Midfielder Lindsey Morgan hoping West Ham Ladies' hard work on training ground will be rewarded on the pitch

Midfielder Lindsey Morgan hopes the West Ham Ladies’ hard work on the training pitch will see them climb up the table once they return to FA Women’s Premier League South.

The Hammers haven’t played a league game since they beat Chesham United 3-1 on December 8 because of the wet weather conditions so far this winter and might not play another league game until March.

The Ladies currently sit fourth from bottom having picked up 12 points from their opening 12 games and Lindsey believes the prolonged winter break has been a positive.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

"I think to a certain extent having a break from games has worked in our favour," the 33 year old said. "It has enabled us to regroup and given us the opportunity to work together as a squad to improve in some areas.

"I can't really see any issues arising as a result of the backlog of games. It will obviously prolong our season but for me this will only become an issue if we suffer any injuries because we don't have the biggest squad this season in comparison to previous years."

Lindsey rejoined West Ham United in 2011 from Millwall Lionesses and has impressed so far this season with one player of the match award and a goal in 12 appearances.

"My hope moving forward is that we put in some good solid team performances and pick up some momentum,’ she continued. "It is important that we pull together and work for each other and hopefully the results will start to reflect the hard work we are putting in on the training pitch.

"As a senior player I look forward to continuing to nurture the young talent at the club and will pass on my experience to the other players in the squad whenever possible."

The midfielder had planned to hang up her boots at the end of the 2011/12 campaign but admits she now has no plans to retire. "I have spoken previously about retirement but while I'm fit and injury free hanging up my boots couldn't be further from my mind," she said.

As for the departures of fellow senior players, forward Becky Merritt and goalkeeper Toni Anne Wayne, she added: "It is the nature of football that there will be a natural turnover of players at the club. However, that being said it is always disappointing to lose experienced players. On a positive note we have a lot of good young talent at the club and perhaps this will give them the opportunity that they need to break through into the first team."

The Ladies play their home games at Thurrock FC, Ship Lane, Grays, Essex, RM19 1YN.

West Ham Ladies awards 2012/2013 - as nominated by the girls

The West Ham Ladies finished their season last weekend with a defeat away at league
champions Reading. Shortly after the game, Blowing Bubbles caught up with Toni Anne Wayne, Hannah Gowland, Zoe Lipley- Hinton, Stacey Little, Becky Merritt, Lindsey Morgan and captain Rosey Sullivan to give their votes in six categories.At the bottom of each category, we have also decided who we think should win.

Goal of the Season

TAW: Hannah Gowland’s goal against Leeds in the FA Cup. It was a game of limited
chances and she took it well.

HG: For me it has to be the second goal we scored against Gillingham away. I scored it which I am proud about but that’s not why. It was such a great team goal. It all started from the goalkeeper, worked its way through all positions, before it was given to me to score.

ZLH: Becky Merritt’s goal against Brighton because it was just a lovely clean hit.

SL: This goal sticks in my mind for the way Kell picked the ball up and ran through the QPR defence before sliding the ball underneath the keeper. Unfortunately, Kell also went on to break her collarbone in this game.

BM: We were 2-1 down with minutes to play and Lindsey smashed a half volley to earn us a point.

LM: Even though we lost the game it was an unbelievable strike from outside the box.

RS: Katie Bottom’s goal against Reading last weekend.

The Blowing Bubbles Award for Ladies Goal of the Season goes to Becky Merritt for her goal against Brighton and Hove Albion Ladies.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

Best Team Performance

TAW: Spurs away where we won 1-0. We played well as a team, everyone from front to back contributed to the win.

HG: Our FA Cup game against Leeds was our best team performance. We were 3-0 down at half time and after a decent talk in the changing room, we came out in the second half such a better team. We got two goals back and was [sic] unlucky not to get a third in the last few minutes. Our fighting spirit to get back at them, determination and team effort was great. We couldn’t have worked harder. If only we were like that first half.

ZLH:  Tottenham away. We just played really well as a team and played some great football.

SL:  Our home match against Brighton which we won 2-0. We always seem to struggle against Brighton and we never play well in both halves against anyone. So to beat Brighton (who had a very strong team this year) 2-0and play well in both the first
and second half was very pleasing for both players and
management.

BM: Our best team performance was when we beat Brighton at home 2-0. We were hungry for the win from the first whistle, everyone put their bodies on the line to prevent and score goals.

LM: For me it has to be Brighton at home. I scored the goal after 10 mins and it was just a brilliant team performance.

RS: For me, it has to be our 3-0 win over Tottenham.

The Blowing Bubbles Award for Best Ladies Performance of the Season goes to the performance against Brighton and Hove Albion at home.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

Best Individual Performance

TAW: Becky Merritt against Brighton at home. High work rate, first touch was brilliant and she scored a screamer.

ZLH: Toni Anne Wayne against Millwall. She pulled off some amazing saves to keep us in that game.

SL: Hannah Gowland vs Witham. Although Witham are ranked way below us, nothing should be taken away from Hannah for scoring a hat trick in six minutes in this game. Hannah had only just joined West Ham Ladies so she had done well to fit in to the team and made her mark early on. She was a massive miss for us the rest of the season after she broke her ankle.

BM: Toni Anne Wayne against Millwall. She pulled off some incredible saves to help us gain a well-earned point from the league leaders at the time.

LM: She stepped up this season from the reserves and she made the right back position her own and away at Tottenham this year she was brilliant. She has improved her game and become a regular first team player.

RS: Stacey Little on so many occasions. She works so hard on the pitch and covers so much ground.

The Blowing Bubbles Award for Ladies Individual Performance of the Season goes to Toni Anne Wayne for her performance away at Millwall Ladies.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

Best Goal Celebration

TAW: The team celebration after April Bowers’ goal against Spurs away.

HG: The best goal celebration for me would be after the second goal against Gillingham. After such a great team goal and great team effort, we all celebrated and come[sic] together to cheer and congratulate each other. It was nice.

ZLH: The celebration after April Bowers’ goal against Spurs. Before the game we said if we scored we would do the train celebration out of  [2001 film directed by Gurinder Chadha] Bend It Like Beckham.

SL: Tottenham away, April Bowers’ goal. We had actually been discussing this
before the game if we scored what our celebration would be.

BM: The team celebration after April Bowers’ goal against Spurs away.

LM: The team celebration after April Bowers’ goal against Spurs away.

RS: The best goal celebration was against Tottenham. The girls walked on their hands and knees in a row holding onto each others ankles. It was also a great result against Tottenham.

The Blowing Bubbles Award for Best Ladies Goal Celebration of the Season goes to the celebration of April Bowers' goal away at Tottenham Hotspur Ladies.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

Funniest in Dressing Room

TAW: April Bowers because she says the most
stupid things.

HG: The funniest in the dressing room is difficult because we all crack jokes but if I had to pick someone it would be April Bowers. She is very random, always comes
out with weird sayings, sings and loves a boogie. Plus she brings sweets before a game
and calls them "badman" sweets.

ZLH: Stacey Little. She just comes out with the best little comments.

SL: I’d have to say April due to the fact that we’ll all be sitting there, music playing and she will burst into song or impress us with her dance moves all of a sudden.

BM: April Bowers because she pretty much reinvents the English language with her gangster spin!

LM: Danica Revell. She is funny without even knowing it. She can be so blonde.

RS: Funniest in the changing room is Stacey
Little. She is always coming out with funny comments or jokes that have the whole
team laughing. Very comical girl.

The Blowing Bubbles Award for Dressing Room Joker goes to April Bowers.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

Team Diva

TAW: Stacey Little because if there is anything to moan about she will find it.

HG: The team diva is Rosey. She is always worrying about her hair and makeup.
Both have to be perfect and she never likes it going wrong especially when it rains. She loves the fake tan too.

ZLH: Kelley Blanchflower.

SL: Rosey Sullivan. That’s easy and I’m sure she will be everyone else’s choice too.
The moisturising to make sure the tan doesn’t peel, the panic when it starts raining that her hair is going to go knotty and mascara will run. Wouldn’t change our Rose though.

BM: Rosey Sullivan or Kelley Blanchflower. Pure TOWIE. You should see them if there is a photo and they were not given sufficient time to prepare.

LM: Kelley Blanchflower.

RS: I am the biggest diva (or so I have been told plenty of times) but if I'm not voting
for myself it would be Kelley Blanchflower. She's kind of similar to me with having our hair perfect, making sure we are pretty and smelling good before the game. She can also get the hump if things aren't going positively but guess that's the whole team.
We still love her.

The Blowing Bubbles Award for Biggest Diva goes to Rosey Sullivan.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

West Ham Ladies fall further behind league leaders Millwall Lionesses and Reading

West Ham United Ladies’ push for promotion out of the FA Women’s Premier League Southern Division has stuttered in recent weeks.

The most frustrating afternoon in the last few weeks came on April 7 when they were held to a 1-1 draw at home to relegation-threatened Queens Park Rangers.

Bottom-club Rangers hit the front after just nine minutes, when Sophie Fogarty collected Elly Magg's cross, before finishing emphatically.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

It was a lead they would cling on to until the latter stages of the contest, as the visitors went in search of a second away win in succession.

However, parity was restored with 78 minutes on the clock, courtesy of midfielder Lindsey Morgan's sixth goal of the campaign.

Sadly a winner was not forthcoming and as the final whistle echoed around the ground, West Ham's winless sequence in the league stood at four, which included a defeat against Reading.

Ironically, the point lifted the Hammers into third but saw them lose further ground at the top.

With frontrunners Millwall Lionesses and second-placed Reading both winning, both have built a considerable points total clear of West Ham with only a few games remaining.

On Sunday, the Hammers travel to Colchester, who are sitting comfortably mid-table, in their next FA Women's Premier League Southern Division fixture.

The last time the sides squared up in the league they drew 1-1. This clash came shortly after ‘Col U’ dumped the Ladies out on the County Cup on February 17, beating them 1-0 in the semi-final.

The Ladies next home game is against Yeovil Town on April 28. It’s a 2pm kick off at Thurrock FC.

West Ham Ladies midfielder Lindsey Morgan staying on until Ladies are promoted

During the summer of 2011, Lindsey Morgan decided the upcoming season would be her last and aimed to leave on a high with the West Ham Ladies securing promotion.

Fast forward to the end of the 2011/12 campaign and the Ladies missed out on promotion by the narrowest of margins, leaving the retiring midfielder devastated.

But a few conversations with manager Julia Setford and other experienced players in the Ladies’ squad and the 32-year-old decided to postpone her retirement for another season to help her side get promotion.

Mikey Cartwright/Ponderosa Pix

And this season, Lindsey has helped to spearhead the Ladies’ push for promotion, netting three goals in the opening seven matches.

“I stayed on because I think we are going to get promoted this season,” she told Blowing Bubbles. “The girls really want to do it this season and I think I would have been gutted not to have been part of our push for promotion this season.

“I have scored more goals so far this season than I did for the whole of last season and I feel like I am playing pretty decent stuff. Of course it gives me more confidence to be scoring goals for the team, but for me, providing assists for my team mates to score goals is just as important as scoring them myself.”

The goals scored by Lindsey has helped the Hammers grab ten early points from a possible 18 already this season.

And she knows that the beginning of the season will indicate where the team should be aiming for at the end of the season.

“It is massively important to get off to a good start in the league because the first few months are the foundation for how the season shapes up,” she continued

“Having a solid defence is also important, but the defending starts from the front. It is equally as important that we work together as a team.”

Lindsey rejoined West Ham United last summer from Millwall Lionesses, who she joined from the Hammers back in August 2009.

She continued: “This season we’ve got a few new faces and at the moment I feel we have a good mixture of experience and youth.

“In some games we’ve needed the older ones to take the game by the scruff of the neck and help give the younger ones some guidance.

“But the young girls in our squad have that desire and hunger to get stuck in and fight for the win and I think gives us a bit of an edge.”

She added: “I really want to stay until we get promoted because I feel like I’ve got unfinished business here because we’ve been so close in the past and I don’t want to go without helping achieve this.”

West Ham Ladies are next playing at home on Sunday, November 18 against Tottenham in the FA Womens’ Premier League
Southern Division The game kicks off at 2pm.

The Ladies play their home games at Thurrock FC, Ship Lane, Grays, Essex, RM19 1YN.