Romford's promotion hopes took a hammer blow this weekend as they were beaten on the road at Hutton. With several key players missing, the Belles never really hit their stride, albeit their opponents were mostly restricted to long range efforts in a poor game.

As it was, despite dominating the opening hour of the game, Romford were unable to convert a host of chances and paid the price as the home side cashed in with three goals in the final third of the match, despite their limited possession.

The Belles remain third in the league but with the chasing clubs having a number of games in hand their attention will now turn to the huge upcoming home and away fixtures with fourth placed Stanway Rovers.

Boro will return to action with a trip to Leigh Ramblers on 7th April.

Squad: Beard, Doyle-love, Toms, Saviciute, Lakes, Crawford, Simpson, Stewart, F Lafaurie-Tull, Eastwell, A Lafaurie-Tull: Shanahan, Ludlow

Under 16's

Abbey Youth 1 - 0 Romford

Romford under 16's were knocked out of the Essex County League Cup after an agonising semi final defeat at A division rivals Abbey Youth. Despite a dominant performance with the ball, Boro were denied by a sensational display from home keeper Martha Bruton who proved unbeatable on a blustery day in Waltham Abbey.

Boro's woes began before the game as they had players unavailable due to injury and with others ineligible, they were already short of numbers when Berrie Antoniou limped off after just 7 minutes. In truth those absences made little difference on the pitch as the Belles laid siege to the home net, only to find Bruton in inspired form.

Tabitha Hellen could have had a penalty after just five minutes when she was clipped in the box, and she was the main threat once again a few minutes later as she burst through and rounded Bruton but was crowded out by the home defence. Charlotte Walsh then looked to have scored when she blasted a loose ball from a corner goalwards only for Bruton to tip over the bar from point blank range. Bruton would continue her wonderful day as she saved bravely at the feet of both Hellen and Lily Stuart-Evans as Boro continued to pour forward, while Lottie Lambert was next to test her from range.

The deciding moment of the game came a minute before half time when Erin Pitney went down injured and Boro put the ball out of play for her to receive treatment. Abbey chose not to return the ball and the throw-in was launched into the box where it fell to Caitlin Ulyatt who poked home from the host's only attempt at goal on the day.

The second half began in much the same fashion as the first as Romford dominated the ball but were met with resilient defending from the home side. The first big chance came 13 minutes after the break when Chloe Bramley found Hellen whose shot flashed agonisingly across the goal and inches wide.

Next to go close was Isobel Pitney, returning from a 7 week injury lay off, whose effort from a corner also dropped narrowly wide as Boro continued to do everything but score. However, as the minutes ebbed away and the ball began to spend less time in play, it became harder for the Belles to fashion opportunities. Still, Walsh found Stuart-Evans clear on goal with ten minutes remaining but Bruton saved brilliantly again. The game ended in a flurry of Boro attacks but to no avail, as Abbey held on.

Manager James Kearns was understandably disappointed after the game, saying "It's a bitter pill to swallow, given how the game played out and the teams we have beaten to get to this point. However, Martha was unbelievable in goal for them and we just couldn't pick the right pass or find the right finish when we needed it. I'm really disappointed for the girls because they have been brilliant all season long and I couldn't have asked any more of them today, especially our Player of the Match, Mia Murray who was fantastic. They all gave everything and we were just out of luck. As for their goal, I'd have liked to have seen the ball come back but it's not in the rules and we can't complain about it. We wish them the best of luck and we have to be ready to keep our league form going when we come back after Easter".

Squad: M Pitney, C Bramley, D Colkett, A Sambani (c), H Winser, E Pitney, M Murray, C Walsh, L Stuart-Evans, T Hellen, B Antoniou: L Lambert, I Pitney

Player of the Match: Mia Murray

Boro will return to league action back at Abbey Youth on April 7th.

Under 13's

Romford 0 - 6 Buckhurst Hill

Finally, our Under 13's signed off their league campaign with a home defeat to a high class Buckhurst Hill side. The game itself was pulsating viewing as Boro went toe to toe with the high flying visitors, as both teams played at a high intensity and kept the ball moving.

The young Belles were also struggling with a small matchday squad, and despite a fine first 60 minutes, they eventually tired and the visitors fired home some late goals to give the scoreline an unfairly lopsided view. Kayla Lunan was the player of the match for Boro, who showed some encouraging signs ahead of next season as they reshape their squad in anticipation of the new campaign.

Squad: Cave, J Cupidon, M Cupidon, Dennis, Kinnard, Lunan, Osben, Newman, Nolan, Turner, Willis

Player of the Match: Kayla Lunan