that could happen

Maybe this is a dream-like scenario to happen tomorrow, but I voted for Leeds!

I like underdogs, and you never know...

I wish I was going tomorrow, but at least I will be able to watch it on tv

Just seen on BBC Teletext that Jayne Ludlow is not expected to play, but they are often late with the news.
And this will be my 13th Arsenal Ladies game this season, not unlucky 13 I hope

Early start tomorrow, so bed now before I get a complaint from somewhere

bbc.co.uk: 'Jayne Ludlow, who scored the last-gasp semi-final header which saw the league champions get past Charlton, has a knee injury and is not expected to play.'

Well looks like she probably won't, but she'll still be there!!

Arsenal LADIES FA CUP WINNERS 2006!!!!!!!!!

GGGGGGEEEETTTTTTT IIIIIIINNNNNNNNN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Arsenal Ladies 5-0 Leed Ladies
OG Lucy Ward
Julie Fleeting
Lianne Sanderson
Rachel Yankey
Kelly Smith

POTM: Lianne Sanderson-she really desereved it, was all over the place creating chances almost every time she had the ball, and scored a great goal!! She should be listed on Hopes first team list tommorow, which for her will be ace!


Well, Arsenal dominated all the way through, we made the chances and scored the goals! All credit to Leeds though they played OK, not the best i have seen them but they tried, Gemma Fay in goal got off to a bad start but really did make some great saves in the secong half. She stuck at it and would not give up, she kept Arsenal at bay for a lot of the second half, she made the difference to whether it was going to be a 10-0 scoreline!!
On to Arsenal well what can you say...they won! Lianne stood out as the most creative player, Kelly was all over the place making runs and making Leeds' life bad!! Rachel Yankey never stopped running down the flanks always a threat and had a wicked game, both her and Lianne switched nicely. Alex Scott had a good game as did Faye. Didn't see as much of Mary but that's because there was much to do in defence !!! Julie Fleeting was super up front always cutting in between defenders, pressuring Leeds all the time, she again had a great game!! Jayne she played and well she played good! Didn't get onto the ball a lot but made good runs etc etc...can't believe i am already forgetting the game, i think i suffer from memory loss ! Well if anything else comes back into my head, will say it!!
Most of all well done to every single one of the girls all the effort they put in was ace, felt sorry for Yvonne seeing her on crutches and not going up on the stand thing but she was there and that counts!!

ooooh yeah reports from various places:

bbc.co.uk: Arsenal Ladies 5-0 Leeds Ladies

Yankey scored one and made two as Arsenal coasted to victory
A Rachel Yankey-inspired Arsenal eased to victory over Leeds at the New Den to secure their seventh FA Cup triumph.
Leeds got off to a disastrous start when Lucy Ward headed into her own net.

Julie Fleeting made it 2-0 when she latched onto Leanne Sanderson's slipped pass to finish coolly and then Yankey made it three with a 25-yard free-kick.

Leeds keeper Gemma Fay pulled off a series of saves, but Kelly Smith scored a penalty after Yankey had been felled and Leanne Sanderson wrapped it up.

In truth though, the Gunners should have doubled their winning margin after completely dominating the match from start to finish.

Somehow they failed to convert a number of second-half chances, the best of which fell to Kelly Smith, who turned Yankey's pass onto the post from 10 yards.

Otherwise, it was down to Leeds keeper Fay to keep the scoreline respectable.

First she did well to palm away a curled Yankey effort, before denying Fleeting from six yards and then Yankey again from an angle.

However, she could do nothing with Smith's low penalty after Yankey had been brought down by 16-year-old Jess Clarke, and Sanderson's 77th-minute solo goal put a seal on a comfortable afternoon.

Leeds' best chances fell to Karen Burke, but twice her speculative efforts from wide on the right failed to trouble the Arsenal goal.


fairgame:

FA WOMEN'S CUP FINAL
Arsenal 5-0 Leeds United
At Millwall FC,
Attendance: 13,452.

Leeds made the worst possible start, going behind within three minutes. Rachel Yankey's cross led to Lucy Ward slicing the ball just past her own post but when Yankey put in the corner kick, Ward headed into her own net, under pressure from Julie Fleeting. Yankey caused more problems, when cut inside Mel Cook but Gemma Fay made a smart block down to her right.

Leeds first threatened when a fine Natalie Preston pass picked out Karen Walker and a corner was won, but Arsenal eventually cleared any danger. Jess Clarke set Karen Burke away down the right but her cross-cum-shot was well gathered under the bar by Emma Byrne.

Arsenal were on top as Kelly Smith delivered a great cross for Fleeting but the header landed on the roof of the net and Nat Haigh was cautioned for bringing down Player of the Match, Lianne Sanderson on the edge of the box. Sanderson's fine pass to Fleeting was well blocked out by Ward.

But Leeds conceded twice in as many minutes, Sanderson beat Ward to the ball and centered for Fleeting, who found the far corner on 33 minutes. Yankey then fired in a 35-yard free-kick from wide right, which the keeper was unable to keep out.

Karen Burke was wide of the Gunners' far post with a snapshot. Faye White picked out Fleeting from distance but Gemma Fay made a good stop at the striker's feet.

The Gunners continued to pressure after the break, Sanderson went just wide after a pull back from Kelly Smith and Fleeting should have scored when set up by Yankey. Kelly Smith was denied by the post and Yankey twice brought fine saves from Fay, as she cut through the defence and then broke free on the left. Nicole Emmanuel was then booked for a foul on Yankey.

Fay conceded a free-kick on the edge of the box, which hit the wall but the rebound fell for Fleeting and the keeper pulled off another good stop.

Arsenal went 4-0 up with a penalty on 72 minutes, Alex Culvin bringing down Yankey and Smith tucked the spot-kick away well. It was five another five minutes on, as Sanderson sped away to slip the ball through the keepr's legs.

Rachel McArthur came off the bench to go close for Arsenal and faye White also had a good effort from 25 yards.

Arsenal: Byrne, - Scott (Daniels,84), White, Phillip, Champ, - Ludlow (Grant,73), Asante, - Sanderson, K.Smith, Yankey, - Fleeting.

LEEDS UNITED: Fay, - Cook (Walton, 52), Haigh, Ward, Culvin, - Emmanuel, Preston (Owen,85), Burke, - Clarke, S.Smith, - Walker (Panesar,85).

Long post sorry! Hope everyone gets back safely and can't wait to read other peoples opinions on the game!

agree with justme, nice sum up! lol, I watched it on telly, Leeds got hammered, Sanderson was awesome (yes I did say Sanderson was awesome)
Gunners defence didnt have to do much, neither did Emma in goal - on the other hand Leeds defence were run ragged and Fay made some great saves in the second half, thought the pen was a little generous - but Kel tucked it away nicely!
not much to say; masterclass by Arsenal!

hope pplz had a good time at the game

Is it unusual for you to say Sanderson is awesome !? Yeah the penalty was a bit cheeky, was surprised it was given! At the time in the game i was shouting for Kell to score, so was banging on the tv for her to take it, which she did in some fashion!!

haha yes!
Fleets could have had a handful of goals but she did score once, when she was interviewed ~ reminded me of me mam and family, love their accents
was gutted when Kel hit the inside of the post; was waiting for her to score
Fleets, Kel & Yanks on the score sheet - that usually makes me happy

aaaaawwww Joolz is lovely lol!! Her accent so broad , ah yeah, duh my god i am stupid Yankey's goal lovely "cross" as she said! Keeper was a bit of a muppet to be that far off her line ! I thought when Kel hit the post it was somehow going go in...but it didn't!
So what is it then you don't like about Lianne!?

Did anyone else think Gavin looked gutted by the result.

So it looks like Lianne made the England squad to be announced tommorrow. Whos place will she take Eluko or Smith?

Don't think he looked gutted as such...maybe he wasn't excpecting it to be such a high scoreline!!
I don't think Lianne will take anyones place but it's going to be hard with so many strikers now, i reckon that barr won't get as much playing time as she should for england now that Lianne has come in!

I throughly enjoyed the game and thought that Arsenal really showed how to playa game and waht they play like when they hit the high gears.
Yanks and Sanderson were brilliant and ran the flanks really well, fleets was at the heart of keeping everything goin forward and even though she dropped back at times she still maaged to keep everything goin forward and keep the movement bewteen her and the rest of the Arsenal team really fluid.
I did feel soory for leeds as their keepr did really well in the second half, but that didnt stop me shouting wen the goals went in for the girls, and it hink i annoyed my housemates with my shouting at the telly for kelly smith to score and wen she did made me well pleased and her cooment at the end of the match was so true and jst shows how much this means to everybody that plays. WELL SAID KELLY

Nice one Arsenal... well deserved
Be interesting now as to whether its Everton or charlton in the community shield next year!

Agree with that Ambro! Yeah really hoping its Everton for the community sheild then Arsenal to win it!

cheers dude.... yeah should be a good one if it is Arsenal vs Everton!

Yeah Arsenal vs Everton would be good but we thrashed them last time!!


Ok...a friend just texted me saying she watched the game and said she saw kelly smith and that she thought the match was good...this is a friend who turns her nose up to any sport...wow maybe my kelly smith lectures are working!!

My women of the match was rachel yankey, she roasted the defenders time and time again.
I can't beleive the girls missed so many chances ?
Nevermind what a great result. I jsut did not understand the substitutionsmade by Vic Akers ?
Why McArthur who is the least talented member of the squad and Daniels ?

As for the subs well i think Vik was just trying to give them a run out, seeing as it was the final and all...i don't think Mcarthur is the least talented, i don't think any of the Arsenal ladies lack any talent, just some are more skilled and others play differently!
Your are right about Yankey, though i still reckon Lianne deserves potm because she had played a full 90 mins for england U-19's only a few days before, which shows how good she is!!

Hello

Well, everything that needed to be said about the game, has been said already
I had a great time, awesome atmosphere (nearly 13.500 people!) and we won the FA Cup!
I'm surprised to see someone saying here Rachel McArthur is the least talented in Arsenal
As far as I'm concerned, she brings a lot to the game overall and she scores.
I remember her at the UEFA QF game, her hat trick against Wimbledon, and a few other goals,
and I think she's very talented and highly underappreciated.
Anyway, back to yesterday's game, I don't think anyone deserves to be praised over others,
I loved the way we played as a team - although Rachel Yankey was everywhere
- and for me she was the player of the match.
Overall our defenders and midfield were brilliant as usual so the game was most of the time on one side of the pitch again.
Leeds did not make it easy for us though and I think they were defending well, despite of what the 5-0 result says.
Kelly, Lianne, Mary, Jayne, Fleets, Faye and others played at their usual awesome level, I'm proud of my Gunners again
Oh, and I took over 1000 photos, I'll select and post 50-100 of them soon

This one is from the UEFA site




PS: Please post your questions/info in relevant topics.
There is a topic about England's international games in the Women's International Section
and this one here is about the FA Cup. Thank you.

The FA Cup is going where it belongs

Such an important game to win, even Vic Akers put a suit on afterwards. I've never seen him anything but a track suit before