A squad of 18 players made the trip as the squad increases the intensity of their preparation for the European Championships in October 2010, which will take place in Northern Ireland. There was no better way to prepare than head of for a double headed friendly fixture against foreign opposition.
Having landed in the early hours of Thursday morning, the squad were scheduled to play their first game the next day in Teteven, a small village high in the mountains about 2 hour from Sofia. The performance however emulated a team that had been there for a week preparing for the game. After the first 15 minutes in which the hosts had more possession, the game sprung into life for Northern Ireland when Kirsty McGuinness went close after leaving the Bulgarian defence for dead showing blistering pace to exploit a gap. Lauren Brennan then went close with two efforts along with captain Simone Magill, before McGuinness who was causing all sorts of problems with her pace down the left beat 3 defenders only to be cut down in the box. The penalty was awarded and Simone Magill stepped up with great calmness to send the keeper the wrong way and make it 1-0.
Northern Ireland continued to dominate proceedings with more possession and greater tempo in their play, but just before half time, and against the run of play a Bulgarian forward charged down a goalkeeper’s clearance and the ball rather fortuitously rebounded off her head and high into the net, without her knowing too much about it.
At half time, the Bulgarians came out a different side and started to impose themselves a lot more on the game. But they met a stubborn defence in their way with Alex Hurst, Maria Quinn, Jennifer McDade and Laura Nicholas showing great organization and committed defending to absorb the pressure. For all their possession, Nicole Adams in nets didn’t have a single shot to deal with as Northern Ireland pressurized the ball at every opportunity.
The final 10 minutes saw Jessica Moorehead and Rebecca Craig come on to try and win it, and with her first touch Moorehead whipped a teasing ball in to the box from the left which Magill narrowly failed to get a touch on. Craig and Brennan also missed wonderful chances to win it late on following good work down the right from Magill, but it was to be a draw, and a very encouraging draw considering that it was the first time that a lot of the players had played against international opposition at this level. Player of the match was a very difficult decision with so many players putting in great performances, however it was Vice Captain Hayley O’Donnell who stood out with a gritty performance in Centre Midfield. Inventive on the ball, and industrious off the ball she led by example and some of her tackles inspired the team to get on top again when they were under a bit of pressure!
Two days of training and preparation followed before the next game, at the same venue on Saturday afternoon. The squad had the honour of training at the same facilities that the Bulgarian Men’s National Team used days before as they prepared for their game with England. During the days, the players also had lots of time to bond and build a good team spirit in the camp. There was no doubt that this was achieved in abundance with the whole trip providing a laugh a minute – without the players losing focus of why they were in Bulgaria.
Game 2 was on Saturday 4th September, and some of the squad had watched the Northern Ireland men’s team win impressively in Slovenia the night before. This must have inspired them as they put in a well disciplined performance right from the first whistle. The only change to the team was a positional change with Simone Magill switching places with Shannon Gratton. The game started brightly with Bulgaria having most of the play in their own half, and on 10 minutes a mistake allowed a long ball to travel through and put a Bulgarian striker in one-on-one with Nicole Adams. However a 40 yard sprint back towards her own goal from Kirsty McGuinness, accompanied by a perfectly timed slide tackle won the ball cleanly just inside her own penalty box to deal with the danger. This set the tone for the rest of the half, and from the next passage of play, McGuinness was involved again. She picked the ball up from Adams’ goal kick, just inside her own half and out paced 2 Bulgarian defenders over 60 yards to cut inside from the left and play a low pass into the path of Simone Magill who coolly slotted the ball past the Bulagrian goalkeeper.
McGuinnes continued to cause problems and created a number of chances down the left. Northern Ireland were guilty of not killing the game early by missing a number of simple chances, and they were made to pay early in the second half when a Bulgarian midfielder rifled a shot from all of 25 yards into the top corner. Northern Ireland were pegged back for a 10 minute spell following the goal as Bulgaria pressed to go ahead, however some resilient defending from McDade and Quinn kept the attackers at bay.
Like the first game, it was Northern Ireland who finished stronger, and were causing the Bulgarians problems again. McGuinness in particular was a handful, and it was from her super cross that Magill was able to bundle the winner in at the back post with just 10 minutes left. Northern Ireland had something to protect, and they gave nothing away for the final 10 minutes to see the game out and leave Bulgaria with a 1-1 draw and a 1-2 win. Despite her two goals, Simone Magill was pipped to the player of the match by Kirsty McGuinness who created both Magill’s goals along with a number of other chances throughout the game.
The 5 days proved to be fantastic trip for everyone involved, and was excellent preparation for a tough European Championships in October where the girls will face the Republic of Ireland, Czech Republic and FYR Macedonia. It promises to be a busy 6 weeks for all involved!
Squad: Nicola Adams, Grace Quinn, Alex Hurst, Alana McShane, Jennifer McDade, Maria Quinn, Nicole Connolly, Laura Nicholas, Lyndsey Whiteside, Lauren Marshall, Courtney Greene, Simone Magill ©, Lauren Brennan, Hayley O’Donnell, Kirsty McGuinness, Jessica Moorehead, Rebecca Craig, Shannon Gratton,
