Berries sit 1 point clear at the top 3 of the table at the halfway point of the Malta Guinness Women Premier League campaign and also carry good defensive record, having conceded just 12 goals from their 8 league fixtures with a game at hand on Monday, 1st January 2024 at 2pm.

Ahead of the Madina Astroturf meeting with Police Ladies FC on New Year’s Day, Freeman discussed his side’s progress and more at his pre-match conversation with Berry Ladies Media Team.

Read on for a summary of what he had to say on Sunday morning…

On having one of the best defensive record in the Women’s Premier League and what has made the difference this season…

General defending obviously, that’s how it has become though this year hasn’t being good as the previous years…it’s always a problem if us lose too many balls in moments where you don’t expect it this season. How many goals did we concede – 12? Probably eight or nine of them were after we lose the ball and some few mistakes at the back. Recently we stepped up counter-pressing-wise against Soccer Intellectuals, which helped as win the match. That means if everybody should reacts better – front line, midfield line and in the last line obviously we can concede less and be the best. We worked obviously a lot on it this week and hopefully we can see much improvement in our next game with Police Ladies FC..

On what he’s expecting from Police Ladies FC…

First and foremost, it’s a privilege to have everyone believe in you and the team but I don’t have those high expectations during matches. I don’t like to analyze and give high hopes because Police Ladies FC is equally good, and they can surprise us anytime. I have been a coach long enough to know that everything can happen, and you can lose a game with 30 shots or with 34 or whatever – you can draw these kinds of games as well. So, everything is possible on Monday’s game. Our previous wins, draws and lose will have nothing to do with Police Ladies, we go in with different strategies and make sure we come out with the needed 3 points.

On how much happier he is this year…

[I am] 60 percent happier! Our current position on the table is not that bad compared to other teams and our legacy as a team and brand. I will say we are not yet there as we targeted but so far so good and we will love to improve each day and time till we win the league. We are taking it a game at a time, but I am happy though not fully happy.

On Berry Ladies’s plan for being without Jacqueline Amponsah and key injured players…

We would have solutions today and I hope we have that after the Police game as well but at Berry Ladies Fc we have a lot of good players that are fitting in well. It’s not the first time, it’s a really at least very average situation that you lose some key players, but we had it even worse in the past when Martha Appiah and two others left on loan, and we came somehow through it. Management and the technical team are aware from time to time some of our key players will get call ups, so we prepare ahead of time. We know all these and now we have to deal with it, and we will because we have equally good players that can fill in.

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