewhere Celtic beat Hearts 3-0 and Liv Chance was an unused sub, rested after the long flight. But Vic Esson, despite having a very good rival for the RFC gloves in Scottish international Jenna Fife, was not to be contained.

It was a good competitive game, as you’d expect from a couple of teams that played Champions League prelims not so long ago. Rangers threatened first but were denied by a close range save. Esson then watched a shot from the edge of the box go just wide via a slight deflection. Glasgow City were all over a penalty shout for handball as Esson couldn’t get a punch on a deep corner leading to a few players all scrambling for it at once as it dropped but no whistle there so all goods.

City were looking sharp... but Rangers came back into it via some high pressing. A long shot onto the roof of the net. A header sent slightly over from a corner. All goalless at the break however a clip of Emily Whelan’s heels in the penalty area by a Rangers defender gave City the chance to score from twelve yards. Vic Esson may have saved one for the Ferns last week but she couldn’t do the same against Lauren Davidson here, diving the right way but not quite able to get a hand to a well-taken spot kick. 52 mins gone and 1-0 to GC.

And yet twenty minutes later Glasgow City made the same mistake, defending too tightly and conceding a penalty. Tessel Middag scored that one to tie the game back up again. Esson would almost get tangled up in the net making sure an ambitious long one didn’t drop on target (it didn’t). Then Rangers came agonisingly close to winning it as Lisa Martinez – who had conceded the penalty – headed a Mittag free kick onto the crossbar and there was another close call at the death when nobody could get a touch on a low ball across the six yard box from Kirsty Howat. 1-1 was the final score. A penalty each meant the two teams split the points to remain level at the top of the SWPL table after 10 matches. Nine wins and a draw each. Rangers with a solid advantage on goal difference.

Celtic are only one point back. They lost to Glasgow City a couple weeks ago but benefited healthily as both their title challenge rivals took points off each other. Which they dutifully took advantage of by beating Hearts 3-0. Already mentioned that Liv Chance didn’t play... but Katie Rood did. Started in an unchanged Hearts line-up from their previous game (which they won 1-0 against Hamilton Accies with Roodie scoring the winner). She got 75 mins against Celtic but yeah nah always a tough task there.

Up Next: More big toru antics as Rangers face Celtic at 6.15am on Sunday (NZT)

Nik Tzanev – AFC Wimbledon (English League Two)

Yeah mate, that’s the one. Earn that clean sheet.

It was a fantastic week for the Dons. First they won their FA Cup replay against non-league Weymouth. Took the biscuits 3-1 there... should never have needed a replay but at least they progressed in the end. Nik Tzanev didn’t play that game as they let his backup have a crack instead.

Tzanev was then back in the team for the 2-0 win away to Tranmere Rovers in League Two. Ethan Chislett put them up early (8’). Rovers got a red card after half an hour. Tzanev then saved Kane Hemmings’ penalty (which to be fair he’d given away himself rushing out a bit sloppily... but as Vic Esson would say gotta clean up your own mess and he certainly did that). And Ayoub Assal then sealed the points with an 88th minute goal for the Dons.

Then after that they managed to grind out a 1-0 EFL Trophy second round win over Sutton United – a club that Tzanev spent some time on loan with back in the day. Kyle Hudlin with the 17th minute goal. One of only three total shots for the Dons but Sutton didn’t have many more than that themselves as Tzanev got the clean sheet. Onwards. Next is a chance to draw one of English football’s big donnies if they can beat Chesterfield and make it to the third round of the FA Cup. Chesterfield are a tier below the Dons so they’ll be favoured to do exactly that.

Up Next: Wimbledon vs Chesterfield in the second round of the FA Cup, Sunday at 4am (NZT)

Anna Leat – Aston Villa (English Super League)

Doesn’t matter that she’d only just gotten back from an international break trip to Christchurch, Anna Leat was still the starting goalkeeper for Aston Villa as they hosted Reading in the Women’s Super League. Which is notable because she didn’t have to be. Their other goalie, Hannah Hampton, was back on the bench having missed a few weeks amidst some off-field dramas. Hampton was a part of the England Euros squad and entered the season as the clear number one but Leat’s done fine work in her absence, winning plenty of praise for her manager Carla Ward, and it could well be that she’s nudged that permanent starter’s spot... though of course we’ll have to wait and see to know for sure (and these things can change quickly regardless).

The game against Reading didn’t start too flash as a long ball into the box wasn’t cleared by the Villans and Lauren Wade smashed in her volley from about ten yards. Anna Leat unable to do anything about it from that close range. Seven minutes on the clock. Less than ideal... but it was the only time that she’d be beaten all game. Leat would go on to make three saves, all solid comfortable ones, as Villa slowly but surely took control of this match.

Rachel Daly was the star of the show, setting up a Kenza Dali shot early on that only just went wide prior to conceding. Then in the last ten mins of the first half she struck twice with her head to have the Villans in front. A red card for Jacqueline Burns midway through the second spell made things even worse for Reading – the keeper marched for taking down Kirsty Hanson just outside the area. Daly hit the through ball that led to the foul, naturally. Soon after that a run in behind by Daly a few minutes later earned her a penalty as a defender barged her over. Daly scored from the spot to complete both her hat-trick and also a superb individual performance in a 3-1 Aston Villa victory.

No clean sheet for Leat this time... but back to back victories as a starting goalkeeper for the first time in the English WSL. Another milestone.

Up Next: WSL Cup group stages, Villa vs Durham on Monday at 7am (NZT)

CJ Bott - Leicester City (English Super League)

Some absolutely rotten form from the Foxes saw manager Lydia Bedford sacked prior to the international break. They played once afterwards with an interim boss and that was a 4-0 defeat against Arsenal, admittedly a Champions League team so not too disastrous there (particularly given that CJ Bott played ninety minutes). Then came the international break which Bott skipped as she manages her workload with a few pesky injuries. Since then Willie Kirk has been hired as the new manager and his first game in charge came about this past weekend as they took on West Ham.

And guess what? CJ Bott in the starting eleven. Picked as a right midfielder again. Consecutive WSL starts (albeit a few weeks apart and with two different managers), that’s what we wanna see. Bott has gotten minutes in all eight WSL games so far, starting three of them, and the good news was that the game away to West Ham was as well as the Foxes have played all season.

The bad news was that they still lost... to an 88th minute winner for Izzy Atkinson. Bott got amongst it from the start, working hard to win the ball back before West Ham could clear and then getting the ball back for a shot that she fizzed past the near post from around the corner of the box. Not a high percentage chance but worth a crack. Might’ve had a better chance had Natasha Flint passed instead of shooting after a high press turnover. And she ought to have had an assist with a lovely cross in the second half which was put wide by Sophie Howard from an open header. The Foxes also hit the crossbar later on from a flicked header off a corner kick.

It’d be a lie to say that West Ham hadn’t also had their chances... but Leicester had the better ones. Never the less it was WHU who scored on the break anyway with only a couple minutes remaining. Absolute kick in the guts, although Bott (who was now at RB with Emma Simon having been subbed) didn’t waste a second in grabbing the ball out of the net and getting things going again for the kickoff. Even in that short space of time, LCFC still forced a flurry of blocked shots including a clearance from within the six yard box and then thought they’d snatched an equaliser in stoppage time except the shot from Ashleigh Plumptre had hit an offside teammate on its way into the net. When your luck is out, your luck is really out, aye?

Ninety minutes for CJ Bott. One half-decent shot off target and a few involvements in other nice attacking moments. Also made six blocks which was pretty hectic considering nobody else on her team made more than two this game. All against pass attempts, shutting down those crossing lanes. Only teammate Jemma Purfield had more touches in the attacking third across either club. None of this matters as much as the fact that Leicester City lost for the eighth time in eight league games this season... but maybe they’re beginning to turn things around. And maybe CJ Bott will get to be a big part of that process.

Up Next: Doesn’t get any easier with a weekend off (for the WSL Cup – they’ve got a bye) before hosting Chelsea in the WSL at 4am on Sunday 4 December (NZT)

Rebekah Stott - Brighton & Hove Albion (English Super League)

Love to see it. We’re getting closer and closer to that season debut following preseason ankle surgery. The club’s official preview for their most recent game mentioned Stott as being “on the comeback trail” while her manager Amy Merrick said during her press conference that: “Rebekah Stott has been on the pitch a bit more which is nice to see”. Suggests she’s still a few weeks away... but progress is being made.

Weird thing is that Stotty has already been seen on a couple of team-lists already this term. Given she’s only just getting back into proper training it seems those weren’t ever with an intention of her taking the pitch. More likely they were short on subs and added her to the end of the bench for off-field leadership/experience – but yeah she has technically been an unused sub twice already.

Both those occasions happened when Hope Powell was still the manager and she stepped down at the end of October... and there’s been no Stott in either squad since, including the 3-3 draw against Liverpool this past weekend. Probably wishes she been, even on one ankle, given how they were 3-1 up with fifteen minutes left and ended up conceding the equaliser in the second minute added on.

However there’s a Conti Cup weekend coming up and Brighton are away to second tier London City which could be the perfect opportunity to test where that ankle’s at, supposing she’s ready for it. Might be too soon but we’ll see how it goes.

Up Next: London City Lionesses vs Brighton & Hove at 1am on Monday in the Conti Cup (NZT)

Tommy Smith – Colchester United (English League Two)

As so many footballers take an enforced break for a few weeks, Tommy Smith is instead making his return. A preseason foot injury cost him the first few months of the campaign and it hasn’t often been an easy watch. Smithy made it back to the bench for the two most recent games, a 2-0 FA Cup loss to Newport County and then a 1-0 League Two to Crewe Alexandra. The U’s were on a slide and so they turned to their fit-again club captain as Doncaster Rovers came to town.

And they served up a wonderful performance to win 3-0, snapping an eight-game streak without a victory. They’d dipped all the way down to the very bottom of the League Two ladder but three high quality goals (Alex Newby 45+1’, Samson Tovide 59’ & Luke Hannant 89’) sealed a very impressive three points and lifted them up a couple of spots. Smithy played the full ninety at centre-back alongside his old bro Luke Chambers. They didn’t allow a single shot on target all game. It was their first clean sheet under new manager Matt Bloomfield.

CU gaffer Bloomfield: “I only made that call on Friday morning. I was driving into work on Friday morning at 6.15; I turned the music off and was just trying to think. I discussed it with my staff and we decided to go with Tom[my Smith]. I just felt at that point that [Smith's] influence, leadership, voice, he's captain of the football club and also that balance being left footed, on the left-hand side. I just felt that was a big call to make and I felt like I wanted to do it.

Tom was great and we got our clean sheet. As you move into your thirties, you kind of know what you're good at and not so good at and Tom seems to know what he's good at. He's a real vocal character; again, someone who's not been able to play any football for me since I walked in the building. I'm really, really pleased for Tom. He's a leader in the dressing room and a big voice and someone who's had a really, really good career.”

That EFL Trophy game that he was previewing there, that took place on Thursday morning and again Smithy was named amongst the starters. Alas, there was to be no spot in the last sixteen of the lower-league cup comp. Bristol Rovers are a division ahead of them and despite putting in the hard yards (and also riding their luck with some average BR finishing) to keep things level after the first half, they fell behind to a James Connolly goal after 53 minutes.

But they almost forced a penalty shootout when against the run of play Freddie Sears scored an equaliser in the 83rd with the U’s first and only shot on target (and with the aid of a deflection). But nah. They’d go on to leak a winner in the fifth minute added on. Harvey Saunders with that goal. No more EFL Cup for Colchester United but another decent defensive showing with Smithy back in the team which hopefully bodes well. Playing two full games in the space of a week after injury definitely bodes well.

Up Next: Got a week off, then away to Mansfield Town on 4 Dec at 4am (NZT)

Max Crocombe - Grimsby Town (English League Two)

Having a bit of fun there. Been a little less fun in the real stuff lately as a 3-1 loss to Doncaster was followed by a 1-1 draw with Stevenage and then a second round exit from the EFL Trophy as Accrington Stanley beat them 1-0 with to a second half penalty. Some decent Crocombe work amongst that but nothing excessive. Interesting to see them deploy a back three in the league game against Stevenage. There’s a big game coming up next week though, FA Cup second rounder against Cambridge United of League One. Tough draw but if they can get through that then they’ll enter the pot for round three which is when all the Premier League clubs join the fun.

Up Next: Away to Cambridge Utd at 4am on Sunday in the FA Cup (NZT)

Joe Bell – Brøndby IF (Danish Superliga)

Joe Bell has played 11 minutes of football since the All Whites vs Australia games back in September. One measly substitute appearances despite being fit and available for every game. He fell into a streak of bench-sitting even as Brøndby continued to struggle for any semblance of consistency – they currently sit tenth on the ladder with only two wins from their last ten matches and that includes being knocked out of the Danish Cup competition too. They’re only three points off the top six (and thus the Championship Rounds) but with only five games until the split and some tough fixtures they’re no guarantee to make the cut.

The Superliga is on hiatus for the World Cup right now which then leads directly into the winter break. Daniel Wass (Denmark) and Anis Ben Slimane (Tunisa) are the only two players from their squad away at that tournament so they do have a few friendlies lined up during the interceding few weeks and that could be Bellinho’s big chance to win his way back into contention... particularly since the manager who’d dropped him got the heave-ho recently. Niels Frederiksen unexpectedly won the title with this team two seasons ago so it was commendable that they didn’t want to sack him, giving him every opportunity to turn things around. But it just wasn’t happening.

Thus he’s been sacked after three and a half years in charge of the team. No replacement has been announced yet and there isn’t much hurry considering that they don’t play another competitive game until mid-February. There are a pair of exhibition games lined up over the next two weeks against Millwall and Tenerife though, for which the remainder of the existing coaching staff will take charge. Here’s hoping that the next gaffer values the Joe Bell Experience a little more.

This is what Frederiksen had to say about Bell’s situation a few weeks ago:

“It is true that Joe Bell has dropped out of the team in the central midfield because I have prioritized something else. That's how it is sometimes, but Joe volunteers and does his best in training. All the players who are here are skilled enough to be here and from there we will have to see. I can't stand here and put two lines under what it will be like when the next transfer window is over. As a starting point, all players turn up and have an opportunity to play.”

That same article from Tipsbladet suggests that the had been rumours of Joe Bell returning to Viking (presumably on loan). Not sure how legit that is, the internet doesn’t offer up much else on the matter. What we do know for sure is that Joe Bell has hit the first genuine speed bump of his career. As always, the response is what counts most.

Up Next: Hopefully a runaround against Millwall in London on Sunday at 2am (NZT)

Michael Woud – Kyoto Sanga (Japanese J-League)

Woud didn’t play because Kyoto Sanga have about four senior first team goalies and he seems to be either the second or third choice. But it’s still very relevant to point out that KS were able to hang in there for a 1-1 draw against Roasso Kumamoto in their Relegation Playoff. A draw was enough to keep them in the top flight for another season. Relegation avoided... eventually.

Sanga scored first through Yuta Toyokawa in the 39th minute and they began the second half looking like they were about to bag another. But they didn’t, and then Osamu Henry Iyoha equalised in the 68th heading in off the post from a corner kick. Luckily Sanga saw it out from there. Didn’t have a lot of possession but for the next twenty minutes they restricted their opponents from anything notable.

There was still injury time on top of those twenty minutes though, during which Roasso Kumamoto sent everyone forward and it took a block to the face of a KS defender to prevent one shot before the next smashed off the post. That effort right there was the difference between relegation/promotion for these two teams. Such fine margins. But Kyoto Sanga came out on top so they’ll be back in the J-League in 2023.

Michael Woud never played a league game this year despite sitting on the bench 17 times. The 23 year old did make seven appearances across the various cup competitions with a run all the way to the Emperor’s Cup semi-finals gave him plenty of room to manoeuvre. Naoto Kamifukumoto played the majority of games. Tomoya Wakahara also made seven appearances (four in the league, three in the cups). As with most of the squad, Kamifukumoto and Wakahara’s contracts expire in January whereas Woud’s runs through until the end of 2024. Chances are there were a lot of club/player options involved which depended on whether or not they avoided relegation. Now that’s been sorted, we should start to see some player retaining movement.

Up Next: Not too much, to be honest

Indiah-Paige Riley - Fortuna Hjørring / Daisy Cleverley - HB Køge (Danish Kvindeligaen)

Sneaky Flying Kiwis Derby in Denmark. Only a sneaky one because both Indi Riley and Daisy Cleverely were named on the bench... but they did both feature. Cleverley was subbed on for the last twenty as her team’s first sub, Riley entered the contest ten minutes later as her team’s last change.

HBK scored first when Mie Leth Jans heading in from a free kick inside the fourth minute of the match. Perfect start for the runaway leaders of the Danish league. Fortuna are pretty good too but not on that same level (currently third on the ladder, with Brøndby in between them). Hence HBK continued to boss the show up until finally getting a second goal via Andrea Norheim, also from a set piece, after 55 mins. Maria Ficzay did pull one back for FH with five to play but they couldn’t complete the unlikely comeback. 2-1 to HB Køge. They move seven points clear at the top thanks to Brøndby only drawing with Kolding. Fortuna Hjørring are a further seven points behind them in third.

Up Next: This weekend it’s Fortuna Hjørring vs Brøndby at 1.30am on Monday and HB Køge vs AGF at 3am on Monday (NZT)

Francis De Vries – IFK Värnamo (Swedish Allsvenskan)

Now that’s a bloody shame. Francis De Vries has been released at the end of his contract with Värnamo, having been with the club since the start of 2019. He was there when they were promoted from the First Division. He was there when they were promoted from the Ettan Division. And he was their starting left-back to begin this Allsvenskan campaign until he tore his ACL in a training session. All combined he played 97 league games for the club – including 11 in the top flight.

IFK Värnamo: “Francis is an enormously valued person within IFK Värnamo. In addition to the fact that he has been responsible for fine performances in our representative team, he has always looked after our younger guys and has been an important part of IFK Värnamos Academy.”

FDV’s knee injury happened around July so it’s unlikely he’s able to play footy again until at least a few months into next year, possibly longer. ACL tears are often a 9-12 month recovery. Might have to live the free agent life for a wee while, unfortunately.

Up Next: The Comeback

Elliot Collier - San Antonio (American USL Championship)

Check it out, Elliot Collier won the USL! A penalty just before half-time then a couple more second half goals got San Antonio to a 3-1 win over Louisville City. Santiago Patino with the penalty and also the third goal. Samuel Adeniran with the second. Brian Ownby pulled one back for LC but only one.

This would have been much bigger news had EC had a much bigger role. Sadly, after featuring heaps for them at the start of the season he then missed a couple months due to injury and only made three more starts after that. Lots of substitute appearances but a much more limited role overall. He was a very late time-wasting sub in the final. Like, very late... on in the seventh minute of injury time. But hey he won a trophy, mate. Get that winner’s medal sweet as.

Up Next: Party on

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