Sunday’s Women’s FA Cup final was meaningful. The 10th at Wembley Stadium, which sold out in record time with an attendance of 76,000, just shy of last year’s record. It was the first WFA Cup Final in Tottenham Hotspur’s history. Manchester United were still searching for their first major trophy having been beaten 1-0 by Chelsea in last season’s final. The Reds were hoping to go one better after overcoming Chelsea 2-1 in the semi-finals this time around. A new winner of the competition was set to be crowned and it was the first time since 2014 (when Liverpool won the WSL) that a domestic trophy would not be swept up by one of the dominant trio of Chelsea, Arsenal or Manchester City.

Manchester United came into the match as favourites, a more experienced side, sitting higher in the league table than Spurs and having taken their revenge against Chelsea in the previous round; they were rightly feeling confident. Spurs who have made huge progress this season under Robert Vilahamn, were unbeaten in their last seven matches in all competitions and had never made the semi-finals of the WFA Cup before, let alone the final.

The first shot of the match was fired over by Spurs’ Vinberg as Toone struggled to get across to block the shot. Spurs goalkeeper Spencer was quick off her line in the 2nd minute to smother Galton, after she linked up nicely in a one-two with Toone following a perfectly weighted pass. The resulting corner kick presented a golden opportunity for Williams, who despite making a great connection with the ball, could not keep her header under the cross bar.

It was a strong start by the Reds, with intense pressing, and sharp passing. Williams met the next corner as well, using her body exceptionally well despite being only 5’6”, but her header was directed wide.

Spurs put some nice passes together in the 14th minute, which led to Neville cutting back onto her left foot and delivering a curled cross, but it was just too high for Vinberg whose header went over the bar.

Toone stunner

The third corner of the match was met by a United head again. Turner headed it back across goal towards Garcia, but Summanen was brave and flew into a collision with Garcia, heading the ball over the crossbar.

Spurs grew in confidence after United’s strong start. Martha Thomas blocked a shot on the line in the 33rd min from a Millie Turner header after a great leap, the closest either side had come to scoring thus far.

Come the 40th minute, Spurs looked as though they were beginning to tire, losing 50:50s, and struggling to string passes together. In the final minute of first half added time, Naz gave the ball away cheaply up the pitch towards the corner flag, which gave United an opportunity to build a counter-attack. The ball was swiftly moved forward and found Toone, who had run from her own box. She picked the ball up just inside the Spurs half and carried it forward. Toone shimmied away from a sliding Spurs player and curled a beautiful shot into the top right corner to put the Reds in front. Spencer in goal had no chance. Seconds before half-time, it was a fantastic time to score. Spurs had done so well to contain United but couldn’t keep it level as the half-time whistle arrived.

During the opening 10 minutes of the second half, Spurs came out playing strongly in the United half, but they were still struggling to create many chances. Refereeing decisions were also noticeably going in United’s favour.

Garcia double

In the 54th minute, a free kick out on the right-hand side was driven into the box by captain Zelem and this time Williams’ powerful header found the far corner of the net. The red areas of Wembley erupted as United’s lead was doubled. Williams fell to the ground in celebration and her teammates bundled on top of her. After a good start to the second half, it now looked like a very tough task for Spurs to come back into this game.

Spurs responded to the second goal immediately, creating an opportunity, but England fired high and wide. In the 57th minute a routine back pass to Spurs goalkeeper Spencer led to a 3rd United goal, as instead of clearing her lines, Spencer’s attempted pass across goal was cut out and turned into the net by Garcia. A huge error which left Spurs rattled. United were in dreamland, on their way to their first WFA Cup triumph.

United came forward two more times around the hour mark. Then five minutes later, there was a purposeful dribble forward from Spurs sub, Bizet, she turned and found Nildén out on the left wing. Nildén crossed into the box and it was met by England, who directed her header goalward, but it crashed against the crossbar. The closest Tottenham had come, after great movement from England to get away from her marker. It was evident that it was not Spurs’ day.

United sub, Malard raced through on goal in the 72nd minute, however Spencer redeemed herself, her perfect positioning helped her to make a strong stop to her right.

Garcia made it 4-0 to Manchester United in the 74th minute. Just inside the box, the ball was laid across to her by Naalsund and despite leaning back, off balance, her left footed shot found the roof of the net. The travelling Manchester United fans behind the goal were being absolutely spoilt.

The final score was 4-0 at Wembley. Spurs competed well for the majority, but the match was decided by fine margins. The Reds were clinical. A fantastic final’s performance by Marc Skinner’s team allowed their fans to travel home jubilant. A well-earned first piece of silverware for Manchester United. For Spurs, it proved to be a step too far for the team at this stage of their development, but the fantastic achievement of reaching the WFA Cup Final gives much promise for a successful future with more improvement to come.

If you could share a desert island (or boat) with one person, who would it be? I bet the answer to that question wouldn’t be a Bengal Tiger. ‘Life Of Pi’ has sailed its way into Mayflower Theatre, and I for one was very excited to see this multi-award winning play. Holding five Oliviers and three Tonys, this play has already put itself up there as one of the big, must-see plays in the theatre world. I’m sure a lot of people have heard of ‘Life Of Pi’, most likely from the 2012 film of the same name. However this isn’t just a stage adaptation of the movie, it’s a stage adaptation of Yann Martel’s novel. So we know that Martel’s story translates well onto the big screen, but will it translate well onto the stage? I think playwright Lolita Chakrabati has found the sweet spot between fantasy and reality perfectly in telling this story live.

If you’re unaware of the story, to keep the sense of mystery and to avoid spoilers, it follows a young boy – ‘Pi’ – and his story of when he gets stranded at sea with certain animals. Now if you’ve seen the movie, you will also be aware that it heavily relies on the use of CGI when it comes to the animals (particularly the tiger). Obviously this is a big problem when trying to bring a story to life on stage, and if anyone is thinking, no they didn’t use real animals. Instead they used puppets, and these puppets are insanely impressive. Other shows such as ‘The Lion King’ and ‘War Horse’ use similar puppetry techniques, and ‘Life Of Pi’ has followed in their footsteps superbly.

The whole cast has been directed and choreographed to perfection.

Without the puppets, I don’t think this show would be anywhere near as impressive as it is. The puppets make the show, but the cast have an integral role in all of this. Heading the cast tonight was Adwitha Arumugam as ‘Pi’, making ‘Pi’ a female character for the night. I love it when shows have the ability to do this with characters, especially leading ones. It’s something that throws you off to begin with, but then as it plays on you understand it. Adwitha was fantastic either way. She had a great bond with the puppets and used her movement brilliantly. In fact the whole cast has been directed and choreographed to perfection. There’s so much of this play that relies heavily on the movement of set or discrete character pieces; Max Webster (director) and Finn Caldwell (puppetry & movement director) have nailed this here! Hats off to the all of the cast because discrete movements that the story depends on, are so much harder and more important than the ability to learn a monologue in my opinion.

I’ve already briefly mentioned the puppets which were phenomenal, but the set was also one that you’d expect to see win awards (which it has!). The set was stunning. It was clever, intricate, big, and beautiful. In a second you could be transported from Mexico, to the ocean, to India – and it was seamless. This was definitely aided by the impressive lighting set up as well however. I’ve been to a few shows recently that have used digital effects, which do work but are nowhere near as effective as physical ones. The lighting and projections of when it was raining/thundering were particularly impressive – and just the way the depicted the ocean really really worked.

There was one moment where the ‘big ship’ was travelling the world and to show the route of this, there was a projected mini map showing its direction with a physical small steam boat that was puppeteered across the stage. The red laser lighting showing its ‘path’ as it continued its way across the stage was a great touch. This is something so simple and quick, but I just loved it! 

If you’re a fan of a hearty, thought-provoking story – then this play is for you.

Not only was the puppeteering of the puppets amazing, I think it was the overall design of them which was something abstract and different to what has previously been seen on stage. They are pieces of art. The tiger, the orangutan, the hyena, and the zebra. All incredible. The music was played through a soundtrack and I think this is one of the only times that I think it didn’t need a live band/orchestra. It would’ve been overkill, and the soundtrack did its job perfectly. 

I had actually never seen the movie before tonight so was going in with completely fresh mind and not really sure what to expect. The story was brilliant. A little bit slow at times I must admit, but come the second act, that’s where things really start to get exciting. I didn’t get lost once during the show, but I do wish that they shuffled a couple of bits on a little bit quicker. Having said this however, I think this is more just the nature of how plays work. If you were a fan of the movie or book and haven’t seen ‘Life Of Pi’ yet, you’re definitely missing out! Likewise if you’re a fan of a hearty, thought-provoking story – then this play is also for you. ‘Life Of Pi’ is at Mayflower theatre until the 18th May before continuing on its UK tour, and if you’re around and fancy being impressed, go give it a watch. I wish all the cast and crew the best of luck going forward, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see them with some more silverware soon. 

For the second year running, Basingstoke Town have won the North Hampshire Senior Cup against Romsey Town in a seven goal thriller at Foxcotte Park.

Romsey, who are three leagues below the ‘Stoke, were leading for a majority of the game. 

Basingstoke were ahead just five minutes into the game after Shamar Moore’s delivery found Stefan Brown at the nest post, who directed his header past Miles Bartram. 

However, just a few minutes later, Romsey were level. Liam Magee found the bottom-right corner after a lovely combination outside the box by Geoff Dunne and Tiago Moreno. 

The Town took a shock lead inside half-hour after Liam Magee threaded through Charlie Hawes, who managed to hammer his volley past veteran Paul Strudley. 

HT: Basingstoke Town 1-2 Romsey Town

Basingstoke controlled the second-half and finally found an equaliser, with 20 minutes remaining, after Wilson’s arrowed his strike into the top corner. 

However just a few minutes after the goal, Aleks Kokoszka was sent off after a second yellow card. 

Irrespective of that, and with nine minutes left, Basingstoke took a deserved lead after Noah Chengun’s header found the back of the net. Shortly afterwards Basingstoke added a fourth with Brown’s volley firing past Bartram – surely that would wrapped up the game? 

Romsey, however, showed unbreakable spirit and even threatened another comeback when substitute Charlie Henson curled his effort from range past Strudley. 

FT: Basingstoke Town 4-3 Romsey Town