Hope everyone is surviving the post-tour crash back to reality (and sending strength and prayers to everyone who has succumbed to tour flu) and has enjoyed the two very average performances from England in the Euros this week!
CONTENTS
Notices
Hot Goal Tour 2024
League info
Get To Know A Goal!
Player Shout-Outs
Community Corner
NOTICES FROM TRAINING
- Membership renewal is coming up! Please look out for more information from us in the next week and remind your teammates to renew!
- Weekend football is opened to a lot of other members - sign up to try something new!
HOT GOAL TOUR 2024
It's safe to say that Lesbon was a roaring success and we can't shout out our amazing tour secs Katie and Jahnavi enough! Impeccably organised, non stop fun and activities, gorgeous hostel - 10/10 job, goals!
We played some scorching football (both temperature and talent), got dunked by some waves on the beach (i.e. did a surfing lesson), sampled the local queer nightlife scene, gave national Super Bock sales a lovely bump, enjoyed our very own masseria and made plans for a future newsletter edition with an L word-style diagram of all past goal hook ups (this was quickly vetoed).
Highlights include:
Millie getting injured in the first few minutes of her first football game at the tournament and proceeding to bravely hop around the city for the rest of the weekend (including VIP wheelchair treatment at the airport)
Malta FC, which we thought would be a rag tag bunch of grassroots football beginners, actually turning out to be BANANAS good at football (if I recall, they won one match 17-2) - but their ethos was not quite as good as ours and thus we retain the moral high ground.
An unassuming sports bar in Lisbon putting up the GDFC logo on their wall in true #ethos style
Becky i.e. DJ BTG taking over the decks at said unassuming sports bar and facing off against her arch nemesis, a random Danish woman with terrible taste in music
Sexy robot - enough said
Praising the tour secs at tour dinner in the most 2024 way possible - through AI-generated poetry
The name 'Rachel Harple's intermediate posse' being coined for a select group of goals [editor's note - we reject this designation]
Someone being way behind the goal gossip and realising for the first time on this trip that Dan and Roseanna were a couple. Ditto Amy and Scottie. At least that will never happen with Katie and Shiv given they are inseparable...
(personal highlight) finding vegan pastel del nata in not one not two but THREE different places in the city.
Becky (second shout out of the day!) taking desperate measures to stay in Lisbon a little longer and missing her flight home.
And to leave you with something super wholesome from Shiv
"Ju and I had a lil topless photoshoot on the beach some trans guy came up to us and said how lovely it was to see people with top surgery scars and looking so happy and he hoped he could get surgery one day. I think it’s easy for us to forget how important it is to be so visibly pro trans as a club but it’s moments like that which remind me GDFC is a special place" - and that is really the GDFC #ethos
LEAGUE INFO
Have a question about leagues? Get in touch with the relevant league rep on TeamApp or with our head of football Beth!
GET TO KNOW A GOAL!
Our new feature where we introduce you to a new Goal each week - meet one of our new Newsletter secs, Emma!
Meet Rachel (she/her)
Where do you play?
You can almost always find me in goal, shouting and running round my little box
Favourite memory at GDFC?
So hard to pick one! Definitely up there is my first ever clean sheet at 8s - not only because it felt like a big achievement, but because of all the goals gassing me up from the pitch and the sidelines. More recently, winning at Chobham after a season-long drought was also an amazing feeling.
Two truths and a lie
1. I once came second in a Blue Peter competition to design a stamp 2. My sister is named after Gary Linekar 3. I was a child model in South Essex wedding fairs
(read to the end to find the lie!)
Would you like to feature in a future edition of get to know a goal? Send your answers to the above questions to press@goaldiggersfootballclub.com.
PLAYER SHOUT-OUTS
SUPER LIGA SUNDAY (16 June)
Big love to all those Goals who held the fort at Colombo this weekend, especially Georgia and Hope who played 4 40 minute games in pretty sultry conditions. Also thanks to Os & Ikka who joined the ranks of our beginners team and Clapham Wasps/Bees who loaned us a number of players for the Advanced games even when they were in opposition!
The Beginners team opened with a 0-0 against Lush Lyfe, a game with plenty of chances but no goals as both goalkeepers put in sterling performances between the sticks. The second game saw Goals face the delightful Free Rangers FC and Paula transitioning into the unfamiliar role of “Big Man Up Top” However it was Hope who made the breakthrough stabbing the ball past an advancing keeper. With Paula going on to claim an incredibly rare hat trick Goals went on to win 4-0. Special mention to Karma who battled on despite a badly bruised foot
With only enough players for one team, All Stars having to forfeit , the GDFC torch was handed to Legends now buoyed by the firepower of River in the ranks plus our friends from Clapham. Game one saw a fierce battle with Marti, the opposition seemingly in control at 4-1 up midway through the second half. Yet Goals never faltered and claim so close to rescuing a point as they pulled it back to 5-4 before the final whistle wrecked hopes of a draw. After so long on the field Goals’s aching limbs had one more hurdle to negotiate. Unfortunately that hurdle came in the form of Clapham Bees, the afternoon finishing with a 7-2 defeat with River scoring again to take her total for the day to 3.
SUNDAY 8s (16 June)
What a glorious day it was for some Sunday 8s Footy. With 2 very tough matches to hand the results didn't quite go our way, but this stellar squad brought the good vibes, the grit & the gorgy GDFC ethos to make it a lovely day nonetheless.
Coach's POTM was Antoinette for holding their own in one hell of a 1 vs 1 battle with a rough defender - not merely surviving, but arguably THRIVING in the thick of it.
Captain's POTM was Julia for an incredible showing in defence, complete with an off-the-line clearance & the steel to play out from the back even under pressure.
Fan's POTM was Jordan for stepping in at the 11th hour & absolutely tearing up that right wing - what a debut!!
Also special S/O to Coach Amii for a brilliant stint in goal after our solid GK Lorraine picked up an injury (hope the hammy's alright, Lorraine!)
CLUBS UNITED SATURDAY 5s (15 June)
The second week of Clubs United rolled around, and GDFC were up against Deptford Ravens. Riley was absolutely steadfast in goal, keeping a clean sheet for GDFC and pulling off some abolutely cracking saves. Deptford Ravens gave Riley the Clubs United Player of the Match. With Riley keeping us safe in goal, the rest of GDFC were feeling ready to test out their shooting skills. The match was so much fun, and the confidence the whole team felt on the pitch was testament to strong communication and flexibility in positions. Everyone was brilliant, and Player of the Match from Captain Jess went to Frankie who played superbly in both defence and attack and had so much tenacity across the pitch. The final score was 10 - 0 to GDFC, with goals from Ruby (3), Jess (3), Molly (2) and River (2).
And for the other team...Hells Bells 2 FC Goal Diggers 3
Forsaking the pleasures of Portugal for the Costa del Haggerston, FCGD put in a full shift on Saturday twice coming from behind to register a magnificent 3-2 win in match never deserved to lose. Super shout outs to our magnificent ringers, the legends from Legends that are Marika and Polly. The striking pair brought more hi-NRG to the team than an 80s night in Heaven, rather apt considering both left the dance floor around 3am!! It’s was a real ding dong battle with both keepers called into action throughout a thrilling first half. It was Hells Bells who took the lead with shot that Paula managed to get a hand to but only enough to take the pace off the ball as it dropped into the net behind her. Bang on half time it was Polly who drilled a low angled shot into the far bottom corner of the net finally breaking the hosts’s resistance. However Hells Bells retook the lead early in the second half as a player pounced on a Paula parry to find the net. It was all square again as an HL quick kick in was diverted into the net at close range by Polly with the same player completing the comeback, pouncing on an underhit clearance from the keeper to slam the ball home.
TUESDAY 7s (18 June)
What a delight! Captain Beth gave Annie POTM for some amazing runs and a great goal - giving us a win in our penultimate match of the league. Big welcome back to River, we love Tuesdays and Tuesdays loves us!
WEDNESDAY TRAINING (19 June)
Congrats to Laura, Iso and HL for an excellent Wednesday session!
COMMUNITY CORNER
Shout out to Pri for this lovely shout out to GDFC - https://www.iq-mag.net/2024/06/lgbtiq-list-2024-priscilla-nagashima-dice/
This section is reserved for anyone in the club who has stuff they want to share (job posting, events, other cool opportunities -- whatever!) If you ever want to add anything to this section just email press@goaldiggersfootballclub.com and put 'NEWSLETTER' in the subject line.
Two truths and a lie...Rachel's lie is NUMBER ONE!
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